WHEELING, W.Va. — The City of Wheeling will host the next two MEC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournaments, the city and conference announced Tuesday.
The games will be played in the recently renovated WesBanco Arena in downtown Wheeling. The Health Plan, which recently opened a new headquarters in the city, will be the presenting sponsor.
“We are very excited to announce this partnership with the City of Wheeling and The Health Plan,” MEC Commissioner Reid Amos said in a news release. “We believe that the MEC Basketball Tournament has been a first-class experience for our student-athletes, and Wheeling has committed to a bid that provides an opportunity to take the championship experience to a new level.”
Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliott said he sees the new partnership as a great opportunity to build on the growing momentum to revitalize the downtown area.
“It has been encouraging to see so many community partners work together to secure this bid,” Elliott said.
Next year’s tournaments will be held March 6-10. The MEC can exercise an option to hold the event in Wheeling for a third year in 2021.
The tournaments have been in held at the Charleston Civic Center since the league’s inception.