How the Bluegrass State is preparing for a $20 million March Madness showcase

Bourbon, horse racing and basketball — they say that's what Kentucky does.

At least one-third of that will be tested early in 2019.  

There will be a little extra "madness" in Kentucky come March as the commonwealth is gearing up to potentially host four NCAA Tournament events and the boys' and girls' high school state basketball tournaments in a 24-day span.

That doesn't include the potential postseason runs of several in-state college teams, such as the Louisville and Kentucky men's basketball teams, which have put themselves in good positions for March with one month left in the regular season.

"To have all of that rolled into one season? It's very special," said Karl Schmitt, president and CEO of the Louisville Sports Commission, adding that "basketball is so meaningful to our community."

Up to three events could be held in Louisville. Officials estimate the economic impact at upward of $20 million.

Can Kentucky — and, more specifically, Louisville — handle the full-court press?

"Unequivocally yes," Schmitt said. "There are certainly plenty of people to go around in the state of Kentucky who are basketball fans to support all of these events."

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A different kind of Derby City Derby

In Louisville, the city is locked in to host the south regional of the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament on March 28 and March 30.

But the success of the University of Louisville women's team and Bellarmine's men's basketball team means more NCAA Tournament games could be coming to the Derby City.

For the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament, the top 16 seeds — or each region's top four seeds — host the first two rounds at campus sites from March 22-25. Louisville is 23-1 and was ranked No. 2 in the most recent USA TODAY Coaches Poll. The NCAA Tournament committee pegged the Cardinals as a No. 1 seed in its initial bracket reveal.

In the NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament, the regional rounds are hosted by the top eight seeds from March 16-19. Bellarmine is 18-3 and is ranked No. 9 in the most-recent NABC Coaches Poll.

With the addition of those two events, Louisville Tourism officials estimated that the two Division I events, both at the KFC Yum Center, would have an economic impact of $20,815,633. There are no estimates for the potential impact Bellarmine would have hosting.

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In a statement, Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said, "we look forward to welcoming thousands of fans to Louisville and encourage them to experience all that we have to offer, from bourbon distilleries and world-class museums to our music venues and locally owned restaurants."

"As the hometown of Muhammad Ali, Tori Murden McClure and Darrell Griffith, sports are a big part of our city. Whether it’s the Derby, NCAA Tournament, USL Cup, Breeders Cup, PGA Championship or Ironman, we know how to host large-scale sporting events, and all of those events provide a great economic impact for our city," Fischer said.

The University of Louisville won't find out whether it will host the women's tournament until Selection Monday on March 18. But officials said the school is nonetheless prepared to host consecutive events.

That's because of past precedent, said Louisville athletic director Vince Tyra. The Yum Center hosted the men's regional in 2016, and opening round games in 2012 and 2015. This year would mark the fourth-straight year the women would host the opening rounds.

"We have great experience here putting these shows on," Tyra said. "We have the best crowds when we do host the regionals because it's such a basketball-savvy town."

Louisville found out it was hosting this year's regional in 2017, and the preparations started then, officials said. Planning includes coordination between the university, visitor's bureau, hotel industry, airport, police department and ticket sales, among several others.

"Everyone is working together to showcase our entire city," said Danny Plasencia, U of L's director of championships and development, who is the "center-point" of those communications. 

Tyra said he's not concerned about competition. He noted that despite the teams not being set, there are only a couple thousand tickets available for the regional on the NCAA's website.

"Whether it be high school basketball, Bellarmine at their level, or certainly women's basketball and men's ... there's enough experience and history here that there is support at all levels," he said.

Schmitt, of the Kentucky Sports Commission, said success of the tournaments depends on a number of factors, chief among them fan support.

He said that's checked off for the local men's and women's team, noting the latter had the most attended women's game in the country when it played UConn earlier this month.

The outside fan support depends on the teams picked to play in the regional, which can't include Louisville but could potentially include Kentucky or Tennessee.

Schmitt said a lot also depends on the city's hospitality industry, which he said has to be "ready to roll out the red carpet."

Louisville Tourism noted it already has scheduled DJ Pauly D for a concert at Fourth Street Live on March 29, as well as the Bock Beer Festival in NuLu on March 30.

"When you add all those together, it makes for great hosting," Schmitt said.

Basketball is a Kentucky thing

Things are not any quieter when you look across state. And, more specifically, to Lexington.

For the first time, the girls state basketball tournament will be held at Rupp Arena in Lexington after previously being held in Bowling Green and Highland Heights. Lexington is where the boys tournament is held. The girls Sweet 16 is set for March 6-10 and boys Sweet 16 is set for March 13-17.

On top of that, the Kentucky women's team could be in line to host the opening rounds. ESPN's most recent bracketology had the Wildcats as a No. 6 seed, two spots below the threshold to host an opening round. Kentucky was not among the top 16 seeds in the NCAA bracket reveal.

"We’ve hosted several 1st/2nd rounds of the NCAA women’s tournament and will be glad to do so again if invited," UK athletics spokesman Tony Neely said in an email.

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Officials said they started preparing for the state basketball tournaments six months ago.

"It's kind of like submarine duty for a lot of our employees" in terms of working long days., Lexington Center Corporation CEO Bill Owen said. And while it could result in three weekends in a row with tournaments, he's not concerned about the turnout.

"Louisville and Lexington have proven themselves as a destination for NCAA events," he said. "I think that's a tribute to basketball fans in the commonwealth that they will support NCAA events."

Lexington officials said it's hard to pinpoint an exact economic impact figure. But John Pohl, director of sports and equine sales for VisitLEX, estimated that hotels would generate about $500,000 from those three events, and that there would be millions in ancillary spending, including food and entertainment.

And basketball won't be the only sporting event scheduled event over that time period — especially in Louisville.

The Ultra Ankle Bluegrass Tournament for volleyball is scheduled for the Kentucky Exposition Center from March 8 to 10. The 10,000 athletes and attendees are expected to generate a $9,218,352 economic impact.

Then there's the Cheer Derby Louisville Nationals on March 2-3 at the Expo Center, the National Archery in the Schools Program Kentucky State Tournament on March 15-16 at the Expo Center, and JamFest Louisville Nationals at the Kentucky International Convention Center on March 16-17.

Those three events are expected to draw 8,500 attendees, most of them local, and generate a $1.5 million economic impact.

Excluding the Kentucky Derby, Louisville sporting events had a nearly $108 million economic impact in 2017, and $204.5 million in 2018, thanks to the Breeders' Cup. Louisville has already booked over $85 million in 2019, officials said.

The focus still goes to the Madness

There's no doubt that the crown jewel of nonprofessional basketball is the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. And as things are going now, the state of Kentucky is looking like it's going to be well-represented.

There has been at least one Kentucky school in the NCAA Tournament every year since 1963. Four in-state teams have made a single tournament twice: 2012 and 1995.

And this season, Kentucky may again reach that high.

While Kentucky has played up to its lofty expectations, Louisville has been a surprise in its first season under coach Chris Mack. As things stand, both teams should have smaller numbers next to their names come Selection Sunday on March 17. The NCAA pegged Kentucky as a No. 2 seed and Louisville as a No. 4 seed in its bracket reveal.

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Additionally, Northern Kentucky, which made its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 2017, is currently in first place in the Horizon League. They are a projected No. 13 seed, according to ESPN's Bracketology, should they win their conference tournament.

Murray State, which features top NBA prospect Ja Morant, is tied for first in the Ohio Valley Conference. They're looking for a second-straight trip to the NCAA Tournament, and likely need a conference tournament win to make it.

Western Kentucky, which is flowing with talent but has been plagued by inconsistency, is just 1½ games back of first place in the Conference USA. They are talented enough to steal a bid in the conference tournament.

Maybe Eastern Kentucky or Morehead State can steal a bid too? You never know what will happen once conference tournaments begin.

While the closest opening round site to Louisville is more than 200 miles away in Columbus, Ohio, it's safe to say that wherever the teams end up, Kentucky basketball fans will be watching.

Last year, Louisville finished as the No. 2 metered market for the 2018 NCAA Tournament, according to a CBS Sports spokesman, despite the Cardinals just missing out on a spot in the 68-team field.

And Louisville was ESPN's No. 1 local market for college hoops for the 16th-consecutive year. It's 4.2 rating dwarfed that of second-place Kansas City, which posted a 2.6 rating in 2018, the most recent year of data.

Justin Sayers: 502-582-4252; jsayers@courierjournal.com; Twitter: @_JustinSayers. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: courier-journal.com/justins.

Kentucky basketball calendar in March 2019

March 6-10: Kentucky Girls Sweet 16
March 13-17: Kentucky Whitaker Bank Boys Sweet 16
March 16-19: NCAA Division II men's basketball regional round
March 22-25: NCAA Division I women's basketball first and second rounds
March 28/30: NCAA Division I men's south regional