Friday, May 29, 2015

Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship has a Home at Chesapeake Energy Arena

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK (May 29, 2015) —The SMG-managed Chesapeake Energy Arena will host the Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championships through 2019, in conjunction with the Oklahoma City All Sports Association.
On Thursday, the Big 12 awarded the conference’s women’s basketball championship to Chesapeake Energy Arena from 2017-2019. The arena had previously been selected to host the 2016 championship.

“We’re proud the Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship has found a home at Chesapeake Energy Arena,” said Chesapeake Energy Arena General Manager Gary Desjardins. “SMG and Oklahoma City All Sports have a proven track record of hosting top-notch sporting events in Oklahoma City and we look forward to continuing to do so.”

At the conclusion of this agreement with the Big 12, Oklahoma City will have hosted the women’s basketball championship seven times. The 2007 and 2009 championships were played at the SMG-managed Cox Convention Center and the 2014 championship was held at Chesapeake Energy Arena. The 2007 championship saw a conference-record average attendance of 8,165.

“It’s an honor and a privilege to be awarded the Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship for the next four years,” said OKC All Sports Executive Director Tim Brassfield. “Having the event in one place for multiple years creates new opportunities for us to promote the tournament differently. People begin to recognize and understand the branding message being sent, and then with tickets, it creates a renewal process that we haven’t been able to in the past. We can’t wait to get to work with SMG on growing and elevating the women’s championship to another level like we can here in OKC.”

In addition to the Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship, SMG and Oklahoma City All Sports have hosted some of the biggest events in college sports at Chesapeake Energy Arena. The venue has played host to the NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships, Division I Wrestling Championship, Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship and the Big 12 Men’s Basketball Championship.


Ticket information for the 2016 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship will be announced later this summer. Tickets will be available at the arena box office, by phone at (800) 745-3000, online at ChesapeakeArena.com or through the Oklahoma City All Sports Association.