T H E M A I N E V E N T
MEN'S BASKETBALL BIG TEN TOURNAMENT @ WASHINGTON, D.C.
M A R C H 8 - 1 2
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V E R I Z O N C E N T E R
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B T N / E S P N / E S P N 2 / C B S
Taking place most years in either Indianapolis or Chicago, the Big Ten tournament
has long served as a celebration of the conference's Midwestern roots. But the Big Ten
has a strong presence in the East now that Maryland and Rutgers have joined Penn
State as league members. To help consolidate those gains, the conference is getting set
to play its annual postseason tournament in Washington for the ;rst time. With 6
million people residing in the metro area, the league shouldn't have any trouble ;lling
the 18,277-seat Verizon Center for the later rounds, nor will there be any shortage of
media exposure. Speaking last October at the Big Ten's preseason media day, which
also took place in Washington, comissioner Jim Delany said, "We're going to build
here. We expect to have success here. This is part of the Big Ten footprint." That foot-
print is quite large, as evidenced by the fact that next year's tournament will be in
New York. But the Big Ten hasn't forsaken its roots. A
