While fans watched players on the hardwood for Friday’s opener, tournament organizers are keeping an eye on the weather.
The tournament for the 18th straight year has been held at Kettering’s Trent Arena.
“A lot of basketball. A lot of craziness, good games,” tournament director and founder Eric Horstman said.
It’s a slam dunk for local basketball fans.
“We have teams coming from Canada, California, Arizona, West Virginia, Georgia, obviously Ohio,” Horstman said. “And hopefully Mother Nature stays away.”
That wish has not been granted in the past, and this weekend’s forecast also is not ideal.
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“The past three years Mother Nature has kicked my butt. We’ve had blizzards and snow and ice,” he said. “It turns my hair gray.”
More than half of the teams playing are not from the Dayton area. They’ll be traveling to participate.
And if for some reason weather prevents them from coming, the tournament will go on.
“We have some contingency plans, some teams on the back burner,” Horstman said.
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