NAIA Tournament

[brewcrew1000]

Saw this NY Times article pop up, i think Visit KC linked it or something but never really knew about the NAIA tournament before, i didn't realize it was so crazy. I really need to check out this tournament sometime. Seems like a cool event but something not really talked about or supported by the local community.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/17/spor ... 1-gym.html

[kcjak]

Sad that this gets overshadowed by the Big 12 and NCAA tournaments - wish it got more coverage by the local media or at least better signage in the CBD.

[aknowledgeableperson]

The NBA use to have 7 or 8 rounds in its annual college draft. At the NAIA tournament one could usually see one, two, or even three players who would be drafted playing for one of the schools. So many people would take a week's worth of vacation to come and see the games.
Of course many of the top schools in the NAIA back then have switched to DII of the NCAA.

[FangKC]

This explains all the drunk people I saw stumbling around Westport in the middle of the day Thursday.

[StL_Dan]

When the the Heart of America Athletic Conference's (re-named Heart of America Conference or "HAC") teams moved to Division I from NAIA Division II for the 2008-09 season (can't belive it's been almost10 years already), the NAIA granted the HAC three auto bids to the national tournament. All other conferences receive two. This was done to increase visibility, attendance and overall support of the tournament by "local" teams. MNU, Baker, Benedictine, Missouri Valley, Evangel and Graceland to name a few. (Jewell transitioned into NCAA DIII a few years before).

At the time, MidAmerica Nazarene University (MNU) in Olathe was the perennial power having won the Division II national championship at CofO in Point Lookout (Branson) in 2007. The NAIA was almost immediately rewarded when MNU went on to three Final Four appearances at Municipal between 2009 and 2016. Other teams have also made deep runs during that time, as well.

Being an MNU grad, I've been to every session and game MNU was a part of during those years, plus additional sessions.

The vibe is awesome. If you are a college backetball junkie - Municipal is THE place for you. Tickets are inexpensive and an all tournament pass can be had for around $100. That gets you into a 32 team tournament in which a champion is crowned within 7 calendar days.

NAIA DI Men's Basketball Championship LINK

[normalthings]

When the the Heart of America Athletic Conference's (re-named Heart of America Conference or "HAC") teams moved to Division I from NAIA Division II for the 2008-09 season (can't belive it's been almost10 years already), the NAIA granted the HAC three auto bids to the national tournament. All other conferences receive two. This was done to increase visibility, attendance and overall support of the tournament by "local" teams. MNU, Baker, Benedictine, Missouri Valley, Evangel and Graceland to name a few. (Jewell transitioned into NCAA DIII a few years before).

At the time, MidAmerica Nazarene University (MNU) in Olathe was the perennial power having won the Division II national championship at CofO in Point Lookout (Branson) in 2007. The NAIA was almost immediately rewarded when MNU went on to three Final Four appearances at Municipal between 2009 and 2016. Other teams have also made deep runs during that time, as well.

Being an MNU grad, I've been to every session and game MNU was a part of during those years, plus additional sessions.

The vibe is awesome. If you are a college backetball junkie - Municipal is THE place for you. Tickets are inexpensive and an all tournament pass can be had for around $100. That gets you into a 32 team tournament in which a champion is crowned within 7 calendar days.

NAIA DI Men's Basketball Championship LINK

What is the benefit of NCAA D3 or even D2 over NAIA D1?