By Austin Shick
The eleven NIRSA regional basketball championships have come to a close, and now we look ahead to the 2016 NIRSA National Basketball Championships, which will be held at The Ohio State University from April 22–24. Hundreds of hopefuls will arrive at The Ohio State University to compete. With a year’s worth of bragging rights on the line, anticipation is rising for those teams registered for this year’s tournament. Will the champion be the powerhouse team with lots of senior leadership or will we see the underdogs pull through and write their own Cinderella story? Join us in Columbus, or follow online, to find out!
Twenty-four teams have accepted their regional qualifying bids from NIRSA regional basketball or club basketball conference play and are ready to compete. From the Men’s Club side, Boston College will return to the National Championship scene with Captain Drew Jacobs and Boston University Regional MVP Kiernan Hughes at the helm. From the Women’s Intramural side, Britny Taylor from the University of Central Florida—a one-time regional MVP, one-time regional all-tournament member, and one-time NIRSA National Championship all-tournament team member—is coming into Columbus to make her final mark on the Championship Series in her senior year.
The one group of attendees that arguably gains the most from their tournament experience is the student officials. Last year, fifty-seven referees from 38 schools were tasked with officiating the tournament’s 160 games over the course of three days. This year’s candidates will receive hours of training and tips from an esteemed group of two dozen clinicians—many of whom split time as both NIRSA professionals and college basketball officials.
The NIRSA National Basketball Tournament and Ohio State University Recreational Sports are excited to announce a unique professional development opportunity with the “Train-the-Trainer Basketball Officiating Workshop.” This workshop is designed for recreational sports professionals, graduate assistants, and undergraduate students who are involved in the training, development, and management of intramural sports basketball officials. The workshop will feature a variety of rich learning activities under the direction of some of NIRSA’s finest basketball officiating clinicians who will be complemented by nationally-recognized guest speakers in the field. For more information about this opportunity, please contact Bruce Maurer.
It’s not too late for your team to get in on the action! Registration for the 2016 NIRSA National Basketball Championships is open through Monday, April 11 on IMLeagues. And thanks to social media, even those unable to attend the tournament can follow the action! Tournament staff will provide live updates and photos via Twitter and Instagram throughout the weekend from the @NIRSAChamp handle and using the hashtag #NIRSABB. We encourage you to follow these accounts and be part of the excitement! In addition, archives of game recaps and photos for participants to view during and after the event can be found on the tournament website.
For more information about the 2016 NIRSA Championship Series National Basketball Tournament, please contactNIRSA Director of National Sports Programs Valerie McCutchan.
