NCHSAA looking for regional basketball site

Que Tucker, deputy director of the N.C. High School Athletic Association, said Monday that there is currently no site for the North Carolina Western Regional Basketball Tournament, scheduled for March 3-7.

The tournament had previously been held in Winston-Salem. Tucker said the NCHSAA is talking with Greensboro and Winston-Salem about hosting the event, which Tucker said costs about $30,000 annually.

Jeff Beaver, executive director of the Charlotte Sports Commission, said he didn't know the NCHSAA was talking to cities and planned to call Tucker Monday. He said his group had similar discussions with the NCHSAA ``several years ago.'' Tucker said she hoped to have a contract signed within a week.

``We're not asking anybody for $30,000 to bring the Western Regional there,'' she said. ``There's a lot of give and take. Sometimes, people will give us the facilities and say 'Here are the things you have to pay.' I know people always ask why do we have so many events in Raleigh, which is a lot more eastern than western. We've been lucky to get the kind of partnerships in Raleigh to where nearly all of our expenses for the championships are underwritten totally and we don't get that kind of support from other cities. That makes it tough.''