ASAA Championships unite love for the game from hundreds of miles away

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Thousands of basketball fans, from every corner of the state, poured into the Alaska Airline Center over the weekend for the 2024 Alaska March Madness Basketball Competition. High school students, including a few 8th graders, competed in the 1A and 2A Division championship games to take home the winning title.

“It’s a real special event every year,” Billy Strickland, the Alaska School Activities Association executive director, said. “So it’s a real statewide gathering every year of families coming in and in cheering on for their, for their local schools.”

About 5,000 fans packed the stands on Friday and that same energy, Strickland said, was met again on Saturday. Some fans at the arena travel hundreds from places like Newhalen and Minto to watch the teams battle it out on the court.

“I’m actually a coach down in Northway,” Jamey Titus, Northway, said. “I go to the Boys and Girls Basketball High School. But unfortunately, we didn’t get to make it to state this year but we’re just here to support all the other ones that made it and see family and friends it was a good time.”

Basketball fan Christian Hunter drove from Fairbanks to watch the championship games. Hunter said basketball is a sport that connects Alaskans.

“Everybody just grew up with basketball and they loved seeing all their like kids and relatives playing,” Hunter said. “Just make them like have that energy in their chests explode watching them play all the time.”

More championship games will take place next week when the 3A and 4A division teams take the court.

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