While there’s only one winner on the court, there are winners galore when cities host regional finals in the NCAA basketball tournament.
Patrick Moscaritolo, president of the Greater Boston Convention Visitors Bureau, estimates that by hosting the East regional over the three days that ended in Saturday night’s championship, Boston economy took in from $18 million to $22 million.
Besides overflowing restaurants and bars, the March Madness visitors filled more than 4,000 rooms at area hotels, Moscaritolo said.
Imagine how much more New Orleans will benefit from next weekend’s Final Four, thanks to an indoor stadium that has 40,000 more seats than Boston’s TD Garden?
That’s why then Continental Arena in the Meadowlands in 1996 was the last of the standard arenas to host a Final Four.
* Don’t expect Rhode Island to be the final coaching stop for Danny Hurley, who at 39 is one of the rising stars in the college ranks. Big East schools will come calling if he rebuilds Rhode Island’s program in a hurry.
* How long before Carmelo Anthony turns on Mike Woodson like he did Mike D’Antoni? Put Anthony in the same class as other superstars who’ve dictated coaching changes.
* Tim Tebow and the Jets seem like an odd marriage. Somewhere in those Bible scriptures Tebow reads, there must the Eleventh Commandment: Thou shall not play for Rex Ryan.
* Garfield’s Luis Castillo shouldn’t be out of work long. Released by the Chargers in a salary dump, the injury-riddled defensive tackle and former first-round draft pick has visited the Patriots and Chiefs, and San Diego wants him back if he accepts less money.
* This time last off-season critics were on Giants general manager Jerry Reese for not making any splashy free agent signings. A year and a Super Bowl victory later, nobody is getting on him for repeating his strategy. The man knows what he’s doing.