KANSAS CITY, MO (March 18, 2026) – Throughout the last two weeks, Kansas City has played host to the Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s and Men’s Basketball Tournaments. Both tournaments left lasting impacts throughout the Kansas City community by welcoming high-level competition, record-breaking crowds, and an economic boost to the region.
The tournaments combined to generate an estimated $34 million in economic impact for the Kansas City region. That number is a $9 million increase from the 2025 tournaments.
The women’s tournament featured incredible play from some of the nation’s top teams and players. Included in the field was Texas Christian University’s Olivia Miles, who is projected as a top 3 WNBA Draft pick. In the championship game, number two seeded West Virginia University upset top seeded Texas Christian University by a score 62-53, capturing the school’s first conference title since 2017.
Along with the electric competition, WIN for KC partnered with the Big 12 Conference to promote literacy and health with the annual Reading & Fitness Challenge presented by Evergy. Over 1,800 local elementary school kids attended the 1st and 2nd round games, received free lunches and books, and experienced the excitement at the T-Mobile Center.
The men’s tournament followed with terrific competition as well. The top seeded Arizona Wildcats worked their way through a thrilling tournament, advancing to the final game after defeating the Iowa State Cyclones on buzzer beater shot. Arizona faced the University of Houston in a rematch of last year’s championship game. The Wildcats went on to capture their first conference title since joining the Big 12 Conference, defeating the Cougars by a score of 79-74.
In addition to this year’s elevated economic impact, attendance and viewership numbers for the tournaments were also at an all-time high. The women’s tournament had a total attendance of over 39,000 fans, with 5,857 fans attending the championship game. The championship game also gained historic TV viewership as the most watched Big 12 Final of all time. An average of 853,000 viewers tuned into to watch West Virgina and TCU.
The men’s tournament welcomed 107,974 total fans throughout the week. This was buoyed by Friday night’s semi-final session, where 19,450 fans packed T-Mobile Center. That made the session the highest attended session in Big 12 Conference tournament history.
Throughout the tournaments, coaches and leaders from the conference voiced their support to keep the tournament in Kansas City.
“You know, a lot of people say, ‘Why don’t we move it?’ I hope they never move it; they should always keep it here…”
- Kelvin Sampson, University of Houston Head Coach
“Kansas City has been incredible to us… I want to thank the T-Mobile Center Staff. They’re elite at what they do. I also want to acknowledge Kathy Nelson (President and CEO of the Kansas City Sports Commission). Kathy, you’ve been a terrific friend and incredible advocate for the Big 12.”
- Brett Yormark, Commissioner of the Big 12 Conference
The Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s and Men’s Basketball Tournaments is currently contracted to be held in Kansas City through 2031.
About The Kansas City Sports Commission and Foundation
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