Des Moines (RI) – The Iowa High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) and Iowa State University announced Tuesday that the boy’s state basketball tournament will be moving to Hilton Coliseum in Ames starting in 2027.
The tournament has been held in Des Moines at Vets Auditorium, or Wells Fargo Arena since 1963. IHSAA executive director Tom Keating says the decision came out of their normal review of tournaments and sites.
Keating says they revisited Hilton Coliseum five or six months ago, as some things changed and it worked out to make the move.
Keating praised the staff at Wells Fargo Arena and their association with them. He says it’s a much bigger facility than Hilton.
Moving the boy’s basketball tournament in 2027 will coincide with the opening of the CyTown district being developed at the Iowa State Center.
The boy’s tourney has been in Ames before at the ISU State Gym from 1917 to 1922. It was last held at State Gym in 1926, and Keating says it’s exciting to return to Ames and hold the tourney at Hilton.
The boys’ state tournament moved around to several locations, including the University of Iowa and Drake fieldhouses, and the West Gym on the UNI campus, before taking up residence at Vets Auditorium. The contract to hold the tournament in Ames is for five years through 2032.
