It was a busy weekend for sports tourism on the Grand Strand, the Myrtle Beach Sports Center saw 86 boys and girls basketball teams take part in the NTBA Ballin’ at the Beach Tournament.
62 of those teams were from outside the area, representing 6 states. Between the players, coaches and family members organizers say more than 1,500 people took part, and when they weren’t on the court, they were exploring the city.
“The grand prix racing, the beach is wonderful, we’ve been eating a lot and looking at all the motorcycles. Its been real fun, a real fun time,” said Troy Wells, the director of the Lakeland Express basketball team out of Florida.
NTBA President John Whitley says he is glad the tournament helps locally, “this is great for the economy here in Myrtle Beach, the hotels are loving it, the restaurants are loving it, so from an event coordinators standpoint we’re just excited to be able to be here in the sports center and bring all these teams to the Grand Strand area.”
The basketball tournament wasn’t the only sporting event in town this weekend.
Other tournaments that gave businesses a boost were the WFC Fastpitch Cup Challenge and the Top Gun Battle for the Bats.