Greater Hartford stands to reap $4 million in economic impact this weekend from the American Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Championship tournament at the XL Center.
The tournament, which started Thursday, will determine by Sunday which of the conference’s teams will receive an automatic bid in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament championship, which UConn won last year.
American tournament organizers expect 50,000 attendees using more than 3,000 room nights at Greater Hartford hotels. An estimated 1,060 jobs in the hospitality industry will be supported by the tournament, and more than $335,000 in state sales tax will be generated.
UConn won its first game in the tournament on Thursday 69-43 over South Florida. The Huskies play Cincinnati at 9 p.m. tonight in the next round.
