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Little Caesars' Big Dance

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“The NCAA Tournament is a unique event,” says Chris Granger, who helped welcome March Madness to Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena. (Courtesy Ilitch Holdings)

Chris Granger had a lot on his plate last weekend. Granger is group president of sports and entertainment for Ilitch Holdings, which owns and operates Detroit’s brand-spanking-new Little Caesars Arena, home to the NHL’s Red Wings and NBA’s Pistons. Over the weekend, however, he was also part of a team that made sure the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament went off without a hitch. This meant getting 60,000 ticket-holders over St. Paddy’s Day weekend in and out of a venue that had opened only six months earlier. For Granger, who worked for the Sacramento Kings and Golden 1 Center and the NBA for 14 years, the tourney’s pageantry, satisfied fans and multimillion-dollar boost to the local economy were just some of the aspects he found most gratifying — even as the Syracuse Orange busted his bracket by defeating the Michigan State Spartans at his own arena. VenuesNow caught up with Granger to get his take on the weekend’s march of madness at his building.

How was it hosting the NCAA Tournament games?
Granger: With Little Caesars Arena just six months old, this was the first time the building hosted an NCAA event. What is interesting is that the bid was awarded before the construction of Little Caesars Arena even began. The NCAA showed an unwavering confidence in our host school, Detroit Mercy; the Detroit Sports Commission; and the Ilitch organization. Little Caesars Arena will be the home for three additional NCAA championship events in the next four years, including the Frozen Four, the NCAA Wrestling Championships, and the Men’s Basketball Championship first and second rounds again in 2021. We’re thrilled about our partnership with the NCAA moving forward.

How were things different operationally?
Granger:
An NCAA event is unique from an operational perspective. Everything from the décor to the locker room assignments to the press conference setup was different than what we see for Red Wings and Pistons home games. Luckily, we have some experience in that area. Several of our staff members were involved in past executions of the NCAA men’s basketball championships here in Detroit, as well as in other markets (Granger was president of the Sacramento Kings when Golden 1 Center welcomed the tournament in 2017). We received great feedback from the NCAA staff and their vendors, and we’ll have another great plan in place for the next NCAA event at Little Caesars Arena.

If you could give advice to anyone hosting the tournament, what would it be?
Granger:
Embrace the event. It was a fantastic weekend in Detroit. The economic impact was significant, and the building was full. We had crowds of more than 20,000 for all three sessions. It’s an amazing way to showcase not only the facility hosting the event but the city as well.

Was there anything you were surprised about?
Granger:
Our entertainment services team produced a video in which they interviewed dozens of fans, many of whom were visiting Little Caesars Arena for the first time. It’s always great to hear the reactions of a first-time guest. To hear coaches and players, along with fans from Canada, Indianapolis and other Michiganders provide their perspective of the arena after seeing it for the first time is really special. We want Little Caesars Arena to be a building for everyone, and hosting the NCAA Tournament gave us another opportunity to appeal to fans from multiple regions. 

What was your favorite moment of hosting?
Granger:
The relationship with the NCAA is extremely important to our organization. I had a chance to visit with NCAA President Mark Emmert and other NCAA representatives that made the trip to Detroit, and enjoyed those conversations about the future of our partnership. Beyond that, the pageantry. The NCAA Tournament is a unique event. The fans were passionate, and, most importantly, we think we provided the student-athletes a great experience.

Who do you have winning the entire tournament in your bracket?
Granger:
Michigan State was my pick. They obviously lost a heartbreaker to Syracuse in the second round. Tom Izzo has been an ambassador for us, along with (Michigan coach John Beilein) and the other college coaches in the state of Michigan. This has been a crazy tournament, with upsets taking place seemingly every day that games are played. My bracket isn’t exactly in great shape. With Michigan still standing, I’m rooting hard for them and Coach Beilein.


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