On June 11, 2008 the Board of Directors of the WVSSAC accepted the Basketball Restructuring Committee recommendation to change the Sectional and Regional Basketball Tournament format beginning with the 2008-09 school year.  The committee chairman, Leon Pilewski Principal at Robert C. Byrd High School, presented the proposal with the assistance of Bill Gillispie, Athletic Director at Charleston Catholic High School.

To summarize the tournament format, the WVSSAC will reduce the number of regions from eight (8) to four (4) with each region comprising of two (2) sections.  Teams in each section will be seeded by the coaches within the region and then brackets will be developed within each section.  Following the Sectional Championship Game both teams will advance to the Regional Tournament.  The winner of Section 1 will host the runner up of Section 2 likewise the winner of Section 2 will host the runner up of Section 1. 

The committee consisting of seven (7) principals and seven (7) coaches and five (5) athletic directors decided the Sectional Tournament Champion had gained the right to host the Regional Tournament contest as a reward for winning the first round of the tournament.  Minimum seating requirements were established by the committee.  The standards are as follows:

                      Boys                                                                Girls

            AAA    1000                                                                700

            AA         900                                                                600

            A           700                                                                400

Should a school facility not meet the minimum requirement, the home school must choose the next closest site that does qualify. 

Eight (8) schools will advance to the State Tournament with two (2) from each of the four (4) Regions earning the trip to Charleston.  The hope of the committee is that whenever two strong teams are located in one geographic area both will now have the opportunity to advance to the State Tournament. 

Gary Ray, Executive Director, said, “we are pleased to announce this new tournament format and look forward to the challenge of continuing to provide a meaningful experience for athletes, coaches, media and the fans.  The Basketball Restructure Committee did an outstanding job with a very difficult task.  At one time four (4) proposals were under consideration with strong support for each.  Committee members worked overtime to reach a compromise.  I sincerely appreciate the work and dedication of this committee for their efforts.  Change and acceptance is never easy, but the Board of Directors and the WVSSAC Administrative Staff is excited about the task at hand”.

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