March Madness in Peoria

The I.H.S.A. March Madness Boys Basketball Tournament kicks-off Friday at the Peoria Civic Center. The March Madness Experience runs alongside the tournament. It features more than 15 games and other attractions to entertain kids and families. The I.H.S.A. tournament is one of the largest annual convention attractions hosted in the Peoria area. Don Welch is the C.E.O. of the Convention and Visitor’s Bureau. He says its a great two-weekend event for the region. 
“It brings a lot of economic impact, about 5,000 hotel rooms. It fills all the restaurants and hotels. It’s just a great event to have here. It also takes a lot of volunteers. If you just look around the exhibit hall it’s quite an attraction. I don’t think any other state does it. And it’s put on by a great group of volunteers,” Welch says. 
He says there are many different tickets available for all games both weeks. The Tournament runs Friday and Saturday the 8th and 9th as well as the 15th and 16th.
The new parking deck at Fulton and Monroe will be open for tournament parking. Peoria City Link is also offering shuttle service to some hotels as well as a Weekend Fun Pass. More information about the shuttle service is available with City Link.