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Today’s decision by the 11-person WIAA Board of Control to keep the boys’ state basketball tournament in Madison at the Kohl Center was received favorably by several coaches in Wisconsin.

“I couldn’t be more pleased,” said Jerry Petitgoue, who has served as the varsity coach at Cuba City the past 40 years and is the state’s all-time winningest coach with 818 victories. “I’m really happy it’s going to stay in Madison. If you are looking for the best facility in the state, the Kohl Center is it.

“I understand the dates and the conflicts with hockey and wanting some consistency, but it sounds like the WIAA now has a firm commitment from the University of Wisconsin athletic department to make the Kohl Center available for the boys’ state tournament.”

The WIAA Board of Control voted at its meeting today in Stevens Point to keep the boys’ state tournament in Madison while moving the girls’ state tournament to Ashwaubenon and the Resch Center for the next two years.

“I think it is good the boys’ tournament is staying in Madison,” said Milwaukee South Division coach Ty Moseler. “Madison has the history and facility. I do think it would have been interesting to give Green Bay a shot to see how it would have been.

“Ultimately, two teams playing for a state championship would be exciting to play in for the kids or watch no matter where it is played. Kids will compete and fans will cheer no matter the site.”

Added Brian Gallagher, the head coach at Manitowoc Lincoln, “As much as I would have been interested to see what a state basketball tournament would look like in Green Bay, I truly believe that it belongs at the Kohl Center. There are a lot of traditions associated with the state tournament that, fortunately, will be able to continue.”

PMI Entertainment of Ashwaubenon put in a bid to host both the boys’ and girls’ state tournaments earlier this year, and the WIAA Board of Control in February approved a recommendation from WIAA executive director Dave Anderson to accept that bid.

Anderson made the recommendation primarily due to University of Wisconsin scheduling conflicts with its men’s and women’s hockey programs that prevented UW from guaranteeing use of the Kohl Center in the near future for both state tournaments.

Since that recommendation was made, Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez and others within the UW athletic department have made keeping the WIAA State Tournament in Madison a priority.

“I’m a traditionalist and I grew up watching and playing for Seymour at the state tournament in Madison, so I like that the tradition will stay alive,” Peshtigo coach Ryan Spaulding said. “For the kids playing, they are more likely to see the Kohl Center and Badgers play on T.V. than they are UW-Green Bay and the Phoenix at the Resch Center. It’s just the nature of the programs.

“It’s exciting for the kids to be able to play at the state tournament at the Kohl Center.”

One of the main concerns for the WIAA in moving the boys’ tournament from the Kohl Center, which has a seating capacity of more than 17,000, was a potential loss in revenue. Had the boys’ tournament moved to the Resch Center, which can accommodate around 10,000 spectactors, the possibility of thousands of fans not being able to attend the games could have become a reality.

There were a few sessions in the 2012 boys’ WIAA State Tournament that attracted between 11,000 and 12,000 fans to the Kohl Center. Losing the potential ticket sales/revenue of a few thousand people each year would result in a loss revenue stream for the WIAA.

“That revenue lost is a big issue,” Petitgoue said. “At least for a couple of the sessions this year, the Resch Center would not have been big enough to accommodate all of the fans.”