Air Force takes a financial loss in men's basketball tournament

Air Force men’s basketball took a financial loss of almost $18,000 on its postseason tournament appearance this season.

The Falcons played in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament, which charges $31,500 to host a game. Air Force hosted one game, which it won. The Falcons thought when they accepted the invitation they would host a second game with a first-round win, but were sent to Santa Clara for a second-round game.

According to figures provided by Air Force, the Falcons lost $17,800 on the postseason. The academy paid the $31,500 fee for the first game, and made $13,700 on tickets, concessions and at the gift shop. Attendance for the game was 1,137, according to Air Force. Since Air Force went on the road for the second round, the CIT paid for the Falcons’ travel and the $31,500 hosting fee was not applicable. Air Force was eliminated in the second round by Santa Clara.

“We decided to have the men’s basketball team compete in the CIT because we felt it was a great opportunity for our players and that they deserved a chance for postseason play,” associate athletics director-communications Troy Garnhart said. “From where the program has come over the last two seasons, it was a great reward for our seniors and gave our younger players a taste of something to strive for in the future. We definitely felt like it was worth the cost for this season.”

The postseason trip was the sixth in Air Force men’s basketball history, and the first postseason berth since the 2007 NIT. There are four men’s basketball tournaments – the NCAA Tournament, the NIT, the College Basketball Invitational and the CIT. The latter two tournaments charge a fee to host a game.

“Whether we’d play in a future pay-to-play tournament is something we’d evaluate each season,” Garnhart said.

Air Force coach Jeff Reynolds received a bonus of about $38,288 for the season. His contract calls for a bonus of 10 percent of his annual salary, which is $382,884, if the Falcons reach 15 wins. Air Force finished the season 16-16. Reynolds’ bonus would have been 15 percent had the Falcons won 17 games. Reynolds gets an additional 25 percent bonus for making a NCAA postseason tournament, but that bonus only applies to the NCAA Tournament and NIT.