“March Magic” State Basketball Tournament Returns to MidAmerica Sports in Louisville

“March Magic,” the Special Olympics Kentucky State Basketball Tournament, will return to MidAmerica Sports Center in Louisville March 8-9. Teams qualify for the State Tournament through a series of Regional Tournaments that are held in February in Bowling Green, Florence and Elizabethtown.

More than 40 teams from across the state will qualify to compete for state championships in the bracketed Tournament. Games get underway at 9 am Saturday on four courts with the last games starting around 2 pm. Remaining teams will return starting at 9 am for Championship Sunday.

In addition to the teams competing in the State Tournament, teams that do not qualify for the tournament have the opportunity to participate in the Team Skills Competition on Sunday. The Team Skills Competition measures teams’ abilities in six basic basketball skills and gives teams that did not reach the State Tournament the opportunity to participate in State Tournament weekend festivities. For the first time ever, the Skills Competition will be held at the same location as the State Tournament and will begin at 9 am on Sunday morning.

State Basketball Tournament Brackets

See photos from the 2024 State Basketball Tournament.

In all, more than 600 athletes will be in action over the weekend.

State Basketball weekend festivities also include a Healthy Athletes opportunity at MidAmerica on Saturday, and the victory dance on Saturday night.

Not surprisingly, basketball is the largest team sports offering on the Special Olympics Kentucky calendar each year.

The Special Olympics Kentucky State Basketball Tournament is sponsored by Year-Round Partners Jersey Mike’s, Texas Roadhouse and Toyota Motor Corporation, as well as event sponsors Bachman Subaru and Subaru of America, Forvis Mazars Group, Ref Junkies, the Kentucky Wireless Association and the Kentucky Law Enforcement Torch Run. Ref Junkies is providing all of the officials for the tournament games.

For more information about the State Basketball Tournament or about the Special Olympics Kentucky basketball program, contact Sports Program Manager Hunter McDowell at 502-695-8222 or hmcdowell@soky.org.