PORTLAND, Ore. (July 28, 2015) – The Rose Quarter played host to more than 1,000 games during a weekend full of fun and friendly competition at the second annual Rip City 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament presented by Pacific Office Automation and The Other Side of Basketball. Nearly 400 teams played in front of 4,500 fans in a showcase of basketball throughout the Rose Quarter campus. This year’s success assures the third annual tournament next summer, already slated for July 30-31, 2016.
“This year’s Rip City 3-on-3 marked another big win for the Trail Blazers, Special Olympics Oregon and fans of basketball,” said Chris McGowan, President & CEO of the Trail Blazers and Rose Quarter. “Thank you to all of our partners for their hard work and shared vision of bringing together the local basketball community.”
In addition to competitive basketball in categories for men, women and youth across all ability levels, fans enjoyed special guests all weekend long. Trail Blazers guard Tim Frazier and President of The Other Side of Basketball Lamar Hurd sat on the judging panel for the high-flying Sprite Slam Dunk Contest. Broadcasters Mike Rice and Brian Wheeler joined the brand-new 2015-16 BlazerDancers team and Blaze the Trail Cat for a variety of activities all weekend.
This year’s event featured two new fan-favorite competitions from The Other Side of Basketball – the Youth Skills Challenge and 3-Point Shootout. Also added this year were the Wheelchair and Unified Divisions.
The tournament was organized and managed by Eventuris, which was founded by the long-time producers of the largest 3-on-3 tournament in the world. Proceeds from the two-day event benefitted Special Olympics Oregon, including a $25,000 cash contribution from the Trail Blazers and $10,000 from NIKE.
“The 2015 Rip City 3-on-3 was more than a slam dunk,” said Margie Hunt, CEO of Special Olympics Oregon. “It was a home run, a touchdown and a soccer hat trick all in one! What a weekend! And what a privilege to partner with this state’s NBA franchise, the Portland Trail Blazers, in bringing this exciting and important community event that benefits not only Special Olympics Oregon, but all who love the great game of basketball statewide. This is the power of hoops at its best!”
This year’s tournament was made possible by presenting sponsors Pacific Office Automation and The Other Side of Basketball. Other sponsors included NIKE, Sprite, The City of Portland, Rebound Orthopedics & Neurosurgery, Les Schwab Tire Centers, Ticketmaster, The Oregonian, and Great Clips.