LAS VEGAS When the Pac-12 Tournament relocated here from Los Angeles four years ago, Larry Scott, the conference commissioner, stressed a desire for a more rabid atmosphere.

Since the conference tournament was re-introduced in 2002, it had been played at Staples Center and the crowds had dwindled, dropping below 60,000 over the four days for the first time in 2011. In the last season at the downtown venue, it rose above the 60,000 mark, though only slightly. The arena often remained half empty.

The solution? A new location after a decade-plus, offering fans a reason to travel to the host site, along with a smaller venue. That began in 2013.

For the past four seasons, the MGM Grand, a casino and hotel on the Las Vegas strip, housed the event, with a seating capacity at 12,000. Attendance increased in the following years, but the move especially elicited praise for the more intimate setting compared to its cavernous predecessor.

It worked.

But there was a venue change this season, the first of at least three at T-Mobile Arena, an 18,000-seat arena that opened last year and will be used for the citys new NHL expansion team.

The change carried some risk for the Pac-12. Could theleague fill it?

Asked if he had concernsthis week, Scott said he did not.

We believed that Pac-12 mens basketball was going to continue to get stronger, Scott said, explaining the reasoning for the move, and the way the fan base had been reacting, we felt that we could grow it.

For this March, Scotts reasoning was grounded. When third-seeded UCLA faced sixth-seeded rival USC in the quarterfinals on Thursday night, it saw an announced crowd of 18,153. The semifinals and championship game today/on Saturday have sold out as well, buoyed by three top-10 teams in UCLA, Arizona and Oregon, putting the four-day tournament on pace to draw more than 84,000. It could eclipse the 2007 record of 84,477 and willfinish well above last seasons mark (77,496).

Its a great start in the new venue, Scott said. So we dont have great concerns about the future.

Fultz moves on

Two days after its season ended with a first-round loss to USC, Washington officially lost star freshman guard Markelle Fultz, who declared for the NBA Draft.

Fultz, the projected top pick who was always expected to be a one-and-done prospect, led the conference in scoring with 23.2 points per game. He missed the final four games of the seasonwith a sore knee, school officials said. The Huskies, who finished 9-22 overall, were second to last in the conference.

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Although the season hasnt gone as planned, its really truly been a blessing to be here, Fultz said in a video posted on Twitter. Ive learned a lot of lessons on and off the court.

Bracketology update

The latest ESPN bracketology released on Friday morning had USC, which lost to UCLA the previous night, as the second-to-last team in the 68-team field for the NCAA Tournament.

The aggregate Bracket Matrix had the Trojans, at 24-9 overall, as a No. 11 seed.

Before ending up as a No. 8 seed last season, USC was 21-12.

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Gambling on Las Vegas has worked out for Pac-12 - LA Daily News