With less than three weeks to go before the CIAA basketball tournament begins, officials say ticket sales – an indicator of the tournament’s financial success and potential economic impact -- have been brisk.

About $1.9 million in tickets have sold so far for the six-day event, scheduled Feb. 28 through March 5 at Time Warner Cable Arena. That total equals the amount sold for the entire 2010 tournament.

Speaking with reporters Thursday at the Charlotte Convention Center, CIAA Commissioner Leon Kerry credited two factors: an improving U.S. economy and the addition of two teams this year – Lincoln University and Winston-Salem State University.

Kerry said the tournament’s high-water mark was set in 2008, when $2.1 million in tickets were sold and the tournament attracted more than 181,000 fans. That was just before the economy tanked, he noted.

In 2009, despite lower attendance, the tournament’s economic impact in Charlotte was measured at $38.2 million – a new record, according to official estimates.

Earlier this year, CIAA officials voted to keep the tournament in Charlotte through 2014. Kerry said the decision was based on economics and geography. Nine CIAA schools are located in North Carolina. In addition, he said, Charlotte has excellent amenities and low costs. In some of the other cities that bid for the tournament, hotel and parking costs are much higher.

“It’s a cost thing,” Kerry said. “We can’t ask for scholarship money from the fans if they are broke when they get here.”

New in 2011:

• A ticket booklet for upper-level seats is selling for $75 this year. That’s $25 less than last year and includes all 24 games. Kerry said the lower prices are an effort to compete with local parties and get more fans to actually attend the games. Those seats are selling out fast, he said.

• The CIAA is celebrating its 99th anniversary. In preparation of its centennial, conference officials will seek to raise $3 million in scholarships for CIAA schools. Volunteers during the tournament will distribute 30,000 envelopes requesting $100 scholarship donations. The CIAA normally distributes about $1.5 million a year in scholarships. Kerry said he wants to double that number for the centennial year.

• This year’s “Fan Experience” -- occupying 200,000 square feet in the convention center – will be the biggest yet and second only to the NCAA Final Four, Kerry said. Scheduled events include: live music by Eric Benet (Thursday, March 3 at 8 p.m.); a live broadcast of the Yolanda Adams Morning Show (Friday, March 4 at 6 a.m.); and music by Jagged Edge (Saturday, March 5 at 8 p.m.) New events are being added daily.

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