| Each year, colleges and universities from all over the | | | | new name. |
| nation send their men's basketball teams to the "Last | | | | Broadcaster Billy Packer is credited with changing the |
| Frontier State" to the Great Alaska Shootout | | | | name from the Sea Wolf Classic to the Great Alaska |
| Basketball Tourney. The competition heats up the cold | | | | Shootout Basketball Tourney back in 1979. In this |
| winter days and nights, as teams meet head on to | | | | stunning tournament, the title game came down to the |
| battle for buckets. Colleges and universities get the | | | | University of Kentucky Wildcats and the Iona College |
| opportunity to play against their top rivals and | | | | Gaels. The Wildcats proved too powerful for the tiny |
| powerhouses of the game. These games draw in | | | | New York school, and emerged victorious as the |
| record crowds each year, as any basketball fan | | | | second champion of this fantastic new basketball |
| should not miss the chance to attend this fast paced | | | | challenge. |
| pre season classic. | | | | A list of past champions reads like a who's who of |
| The main question on any sports fan's mind is, why | | | | College basketball, including NC State, Louisville, Kansas, |
| Alaska? The reason is simple, former University of | | | | Kentucky, Duke, North Carolina, and UCLA to name a |
| Alaska Anchorage head coach, Bob Rachal found a | | | | few. |
| loophole in the NCAA rules determining pre season | | | | The attendance may have been meager in the early |
| play. In an effort to draw more attention to the state, | | | | days, but soon the action caught on, and now college |
| the University of Alaska Anchorage, and the | | | | basketball fans of all ages flock to the state for the |
| Seawolves athletic program, Rachal became the | | | | Thanksgiving weekend Great Alaska Shootout |
| mastermind of what began as the Sea Wolf Classic. | | | | Basketball Tourney. What better way to celebrate our |
| The NCAA rules stated any games played outside the | | | | national day of thanks than by cheering on teams |
| contagious 48 states did not count towards a | | | | from all across the country? Many hotels, cruises, and |
| program's pre determined allotment. For this reason, | | | | lodges have special packages designed with the |
| participants of the Great Alaska Shootout Basketball | | | | college basketball fan in mind. |
| Tourney can get an early gauge of their teams | | | | If you find you cannot wait until December to enjoy hot |
| prowess against national talent. | | | | hoops action, head to Anchorage and watch the |
| The first Sea Wolf Classic was held in 1978 for the | | | | action melt away the snow! Plan a trip for the family |
| '78-'79 basketball season and saw the Wolfpack of | | | | and bring budding sports fans to experience the thrilling |
| North Carolina State University crush the University of | | | | display of skill and sportsmanship, or make it a raucous |
| Louisville's Cardinals. The tournament ended in 1978, | | | | occasion for celebration with your best hoops loving |
| leaving many wondering if it would become an annual | | | | buds. Whoever you bring, just make sure you bring |
| event. Much to everyone's relief, the Sea Wolf Classic | | | | yourself to this annual college basketball showdown! |
| became a Thanksgiving tradition in 1979, but under a | | | | |