An event that has brought significant economic impact to the Rocket City has garnered plenty of praise for the City of Huntsville and Madison County.

Ahead of Monday’s Conference USA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments, league commissioner Judy MacLeod is looking forward to the opportunity of the event in its second year in Huntsville.

The CUSA basketball tournaments are set to tip off on Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. when Jacksonville State’s women face Sam Houston in the first game of the tournaments.

“Last year was awesome,” MacLeod said on Monday ahead of the tournaments. “We had schools within driving distance, their fans came out in droves, so that was really fantastic. We need to get more of the local community to come out. Our basketball is much improved this year, and we’re really looking forward to some great basketball action.”

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The Conference USA men’s and women’s basketball championships led the way last year in Huntsville with $3.2 million in economic impact, according to a past report from AL.com.

MacLeod credited plenty for the success of the tournaments, noting the restaurants and hotels around the area drawing plenty of praise when it came to fan feedback; she added that the addition of Kennesaw State to the league, which is about a 3-hour drive from Huntsville, should help boost fan attendance.

The Conference USA tournaments will return to Huntsville for the 2025-26 basketball season.

“I think that word gets back when they go back and say, ‘Hey, we went to this last year. You got to come this time,’” MacLeod said of the area in Huntsville.

In addition to the tournaments this year, Conference USA has partnered with the Huntsville/Madison County Convention and Visitors Bureau and Huntsville Sports Commission to launch the Stars of Tomorrow Program, an initiative to help students engage with professionals in and around Huntsville.

The program covers travel expenses for students from all 10 Conference USA schools, each student having the opportunity to explore job opportunities in the Huntsville area and connect with employers.

“It’s not the student-athletes, but it’s the students that have an interest in the programs in the areas that Huntsville is so great with,” MacLeod said. “It gives our kids another chance to see life after college, and it gives Huntsville a chance to recruit the best and the brightest. I’m really thankful for the chamber working on that and I’m excited to see what happens.”

Champions of the men’s and women’s tournaments will clinch a spot in the respective NCAA Division I basketball tournaments.

Liberty’s men and women will serve as the No. 1 seeds in the tournament, while Jax State’s men will be the No. 2 seed for the men’s tournament and MTSU will be the No. 2 seed in the women’s tournament.

MTSU is the defending champion of the women’s tournament, while Western Kentucky’s men claimed the tournament title last year; the Hilltoppers are seeded at No. 7 this season.

MacLeod said that the matchups this season themselves are expected to bring more attention to the league and this tournament, with CUSA ranked as the No. 8 conference in the country by the NCAA’s Rating Percentage Index.

“It’s crazy; I think it’s wide open for anybody on the men’s side,” the commissioner said. “It’s so close, everybody’s good, and there’s not a lot of separation. Every game is going to be super exciting, and with that, every team knows it’s a new season, right? If we win, we’re going to the Big Dance. On our women’s side, we’ve had two teams dominate, but we’re having some others come up, so it’s going to be exciting as well.”