ST. THOMAS, U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS—Governor Albert Bryan Jr. attended the Paradise Jam Men’s Final between Nevada and Bowling Green State College at the University of the Virgin Islands Sports and Fitness Center on Monday night, and he used the opportunity to promote his push for Sports Tourism in the Territory during a nationally broadcast interview.
“This is our premiere Sports Tourism event and it just shows everyone what you can do if you really have faith in the product and you invest in it,” the Governor said during an interview on FloHoops, the network broadcasting the games to the mainland. “We’re looking to do a lot of things. We had D.C. United down here in the Virgin Islands. We have a world-class soccer field on St. Croix. We’re looking into getting a cricket stadium, and softball and baseball.”
The Governor also addressed the recovery of the Territory’s infrastructure during the interview.
“We live in a place where you can’t abandon it or evacuate during a storm, so it’s even more important for us to get our services back up,” Governor Bryan said. “But, our major hotels are coming back online next year, so we’ll have lots more space for athletes, as well as people who want to come from the state to watch Paradise Jam. Sports is what we like to do.”
Following the game, the Governor presented the trophy to the winning Nevada Wolf Pack, who bested the Bowling Green Falcons 77-62.
The Paradise Jam Women’s Tournament begins Thursday and features four of the Top 10 Women’s NCAA teams in the country – Baylor, Oregon, Louisville, and 5th-ranked South Carolina, led by freshman forward and Charlotte Amalie High School graduate Aliyah Boston, who was just named the SEC Freshman of the week.