The 4A Basketball State Championships, held at Gill Coliseum last week, had an attendance of 19,130, down slightly from the average of 19,400 the previous three years.

But tournament director Peter Weber, public relations director for the Oregon School Activities Association, was pleased with the turnout n especially with the sports reclassification that took effect this year.

"We had an extra championship happening at the same time," Weber said.

"Since it was the first time we've gone through this, we weren't sure how it was going to impact it. Having our numbers be in the range of the average the last couple of years is good," he added.

In the fall, the OSAA switched from a four-tiered system to a six-tiered system. The tournament held in Corvallis changed from the 3A tournament to the 4A tournament, though many of the same schools attended as in the past.

In recent years, only the 3A tournament and the larger 4A tournament were held at the same time. Last week, there were three such events.

The 5A and 6A boys championships, held at MacArthur Court at the University of Oregon, drew an attendance of 40,575. The Corvallis High School boys team placed fifth, and senior Kevin Heath and junior Nadav Heyman made the all-tournament second team.

The 5A and 6A girls tourney, at the University of Portland's Chiles Center, drew 17,179. Crescent Valley placed fifth, and senior Emily Doran made the all-tournament first team. West Albany, which didn't place, won the sportsmanship trophy.

"There were a lot of people enjoying basketball," Weber said.

Attendance was based on multiple two-game sessions over the four-day events.

The final games' session Saturday night in Corvallis drew 3,079, a bit lower than hoped, Weber said.

Fans of Baker High School had a longer trip from Eastern Oregon, and that may have contributed to lower numbers. But Stayton also had a team in each game. So instead of four communities being represented in the finals, there were only three, Weber said.

The Friday evening session was the next highest, with 2,962 people.

The makeup of the audience would change every few hours, and turnover was high even during the final session.

Many Gladstone fans left after their team lost in the girls championship, and were replaced by Baker fans rooting for the eventual boys champions.

Weber thanked locals for making the tournament a success.

"We really appreciate the job the city of Corvallis does in opening their arms to all the schools and the people we bring into town," he said.

To read Kyle Odegard's blogs on the 4A State Basketball Championships, go to gazettetimes.com.