After a one-year hiatus, the America East men’s basketball tournament will be returning to Vestal next season.

The Binghamton University Events Center was chosen Monday to host the tournament, which was held at Boston’s Agganis Arena this season. It will be the third time in four years that the Bearcats’ home court will play host to the tournament.

Administrators took several considerations into account, including facilities and parking.

‘I’m thrilled to get it, it’s great for the University, it’s great for the team,’ said Dr. Joel Thirer, director of health, physical education and athletics at BU. ‘I think we’ve certainly proven that we’re capable of hosting a very exciting tournament with a first rate environment.’

The nine-team tournament will begin with first-round playoff games on Friday, March 7. The quarterfinals and semifinals will be Saturday and Sunday, respectively. The championship game will be the following Saturday, hosted by the highest remaining seed and televised on ESPN2.

The tournament also comes during the first season of new coach Kevin Broadus’ tenure. Broadus comes to BU after working as an assistant on Georgetown University’s Final Four team this past season.

‘We are elated,’ Broadus said. ‘It’s a great thing; it gives us a good home court advantage.’

Broadus also said that with the tournament being held in Binghamton, added pressure is placed on his team.

‘We have to work a little bit harder now,’ Broadus said. ‘Our plan is to play through the whole thing, that’s what we want for our fans.’

Binghamton drew 13,221 fans for the 2006 championship and 15,977 for the 2005 event. Those are the top two draws in the last six years of the tournament. The Bearcats advanced to the semifinals each year, losing to Vermont on both occasions. Binghamton’s season ticket sales have increased four consecutive years, reaching 1,656 this past season and leading the league with a 3,206 overall average this past winter.

The AE has used the present format since 1996. Past hosts include Hartford, Boston U. and Delaware.

Last year’s host, Boston, was reportedly hesitant to host this year because its students will be on break, while defending AE champion Albany did not submit a bid because the Metro Atlantic Athletic Association will be holding its tournament at Siena the same weekend.

‘We are looking forward to making the 2008 championships in Binghamton our best yet,’ said Patrick Nero, commissioner of the America East conference. ‘We feel that the combination of strong campus leadership and community support will allow us to build on the momentum from our previous championships in the Events Center. Our conference saw great improvement in men’s basketball this past year, and we expect that this will continue and add to the excitement of the 2008 championship.’

The conference also announced that the women’s tournament will move to Hartford’s Chase Arena, where the Hawks will host the tournament for the sixth time in seven years. Binghamton’s Events Center hosted the women’s tournament in 2007.