ANBT time arrives as players, fans begin to arrive in Prince Rupert

An empty gymnasium here, but
on Sunday night and through much
of the 2016 ANBT there won't be
and empty seat to be found

All roads (along with ferry routes and flight plans) lead to Prince Rupert this weekend as the teams, their fans and other visitors arrive for the 57th edition of the All Native Basketball Tournament.

The highly anticipated event gets underway on Sunday with a number of team meetings and the Opening ceremonies, one of the major events on the Prince Rupert calendar each year, as Metlakatla, Alaska takes on the hosting duties for this years opening celebration of the tournament.

The Ceremonies on Sunday evening take place in the Russell Gamble Gymnasium at the Jim Ciccone Civic Centre, start time for the evening celebration is 7 PM.

Tickets, if any are left, for the Sunday evening opening can be purchased at the ANBT office at 259 - 3rd Avenue West.

Earlier in the day Sunday, tournament organizers will be holding a Blessing of the New Portable Court that the Tournament has acquired for ANBT use, that blessing event takes place at 2 PM  in the Civic Centre arena.  The portable court which was purchased late in 2015 is to be used for the Women's and Master's Division games.

The action on the court get underway bright and early Monday morning with the First tip offs of the day at 8 AM in the Intermediate and Women's Divisions.

Competition at the 57th Annual ANBT continues through the week with a full schedule and a range of rivalries ready to take to the court, as teams work their way through the schedule with an eye for a place in the Finals of Saturday.

As well as a full schedule of basketball, fans and players will salute the players of the past with the Hall of Fame Ceremony will take place on Friday the 12th at 8 PM.

The tournament pass and weekend passes are available at the All Native Tournament Office at 259- 3rd Avenue West, the Tournament pass is $150 and includes the finals, the Weekend Pass is good for Friday and all day Saturday and costs $32.00

Individual tickets for $8 available at the door and are sold on the basis of three sessions a day Morning, Afternoon and evening.

You can find out more on ticket availability from the Tournament office at 250-627-8997

Tournament updates can be found from the ANBT website or Facebook page

CFNR is the host broadcaster for the tournament and their updates can be found here

Once tournament action is underway, as results are made available we will update our Results page here. (Note: Link will be activated on Monday morning)

Our archive of stories from the lead up to the tournament as well as notes from Tournament week can be found here.


While we wait for the opening tip, a look at the Four Division schedules can be found below: