There has been quite a discussion already along this thread:
http://www.bigskyfans.com/vikings/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=3401&p=27553&hilit=reno#p27553
Let's look at what the Pac-12 and MWC do. The Pac-12 plays their conference tournament at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas and the MWC plays their at the Thomas & Mack Center on the UNLV campus, also Las Vegas.
They bundle the tourney with a vacation destination having temperatures in the 80's and even low 90's. I do not think of that as very comfortable for late winter/early spring: too much of a temperature shift.
Reno, on the other hand, has temperatures in 60's and 70's during that time period. Much more welcome shift in temperature. Much more comfortable for a vacation destination that time of the year. Think also Lake Tahoe, Incline Village.
I also like the appeal of their slogan, "Reno, The Biggest Little City in the World." That seems to fit the character and nature of the big sky conference in terms of aspiration, "BSC, The Biggest FCS Conference in the NCAA.
It also is of a much more manageable size for folk like us in terms of population. The city is about 225,000 (the size of a college town) for a metro area of about 425,000. Las Vegas, on the other hand, has a city population of 583,000 (the size of a bustling, harried city) for a metro area approaching 2 million. Yikes.
I think it wise for the big sky conference to also meet at a western venue that doubles as a vacation destination. That will always help the attendance numbers. They used to have free flights down there so long as you showed up with a certain amount of cash on hand.
I think it is best to meet within a state like Nevada in that it is roughly central and not in Las Vegas, where the conference tourney would be vastly overshadowed by those of the Pac-12 and MWC.
