Slam Dunk to the Beach basketball tournament brings boost of sales, visitors to Lewes

LEWES, DE- Thursday marked the third and final day for the Slam Dunk To the Beach basketball tournament at Cape Henlopen High School.

The event featured teams from 9 states including Arizona and Florida.

Tournament Director Dr. Mathew Robinson says they worked year-round to get the competition together, and put on a show for fans.

“We have four games each day we did a special night for Sussex county where the two Cape Henlopen teams played to get things started, all players and teams are nationally ranked,” Robinson said.

Robinson says, last year’s event saw 1.5 million viewers on the live stream, and those numbers translate to in-person attendance for this year too.

“30 percent of people coming to the event are coming from outside the area we have over 8 states represented along with the teams that are coming along the east coast plus Arizona and Florida, We have a full gym every night so it’s a great event for the local community and getting people exposed to Sussex county through the event coming here for the first time,” he said.

But when fans weren’t at the games, they were staying at local hotels and going out to eat at local restaurants including the Crooked Hammock in Lewes.

“Our holiday season has been busy and people come in for slam dunk at the beach right down the road and that brings even more families celebrating,” said Marketing Director Danielle Grim.

Danielle Grim says they’ve come to rely on that boost of businesses even though this year they have been busy during the holiday season.

Robinson tells us he hopes the tournament can introduce more people to the region and get them coming back, long after the tournament is over.

“We’d like to think the economic impact is more than just the three days of the tournament but rather it’s we advertisement for this whole area,” Robinson said.