Westgate Las Vegas GM makes fast break to Iowa-LSU game

Las Vegas Review-Journal

8 months ago

Westgate Las Vegas President and General Manager Cami Christensen is shown with the University ... — Westgate Las Vegas President and General Manager Cami Christensen is shown with the University of Iowa mascot during the Hawkeyes appearance at the NCAA Tournament’s Elite Eight. (Cami Christensen)

Westgate Las Vegas President and GM Cami Christensen, center; Iowa Associate Head Coach Jan Jensen, far left: and Iowa Head Coach Lisa Bluter celebrate the Hawkeyes’ Elite Eight victory over LSU at Times Union Center in Albany, N.Y. on Monday, April 1, 2024. (Cami Christensen)

Westgate Las Vegas President and GM Cami Christensen, far left; Iowa Associate Head Coach Jan Jensen, far right: and Jensen’s spouse, Julie Fitzpatrick, are shown prior to the Hawkeyes’ Final Four victory over South Carolina at American Airlines Arena in Dallas on Friday, April 1, 2023. (Cami Christensen)

Westgate Las Vegas President and General Manager Cami Christensen gives a speech introducing her lifelong friend, University of Iowa associate head coach Jan Jesse, at Verona Sky Villas. Christensen and Jensen grew up together in Iowa. (Cami Christensen)

Westgate President and General Manager Cami Christensen is in Albany, N.Y., and this has nothing to do with gaming.

It’s all about the game. Iowa-LSU, specifically.

Christensen is backing her lifelong friend and top Iowa assistant Jan Jensen in today’s Elite Eight match-up. Christensen said over the weekend there was a possibility she’d make the game, but was skeptical because of the distance.

But Christensen, who had attended the Raiders Silver & Black Gala on Saturday night, hopped a flight out of Las Vegas at midnight Sunday. She stopped briefly in Detroit, then landed in Albany at 9 a.m. Monday Eastern time.

She took a tour of New York’s state capital, observing, “That’s now off my bucket list.”

Christensen and Jensen have been friends “since we were babies,” as Christensen says, having grown up in Kimballton, Iowa. In an interview during last year’s women’s NCAA tournament, Christensen said, “We played basketball together for the Elk Horn-Kimballton Lady Danes. Our farms were next to each other, when we were growing up. We rode motorcycles and played sports and grew corn and soybeans. Well, our dads were farmers. We just played.”

Look for the exec a few rows behind the Iowa bench.

Iowa rallied behind all-time collegiate leading scorer Caitlin Clark’s 41 points to defeat LSU, 94-87, to advance to the Final Four next weekend.

John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on X, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.