The women's Shootout was started in 1980 and ran through 1997 as the Northern Lights Invitational, featuring either four- or eight-team fields and playing at the UAA Sports Center.
Following a one-year absence, the tournament was renamed and run along with the men's Great Alaska Shootout every Thanksgiving week from 1999 to 2017.
Prior to that, games were played at the Sullivan Arena in Anchorage from 1983 to 2013 and at Buckner Field House on Fort Richardson from 1978 to 1982.
[1] Under National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) rules, teams are normally limited to approximately 28 regular-season games.
The Great Alaska Shootout began in 1978 as the brainchild of former UAA men's basketball coach Bob Rachal.
The University of Alaska Anchorage stopped funding it as newer tournaments were drawing away top teams to warmer locations.