LAHAINA — The direct economic impact of the EA Sports Maui Invitational NCAA men's basketball tournament, now in its 26th year here, is routinely estimated at about $8 million.

That includes hotel rooms, rental cars, restaurants, bar tabs, bodyboards, macadamia nuts, Spam musubi and shave ice. It's a very nice bump during the Thanksgiving holiday week, especially in this anemic economic environment, said Maui Hotel & Lodging Association Executive Director Carol Reimann.

But the real impact goes way beyond that, tourism, government and business leaders said of the Grade-A tourney that starts today and culminates Wednesday evening at the Lahaina Civic Center.

The early-season tournament's value to Maui's tourism-based economy, especially when hotel occupancy rates are at near-record lows, is immeasurable, said Maui Tourism Bureau Executive Director Terryl Vencl. The tournament draws some of the most popular basketball programs in the country every year, which in turn draws in both fervent and casual college basketball fans.

Call it the ESPN effect.

"The Worldwide Leader in Sports" broadcasts all 12 Maui Invitational games on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU to about 5 million viewers and rising. That's 24 hours of prime cable TV for one of America's most popular leagues, according to market research.

"Every commercial break has shots of Maui, and absolutely every shot of the basketball court has banners and information about businesses in Maui," Vencl said. "We could never afford to buy that kind of advertising. And then in between games, (ESPN does) segments showing the athletes and their families doing activities on the island, like surfing and snorkeling. The whole tournament is a commercial for Maui."

Tournament Director Briana Wells said all they need to do is mount a camera on top of the gym to shoot sunsets over Läna'i and shimmering views of the Pacific Ocean.

ESPN is consistently one of the most popular cable networks, so it averages top prices for a 30-second ad — $27,000, according to MediaPost.com, the Web site for marketing and advertising professionals. Using the most elementary arithmetic, the amount of airtime Maui gets from the tournament would cost $77.76 million if it were advertising.

University of Hawai'i-Mänoa Shidler College of Business Marketing Department chairwoman Qimei Chen said you really can't put a price tag on what this kind of national TV exposure does, especially since Maui is so accomplished at putting its best face forward. The island has such natural beauty and genuinely friendly people, both of which can be captured on camera with minimal effort, she said.

"I can't quantify it," Vencl said. "It inspires people to visit. It's priceless. And you can't put a price on the jobs this tournament helps save either when people stay in hotels or spend their money at restaurants as well as at an activity."

Reimann said that the Maui Invitational, and the SBS Championship golf tournament at Kapalua (formerly the Mercedes-Benz Championship), which starts the PGA season, both boil down to epic television commercials for Maui.

"It's huge," Reimann said of the basketball tournament. "The marketing exposure is awesome. While the rest of the nation is going through the throes of winter, they (ESPN producers) are showing Hawai'i in all its tropical splendor."

The tournament's organizers, KemperSports of Illinois, actually pays Maui County $4,800 a year to rent the 2,400-seat Lahaina Civic Center, clean it up and provide security. The tourney is halfway through a 12-year deal with the county, and ESPN has a contract to air the EA Sports Maui Invitational through 2011.

"With regards to the value of the (Maui) Invitational, I would say that the community value is immense," said Maui County spokeswoman Mahina Martin. "EA Sports Maui Invitational is considered to be a terrific model of partnership that the county is happy to be a part of."

Not only does it increase Maui's visibility, but the tournament also funnels proceeds to local nonprofits, such as Make-A-Wish, Maui Family YMCA and the Maui Food Bank, whose volunteers run the concession stands and the parking lots.