Four men representing three different entities in Augusta came together Wednesday for an announcement that made them all happy for three different reasons.

Augusta Groove co-owners Gary Perry and Rick Brown were happy that their new professional basketball team had finalized a deal to make Augusta State's Christenberry Fieldhouse its home.

Augusta State athletic director Clint Bryant was pleased with the financial boost the deal would bring to his athletic department, and Augusta mayor Deke Copenhaver wore a smile because the citizens of his city will now have another local entertainment option.

"When you look at minor league sports, they are affordable and family friendly," Copenhaver said. "When you consider gas prices these days, this gives our community an opportunity to see a really high level of basketball locally without having to drive to Atlanta to see a game."

For Augusta State, the deal was more business than anything else.

Bryant said the school will get $20,000 for the 10 Groove home games it will play host to on weekends in January, February and March.

"We're excited about it. Hopefully this partnership will go on for some time," Bryant said. "We, at Augusta State, see it as a way that we can get some unanticipated revenue. So we're excited about that also."

Bryant said the deal includes only game-day use of Christenberry Fieldhouse and won't impact the gym's availability to Augusta State's men's and women's basketball teams. He also said the university's alcohol-free campus policy would prohibit the Groove from selling alcohol at games.

"It all fell together pretty well," Bryant said. "It didn't put us out any, and we didn't have to compromise on any of our principles."

The Groove are currently looking for office space in downtown Augusta, and Perry said they've been in talks with Augusta Recreation and Parks director Tom Beck to possibly use one of the city's gyms as a practice facility.

The team will use Augusta's May Park to hold its second local tryout on July 26.

Perry said four players have been invited to training camp so far, including former Thomson High School star Roderick McGahee and Kedrick Johnson, a 6-foot-4 forward from Greenwood, Miss., who was named an NAIA third-team All-American in 2006-07 as a senior at Lee University.