Heart of America Athletic Conference Extends Partnership with Synergy Sports and Expands AI-Assisted Scouting Capabilities Across Basketball

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — The Heart of America Athletic Conference (The HEART) announced today a renewed partnership with Synergy Sports, a division of Sportradar, extending the conference's long-standing relationship while expanding access to AI-assisted scouting technology across Heart men's and women's basketball programs.

The renewed agreement builds upon the conference's existing use of Synergy's platform and introduces expanded capabilities through Synergy's AI Scouting tools, providing member institutions with automated game, player, and team scouting summaries integrated directly into the existing Synergy environment.

After an extensive review process evaluating advancements across the basketball technology landscape, The HEART determined that continuing and expanding its relationship with Synergy represented the strongest long-term opportunity for member institutions.

"This renewal is about more than continuing a service—it is about continuing to invest in tools that elevate the experience and competitive opportunities available to our membership," said Nik Rule, Commissioner of The Heart of America Athletic Conference.

"For the last several months, our conference office spent considerable time evaluating the basketball analytics and video landscape and looking closely at where technology is headed. Throughout that process, we kept coming back to one central question: what provides the greatest value and long-term advantage for our institutions and coaches?

Our membership has built familiarity and trust with the Synergy platform over time, and what became increasingly clear is that Synergy continues to lead in basketball-specific functionality and innovation. The addition of AI-assisted scouting capabilities allows us to build on a platform our coaches already use while introducing tools that can create efficiencies, enhance preparation, and support student-athlete development.

At The HEART, we believe part of our responsibility is helping our institutions access opportunities and technologies that might otherwise be difficult to implement independently. This renewed partnership reflects that commitment and reinforces our goal of continuing to lead nationally in innovation, service, and membership value."

The expanded platform will provide coaching staffs with AI-generated scouting reports and additional automated insights while maintaining familiar workflows and avoiding the need for institutions to adopt new systems or processes. Future enhancements are expected to include expanded video overlay capabilities, AI-generated edits, and additional scouting functionality as the platform evolves.

"The Heart of America Athletic Conference's leadership in embracing AI-assisted scouting reflects exactly the kind of forward-thinking partnership Synergy values," said Bryce Currie, Synergy Client Partner. "We're excited to continue supporting The Heart's programs as they expand access to this technology across their membership."

The renewed partnership will begin with the 2026–27 basketball season and further strengthens The HEART's commitment to delivering innovative resources and meaningful value to member institutions.

About The Heart of America Athletic Conference

The Heart of America Athletic Conference is one of the premier conferences in the NAIA, serving member institutions through championships, governance, student-athlete development, strategic partnerships, and innovative approaches that elevate the collegiate athletics experience.

About Synergy Sports

Synergy Sports, a division of Sportradar, is a leading provider of basketball video, data, and analytics technology used by professional, collegiate, and grassroots programs around the world. Synergy's platform integrates game video with synchronized statistics and analytics to support coaching, scouting, player development, and officiating workflows.