NCAA tournament

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byron

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So would Kansas City or Auburn Hills be a better place for us to play in the NCAAs? It might be easier to get tickets in Auburn Hills I'm thinking.
 

Kansas City. Much easier trip. I know KC still had tickets available as of a few days ago, and I'm sure Auburn Hills still does, too. Pretty sure that pre-sales for Rounds of 64/32 at most venues aren't going very well.
 


SelectionSunday said:
Kansas City. Much easier trip. I know KC still had tickets available as of a few days ago, and I'm sure Auburn Hills still does, too. Pretty sure that pre-sales for Rounds of 64/32 at most venues aren't going very well.
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Ok, Selection, give me your theories on why the slow going on first round tickets. I know when we had those rounds here, I jumped on them as soon as I could. Is the economy finally catching up to sports ticket buyers? I know I won't purchase for an out town venue unless I know the Gophers are playing, thus I go to BTT and typically not NCAA's. Too much life planning required.
 



Holy Man said:
Ok, Selection, give me your theories on why the slow going on first round tickets. I know when we had those rounds here, I jumped on them as soon as I could. Is the economy finally catching up to sports ticket buyers? I know I won't purchase for an out town venue unless I know the Gophers are playing, thus I go to BTT and typically not NCAA's. Too much life planning required.
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I went to all the games in the dome in '09. It was cool and I'm glad I did it. However, I'm not sure I'd do it again since I experienced it once. I take vacation on the Thursday and Friday so I can sit in front of my 2 TV setup in house so I can watch all of the action, not just a handful of games, with a couple of my friends. I'd rather watch on TV all of the games then only a select few. I'd venture to guess that's a big reason for many as well. It's why NFL attendance is slipping even though interest in the game couldn't be any higher. Most people would rather watch from home than live in the stadium. I've got a pretty darn nice ("Oh gooood for you") home theater setup that is hard to beat and with the advent of 60" HD TVs, many are in the same boat.
 

KC is closer and less of a hassle. Going through Chi-town and then having a possible lake effect snow storm around Michigan City isn't thrilling when cars are hitting the ditch at the same rate as the snow is falling. Other than the occasional ice storm I'd go with KC.
 

I plan on going to the first set of tournament games as they are over spring break. Then I'll watch the rest at home pending a final four appearance. Then no doubt, I'll find a way to get there.
 

Holy Man said:
Ok, Selection, give me your theories on why the slow going on first round tickets.
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Pewter nailed it about right. There just aren't many people willing to pay those prices who at the same time are willing to sit through 6 games (Rounds of 64/32) or 3 games (Sweet 16/Elite 8) over 3 days. I always enjoy it, but I certainly understand why people would choose to sit in front of their TV sets, at least in those instances when their favorite team isn't involved.

But (for example this season) if the Gophers gets placed in KC (drivable) and you're a Gopher fan & you can afford to make the trip, it's worth every penny (win or lose). The experience is world's better than sitting on a couch.
 



Kansas and missouri fans will be buying up a lot of tickets in KC if things go as they look right now.
 

KC was a great opening trip for NCAA Tournament when I went and I would recommend it to anyone. I have never cheered on a 15 seed Cal St Northridge team vs a 2 Memphis as hard as I did then. Just make sure you ask where the nearest liquor store is or you MIGHT end up in the ghetto of KC buying alcohol next to the docks through bullet proof glass. And when you get hungry on the way home, swing by Lathrop, Missouri and see the sights of the FORMER MULE CAPITAL of the world. Actually, don't do that. But everything else was good.
 

Selfishly want San Jose, but I'll go anywere west of the Appalachians for sure.
 

San Jose was one of our more enjoyable NCAA trips. A beautiful, well kept big city.
 




From the Barn said:
KC has cheap flights too, at least getting there is $69.
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If the Gophs are fortunate enough to get placed in KC, I will be majorly disappointed if there is not a strong Gopher fan contingent in KC, even if KU and/or Mizzou are there, too.
 

KC would be a much more fun trip, to be sure. I've been to the Palace at Auburn Hills a couple of times, and while it is nice and has a number of decent restaurants and bars attached to the venue, there is NOTHING else in the area. You'll be stuck staying put there the entire day. There's literally one sportsbar across the highway, and it sucks.
 


I followed the Gophers to Charlotte in 2005. They lost to Iowa State in the first round. Both North Carolina and Duke were on hand, so it made for sellout crowds and a pretty good atmosphere even though they didn't play each other. The games were at the recently demolished Charlotte Coliseum which held around 23,000, but was pretty basic on the amenities side which is partly why it was replaced. This was the first NCAA bid since the academic scandal, so people were pretty fired up. Gopher fans by no means took over the building, but enough traveled to create an atmosphere at the game and the pep rally/Sota Social at a local bar the night before. If you're considering going, it'll be a fun experience.

If you plan to follow the Gophers this year and will buy tickets through the U of M after the site and dates are revealed, here's something from 2005 to keep in mind, assuming the same ticketing policies exist in 2013. We picked up our tickets after arriving in Charlotte. It turned out the tickets were for the Gophers' first round afternoon session only. The evening session first round tickets weren't included and neither was the second round, the latter only being distributed had the Gophers advanced. Unless we missed it somehow, this wasn't made clear by the U of M from the start. We just went to the box office at the Coliseum and bought tickets there for the remaining sessions. Luckily they had enough of a selection due to the large capacity and many locals holding off until the Tar Heels in particular were assigned there. However, that may not be the case at a smaller arena with a popular team or two on hand. So beware.
 

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