Tickets to see the NCAA Championship basketball game are super cheap when compared to other major final sports championship games. The four most watched final games besides the NCAA basketball championship are the Super Bowl, the BCS Championship, the NBA Finals, and the World Series.
Up until the week before the Final Four, tickets for the NCAA Championship basketball game will be very expensive. The cheapest nosebleed seats way behind the basket were going for $199 in early March and with one week before the game are now going for $95 per ticket on Ticket Network. The cheapest seats at Tickets Now were going for $300 in early March and are also just below $100 per ticket. After the first Final Four game on April 2nd, NCAA Championship game tickets will be down to double digits.
In 2007 I took my son to the Final Four in Atlanta. Read my blog post on how to save money on Final Four tickets. As you might expect, fans from the two teams that lose in the Final Four immediately sell their tickets after the game. I don’t think I have ever seen so many ticket buyers, sellers, and event ushers in complete chaos. Before the Final Four, I thought I knew all the secrets to buying NCAA Championship basketball tickets. I was wrong. Below are tips I learned.
Arrive early to the Final Four and familiarize yourself with the layout in getting down to the lower bowl
The best value for NCAA Championship game tickets will be in the lower level. The fans of the teams in the Final Four are typically seated behind the baskets. I made the rookie mistake of assuming I could just walk down a few minutes before the first Final Four game ended and walk into a complete buyers market. I had never been to the Georgia Dome before and did not scout out how to get down to the lower level behind the baskets. We took a wrong turn in trying to make our way down which ended up costing us precious time.
My heart sank as soon as we approached the entrance into the lower bowl area and realized it was completely roped off. Ushers would only allow fans to go into the lower bowl section if you had a ticket for that area. I’m sure had we moved down earlier we wouldn’t have had a problem getting inside the lower bowl seating area. Being on the outside looking in, I tried to hold up one finger signifying I was looking for one ticket, but the ushers would not allow it. Surrounded by hundreds of other anxious NCAA basketball fans desperately wanting in on the ticket action, I decided to buy something I already had – tickets to the Final Four!
Buy Final Four ticket stubs from fans of the losing teams
If you want a super cheap incredible seat to the second game of the Final Four, buy a lower bowl ticket stub from a depressed fan willing to trade their Final Four ticket stub for beer money to drown their sorrows. I had to buy an extra ticket stub just so I could get by the ushers to partake in the Championship game ticket selling madness. After paying $40 for the ticket stub (which I later sold back to a wiser fan), I immediately was asking myself why I spent so much on our Final Four tickets. Why didn’t I have the foresight to just buy cheap nosebleed seats for the first game?
I had expected lower bowl tickets for the NCAA Championship game to be going for under $200. I was shocked to see sellers receiving $350 per ticket. I was just looking for a single NCAA Basketball championship game ticket in the lower bowl as my son was only 7 and would end up sitting on my lap just to be able to see given the gradual slope behind the basket. We finally found a Georgetown Hoyas coed who sold me a single lower bowl ticket for $150. After the UCLA Bruins lost in the second game of the Final Four, I bought a single nosebleed seat for $50 so I could get my son in the door for the NCAA Championship game.
Paying $200 for lower bowl tickets for the NCAA Championship game between the Florida Gators and the Ohio St. Buckeyes was ticket savings at its best. Comparable tickets for the NCAA Championship game will go for $700-1,000 each. If your planning on attending the NCAA Final Four and want to save money, buy tickets to just the Final Four and then learn from my experience and cash in your savings for the NCAA Championship game.
Verry nice blog ! I think i will come back one day !
Will be interesting to see if Big East gets anyone into the Final Four. Has NCAA championship game been in Houston before?
The other nice thing about the Final game is its played on Monday, so there is a big incentive for all the fans from the losing teams to head back home on Sunday rather than take a couple more days off from work. NCAA championship game is about the only one that has somewhat affordable tickets.
I saw similar ticket bargains after Duke won their Final Four game last year. Hopefully Duke will be in Houston in a few weeks!!!