UofA, Kentucky game ranked among hottest tickets in March Madness
Mar 20, 2018, 4:59 AM | Updated: 12:42 pm
Buffalo guard Jeremy Harris, right, drives around Arizona forward Deandre Ayton (13) during the first half of a first-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament Thursday, March 15, 2018, in Boise, Idaho. (AP Photo/Otto Kitsinger)
(AP Photo/Otto Kitsinger)
PHOENIX — Thousands of people were hoping to see University of Arizona and University of Kentucky square off in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, making it among the hottest tickets in the March Madness series.
According to The Phoenix Business Journal, prices for the potential Boise, Idaho, game were selling on TickPick.com, a New York-based online ticket reseller, for as much as $432.
Kyle Zorn, a sales agent and ticket price expert for TickPick, told the publication that the first and second round games involving Kentucky and Arizona ranked as the highest because fans bought tickets to the doubleheader first-round games and second-round games.
Zorn said those games and the second matchup between the winners ranked on the website as the most expensive games in the tournament.
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The price of the Kentucky-Arizona game was driven up so much due in part to Kentucky’s fan base, which was willing to travel to Idaho for the event.
“They travel particularly well,” Zorn said.
The smaller size of the Taco Bell Arena — which only seats 12,600 fans — also helped raise the demand.
But the game would never see the light of day: While Kentucky beat the Davidson Wildcats 78-73 in the first round, Arizona fell to the Buffalo Bulls, 89-68.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, Business Insider and USA Today, University of Arizona’s men’s basketball program brings in $23.4 million to Tucson.
The program was rocked earlier this season after an ESPN article claimed that head coach Sean Miller was heard on an FBI wiretap discussing a payment of $100,000 to ensure a commitment from now-freshman Deandre Ayton.
Despite the controversy, University of Arizona president Robert Robbins said earlier this month that he stood behind Miller following an executive meeting that included Arizona Board of Regents chair Bill Ridenour and athletic director Dave Heeke.
“At this time, we have no reason to believe that Coach Miller violated NCAA rules or any laws regarding the allegation reported in the media,” Robbins said.
