March 11, 2014
In the next article in our series of NCAA conference tournament pieces on Forbes, we break down Big East Tournament tickets and the impact of realignment on those ticket prices. Here's a small section of the article
Starting Wednesday night, The Big East Tournament will kick off at Madison Square Garden for the 32nd consecutive year and the 35th overall. For many, though, it won’t feel anything like the Big East Tournaments of old, which featured local college powerhouses Syracuse and UConn. Both schools are driving distance from Manhattan and have big local alumnae bases in or around New York. Collectively those two teams won the Big East Tournament 13 times, or 37% of the time it has been played since 1980. As a result of those 13 wins and the, Big East Tournament tickets have often been amongst the most expensive conference tournament in college basketball. This year, with Syracuse playing in the ACC Tournament and UConn playing in the AAC tournament, prices for the Big East on the secondary market are down 11% compared to last year. There are also still tickets available on the primary market, which is not something that has been the case in years past. As of this morning, about 30% of seats were still available on the primary market for the finals, which means that prices will likely drop from the current average price. A final appearance by number-one-ranked Villanova would likely help buoy prices, as they have a large tri-state alumnae base. Number-two-ranked Creighton, on the other hand, is based in Omaha, Nebraska and would likely not be a big draw. A run by number-five-ranked St. John’s would also likely help drive up demand and prices.
Click here to read the rest of the article on Forbes and find out even more about the impact of Syracuse and UConn leaving the Big East.
