"BasketBowl" Ticket Sales Approach 40,000
6/21/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
June 21, 2003
EAST LANSING, Mich. - A world-record basketball crowd in excess of 75,000 is expected when Michigan State plays host to Kentucky on Saturday, Dec. 13 at Ford Field in Detroit. Michigan State ticket manager Chris Besanceney reported Saturday, June 21 that 38,682 tickets have been sold for "The BasketBowl - Hoops on the 50."
"It's remarkable to think that more than half of the tickets have been ordered during the private sales stage," Besanceney said. "I anticipate this sales pace to continue through next week, the final week of private sales."
The world basketball attendance record is 75,000 set on Aug. 21, 1951, during a Harlem Globetrotters exhibition game played in Berlin Olympic Stadium in Germany. The largest crowd ever to watch an NCAA basketball game is 68,112 set on Jan. 20, 1990, when Notre Dame played Louisiana State in the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans.
Ford Field capacity is listed at 65,000 for football. The capacity exceeds the 75,000 mark with the addition of portable courtside bleachers and students being granted access to field level.
At this time, the MSU Athletics Department is accepting ticket orders from only donors and season-ticket holders. Tickets may be purchased by contacting the MSU Ticket Office at 1-800-GO-STATE or 517-355-1610 or via the Internet at www.msuspartans.com. Seating will be allocated based upon availability and donor priority. The pricing structure offers something for everyone, with tickets priced from $8 to $125. Fifty-seven percent of the tickets are priced at $14 or less.
Approximately 5,000 tickets have been allocated for MSU students, with a sale scheduled for the fall semester.
Tickets will go on sale to the general public through the Ford Field Box Office, beginning Tuesday, July 8.
