Like many other Villanovans, I have been counting down the days till March Madness. I have been waiting for information on how to get tickets. When the email from Villanova Men’s Basketball arrived on March 9, I was so excited. However, after reading and rereading it, I was confused. I shared the email with my dad and asked, “Do you understand this?” He admitted that he did not, but tried to interpret the message to the best of his abilities. Thankfully, after talking, doing a little research, and trying to decipher the email, he and I began to understand how to “request” Round 1 tickets.
With major March Madness success in the past two decades, Villanova has become a “basketball school.” Attention comes with being in that category, and students were wondering how to get tickets for the “Big Dance.”
Especially for freshmen, Villanova Athletics has to do a better job of sharing how students can get tickets. Villanova has done a great job showing freshmen how to earn athletic points, enter the ticket lottery and get tickets for regular-season basketball games. But Villanova Athletics has fallen short with the information it shared on getting Round 1 March Madness tickets.
The Villanova Athletics email sent on March 9th announced that the university was now accepting student ticket requests and what students needed to be aware of during the postseason. While there was a lot of information, it did not make sense. What tournament sites can one request only two tickets for? Where will Villanova most likely play in Round 1? How many tickets are available?
Considering Villanova is a basketball school, students look forward to information about ticket requests. Many students found themselves confused about how to submit a “request” for March Madness tickets.
“I was overwhelmed because there was a bunch of information, and it was all just so confusing and all just plastered on there,” freshman Maria Mathew said.
With a bright future for Villanova basketball ahead, Athletics will have further opportunities to refine ticket requests. Analysts considered Villanova a “lock” in early February, so Athletics had over a month to share information about the requests. Sending the information less than a week before Selection Sunday was a quick turnaround for students to decide whether or not to request tickets.
Athletics needs to provide students with possible scenarios, locations and a step-by-step process on requesting tournament tickets. Students should not have to worry about finding a ticket. Let’s hope Villanova Basketball gives Athletics many more opportunities to share information about March Madness games.
