The NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament is returning to PNC Arena this season in what is expected to be another efficient year. After successful events in ‘04, ‘08 and ‘14, the first and second rounds will be coming back to Raleigh. This will be the fourth time in 13 years that PNC has opened up its doors for the tournament.
The first game tips off at 12:40 p.m. Thursday in an 8 vs. 9 matchup as the Texas Tech Red Raiders take on the Butler Bulldogs.
NC State has a history of hosting the NCAA Tournament that dates all the way back to 1951 when it was held at Reynolds Coliseum. Reynolds held multiple rounds up until 1982, which was the last action Raleigh saw until PNC Arena was built and the tournament returned in 2004.
Scott Dupree, executive director of Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance, handles the economic questions that arise during an event like this.
The most recent NCAA Tournament was hosted in 2014. As a result, $4.2 million was generated from direct visitor spending. The event also generated more than 10,100 hotel room bookings. Overall, the tournament brought more than 17,000 visitors to the region to see the event. Dupree said he expects the numbers to be around the same for this year’s tournament.
“The total attendance for the three sessions added up in 2014 was 53,172 people,” Dupree said.
The first session includes the first day which holds two games for the round of 64. The second session is the second day and two games from the round of 64. Then the third session are the eventual winners of the games playing each other in the round of 32.
“Historically, cities usually find out about two to three years in advance,” Dupree said. “This one was a little bit less time; we found out about a year and a half ago, the fall of 2014. This time, for whatever reason, the NCAA did it on a little bit more of a tight timeline.”
Through PNC Arena’s partnership with NC State Athletics, they gained the opportunity to host the NCAA Tournament.
“It’s a great event for the arena,” said Davin Olsen, general manager of PNC Arena. “It puts us on the national map, or the international map, whoever watches basketball.”
Olsen is right, average national ratings took a dip in 2008, but they have continuously risen since then, with an average TV rating of 7 throughout last year’s tournament.
Ian Oehring, a senior studying sports management, said the event will be great for Raleigh.
“People will be coming from all over the country to see the games, from Florida and Texas to Indiana and Rhode Island all at the same time,” Oehring said. “From a cultural standpoint, it offers an opportunity for others to see what North Carolina and the City of Raleigh has to offer. From an economic standpoint, it brings in a plethora of people from other areas and gives them means of spending money in the local area.”
Olsen agreed with Oehring.
“It’s a great opportunity for people to come to Raleigh, and for the PNC staff to showcase this great building and what it has to offer,” Olsen said. “We set up tents for people to be able to have food, a couple beers and an opportunity to have a great time.”
The NCAA Tournament provides a huge economic impact to the area of Raleigh. Every time the arena hosts the games, tourists and fans from all over come out to witness their favorite team play. While some teams leave happy or upset depending on the outcome of their game, one thing is for sure — Raleigh’s businesses end up happy.
Based on the zip codes of the tickets in 2014, 71 percent of the ticket buyers were from outside the Triangle alone. Of that 71 percent, 59 percent were from out of the state of North Carolina. Dupree will expect two-thirds of fans to once again come to the area from out of state for the tournament.
Dupree wanted people to be reminded that NC State is the host institution. Although other organizations and people such as Dupree do help out with the event, NC State is the main host.
The first and second round of the 2014 NCAA Tournament featured the Duke Blue Devils and Virginia Cavaliers. With Durham being close and Virginia in the ACC, the tournament surely generated much of its revenue from these teams. The event may experience even higher sales this year, with the ACC Champion and national title favorite North Carolina Tar Heels starting off in this region.
This year’s region will also feature the Virginia Cavaliers, Big East powerhouse Providence Friars, the USC Trojans, Texas Tech and Butler.
