Just days before single-session tickets go on sale for the Summit League Basketball Tournament in Sioux Falls, tickets sales are brisk. More than 4,000 all-session passes are already sold.
“Last year having two overtime championship games in one day killed all the Jack fans, I think,” South Dakota State University Alumni booster Eric Erickson.
This year home-court advantage is getting more crowded because the Coyotes are coming to town too.
“Kind of being the new guy here in Sioux Falls, I'm just trying to get a feel for the Universities around town. I'm definitely feeling USD vs. SDSU is a big deal,” Sioux Falls Sports Authority Executive Director Wes Hall said.
Hall believes hype is there ahead of the tournament. It could be a potential rivalry or it might just be fans' desire to see good match-ups. He says ticket sales support both.
“You can see that the buzz and urgency is being created. And once those seeds are announced, I'm assuming ticket lines will be long at the arena,” Hall said.
“As much as we'd like to think every body's an SDSU fan, not everyone is,” Erickson said.
Erickson says while the competition will certainly heat up, especially where fans are concerned, Jackrabbit fans are still planning to party. This year it's one larger single event instead of separate ones held during previous tournaments. The fan gatherings are all part of an effort to raise team spirit through rivalry and revelry.
“There's going to be a push knowing that the Jacks have had that perceived home-court advantage, and that if USD can create that same thing to try and push them up in the ranks,” Erickson said.
The North Dakota State University Bison who will also make a showing during the tournament. Single-session tickets go on sale Monday.
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