Basketball fanatics are getting ramped up with March Madness quickly approaching.
San Diego locals can get even more excited because some early rounds of the tournament will take place right in their backyard: Viejas Arena, which is on the campus of San Diego State, is hosting games in the first and second rounds of the NCAA tournament.
For this year's match-ups, there will be four games on March 18 split up into two sessions, and there will also be two games on March 20. Fans looking to catch the madness can buy tickets here or through the Viejas Arena website. Those seats, though, will cost you: The cheapest ticket we could find was in Student Section L — behind one of the baskets, basically — and cost an eye-watering $476. And they only go up from there. And, boy, do they go up from there.
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The last time San Diegans caught March Madness in person was in 2018, when, among other match-ups, Marshall University's 13th-seeded Thundering Herd vanquished the Wichita State Shockers (a four seed) in a 81-75 upset.
Viejas Arena is also home to Aztecs basketball, of course, with the ballers making it their home since 1997.
The Matchups:
Session 1 on March 18: Texas Tech vs. Montana St. (10:45 AM PT) | Alabama vs. Rutgers/Notre Dame (1:15 PM PT)
Session 2, March 18: Arizona vs. Wright St./Bryant (4:27 PM PT) | Seton Hall vs. TCU (6:57 PM PT)
Session 3: TBA
Local
This article originally stated that the last time the NCAA men's tournament took place at Viejas Arena was 2014, when, in fact, games were held at the venue in 2018. We regret the error — Ed.
