March Madness comes to San Francisco with Sweet 16 games at Chase Center. Here's what to know.
The Chase Center in San Francisco hosted the NCAA Tournament for the second time in the arena's brief history this week as two Sweet 16 games are played on the Warriors' home court.
What is the Bay Area's history with the NCAA Tournament?
NCAA Tournament games have been played in the Bay Area dating back to the first college basketball tournament ever in 1939 when the West Regional contest was played at the California Coliseum, part of the Golden Gate International Exposition on Treasure Island. The Tournament wouldn't return to the region until both Stanford (Burnham Pavilion in 1953) and Cal (Haas Pavilion in 1958) hosted opening-round games and the Cow Palace was used as a game site in 1955 and 1958-1960.
Both the Oakland Arena and SAP Center in San Jose have held tournament games in the the modern era starting in 1990 through the 2010s, with the West Regional coming to the Chase Center in 2022.
Who is playing in this year's West Regional at Chase Center?
The first game scheduled on Thursday was between No. 1 Seed Florida and No. 4 Seed Maryland. That game is set to start at 4:39 p.m. The Gators made some headlines due to coach Todd Golden initially getting shut out when he tried to make a reservation for the team at his favorite San Francisco restaurant, Original Joe's (he was eventually able to make arrangements there for Tuesday night). The real story for Florida is guard Walter Clayton Jr., who became the school's first-ever first-team All American and keyed Florida's comeback win over UConn. The Terrapins boast a gifted starting five (known as the "Crab Five," a play on the University of Michigan's "Fab Five" squad in 1991) that includes rising star Derik Queen (whose buzzer-beater lifted Maryland over Colorado State 72-71) and Julian Reese, the brother of current WNBA star Angel Reese.
Florida's three standout seniors and its deep bench kept bringing energy until it became too tough for Maryland's "Crab Five" to keep up. Will Richard scored 15 points, Alijah Martin added 14 points and seven rebounds, and No. 1 seed Florida played a steady second half to run away from fourth-seeded Maryland and into the NCAA Tournament's West Region final with an 87-71 win.
The second game scheduled for 7:09 p.m. Thursday pits No. 3 Seed Texas Tech against one of the tournament's Cinderella stories, No. 10 Seed Arkansas. The Red Raiders are led by Big 12 Player of the Year JT Toppin, who is projected to be first-round NBA draft pick. Despite their low seed, the Razorbacks are one of the most talented teams in the tournament and boast another candidate for future NBA star in Boogie Fland. Darrion Williams scored the tiebreaking basket with 7.3 seconds left in overtime after tying the game with a 3-pointer in the closing seconds of regulation to lead Texas Tech to an 85-83 win over Arkansas on Thursday night in the first OT contest of the tournament.
Florida and Texas Tech will face each other on Saturday, March, 29, with the winner of that contest moving on to the Final Four.
How much are tickets for the Sweet 16 games?
Tickets for the games on Thursday started at around $117 per seat in the upper sections of the Chase Center, with resale seats in the courtside sections going for anywhere from almost $900 to over $5,000. Pricing for Saturday's Elite Eight game starts slightly higher at around $138 per ticket, but tops out at a more modest $2,500 as of Wednesday evening. There are also premium suites available and NCAA Fan Experience packages starting at $275 per ticket.
Will there be free viewing at Thrive City?
While there is not a planned viewing party for the games being played at Chase Center on Thursday and Saturday, there will be men's college basketball on the big screen outside the arena on Friday and Sunday. The viewing sessions begin at 9 a.m. and will feature the simultaneous broadcast of all the big games on the split-screen plaza board. The event is scheduled to go until 9 p.m. Tickets for the viewing party on Friday are free, but those who have RSVP registrations through Eventbrite will receive priority admission until capacity is reached. A limited amount of walk-ups may be available. Space is limited and will be first-come, first-served.
How can attendees get to Chase Center?
While there will be parking available on some city streets and area garages near Chase Center, the venue is easily accessible via Muni, BART, Caltrain, and the ferry. Muni will also run additional S-shuttle trains and express bus service between Chase Center and 16th St Mission BART station starting 2.5 hours before and 1 hour after games. Basketball fans attending the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games can show their game ticket at Muni fare gates and boarding platforms to ride without additional charge. Both electronic and physical tickets for the tournament games will serve as proof of payment for Muni service throughout the day. Keep your tickets handy to show to station agents or transit fare inspectors. More information for the program is available at the Chase Center fare page.
