Basketball Student Tickets

Alexa Burrell
Phi Mu

Once again, the Carolina Athletics Association has altered the policy for student basketball tickets. The first home game against Mississippi Valley State was on Sunday, Nov. 20 and left some students confused about the new policy. Here is an easy guide to the new ticket policy, so you can be sure to get to the game.  

All games before Jan. 7 are treated as “break games.” For these games, there is no lottery. To get tickets, go to the UNC Ticket Office, below the Basketball Museum next to the Smith Center, and show your one card. This ticket will get you into the game through the student entrance. Tickets are available the day of the game.

For all home games on or after Jan. 7, there will be a student lottery for tickets. Instead of signing up for multiple games at once, as in previous years, students now have to sign up for each individual game. The lottery opens 10 days before each game and is only open for 72 hours. Lottery notification emails will be sent 5-7 days before the game.

And then there is the Duke game. The Tar Heels will play the Blue Devils on Feb. 8 in Chapel Hill this year. Tickets for this game are a graduate priority distribution, and each student only receives one ticket. There are also five phases for this game.

If you are worried about forgetting to sign up for tickets, the CAA has a listserv where it sends out reminders, or you can follow them on Twitter @UNCCAA. The ticket office also has a Twitter at @UNCStudentTix that will send out reminders about lottery sign ups, deadlines and available seating.

If you get a ticket through the lottery, you will receive two general admission tickets to the student section. The tickets are distributed in three phases. The phase ticket you get determines when you can enter the Dean E. Smith Center. Phase 1 is an hour and a half before tip-off, Phase 2 is 1 hour before tip-off and Phase 3 is 30 minutes before tip-off.

If you get a ticket but can’t go to the game, there will be a link in your email to return your ticket. These tickets are redistributed the day of the game or to students in the stand-by line. These are great options if you can’t get a ticket but still want to go to a game.

If you are lucky enough to get a ticket, you are going to want to attend. The Heels are a favorite to win the national championship in March, and watching them along the way is a great opportunity. Go Heels!