I wanted to attend the first round NIT game Northwestern hosted on Thursday night but was unable. Instead, Northwestern surprisingly won that game and was scheduled to host Alabama on Sunday. Game time was 2 pm – meaning I would be able to attend the women’s NIT game before heading to the United Center for the 6:10 pm tip of the Men’s NCAA Tournament.
Pre Game Dining
Nicole needed to work on her dissertation all day so my plan was to bring the Ultimate Sports Baby to the WNIT game. Before the …

The last game of the day was definitely the best game. VCU trounced Georgetown 74-56. VCU was the controversial entry to the NCAA Tournament but proved they belong with this blowout. This was the third year in a row that Georgetown lost to a #10 seed or higher in the first round.

As I exited the arena, I began asking for extra tickets from the Purdue fans that were lined up at the gate to enter the arena. As I asked for extra tickets one young man said he had an extra and handed me the ticket. Since he was young, I was 1) surprised he had an extra ticket and 2) that he was giving it away for free. Turns out he worked for somebody at the Chicago Board of Trade who gave him the tickets. So he to giveaway the …

The second game of the session was more exciting than the first as Florida St. defeated Texas A&M 57-50 to advance in the tournament for the first time since 1998.
The last time I attended the NCAA Tournament at the United Center was in 2002. That day, we had at least two hours in between sessions so my friend and I walked over to Cheli’s Chili Bar to hang out. However, for some reason there was no time in between sessions this year. In fact, not only was there no time, …

I had waited for this weekend for awhile. I had two days where I could get out of the house, without Dylan, for the NCAA Tournament. The first game on Friday was scheduled for 12:40 pm so I left the house as soon as I could to get down for the first game.
Beg, Borrow and Deal
I walked in front of Gate 3 and found a family who had an extra ticket. I offered $20 for the $80 face value ticket and held firm on my price point. I told them …