My NCAA Tournament Experience

March Madness is a HUGE deal in my house. My parents and I fill out brackets, and we lose all productivity around the house. Honestly, there is nothing better than March basketball. Upsets happen, games come down to the wire, and it is so exciting!

Recently, I went to the NCAA Tournament in Pittsburgh with my dad. I found out that Consol Energy Center was hosting, and I was going. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. Luckily, I found a Groupon for discounted seats. So I bought them. :)

My dad and I went to the first session in the afternoon, so we saw 2 games. The evening session had 2 more games. Once Selection Sunday happened, we knew we were going to see Notre Dame vs, Northeastern, and Butler vs. Texas.

Side Note: Now, I love me some Butler Basketball. I'm a diehard Duke fan, but I also cheer for Butler. I like the guys they recruit, I like their coach, and they are just a classy organization. Mike Brey, Notre Dame's coach is a former Duke assistant. He also runs a classy program, and it was nice to see an ACC team that we have watched on TV three times this year. My cousin teaches at Northeastern, so I was sending her pictures of the game, and giving her updates as it was going on. Being able to see Texas was nice, because they are not a team that I've seen a whole lot of. 

An empty arena

My dad and I got to the arena around 10:30 and it was basically empty. We walked around a little bit, looked at the merchandise, got some nachos (a must!), and found our seats. The games didn't start until 12:15, so we got to watch the teams warm up and stretch,and also saw the National Anthem, most things you don't see on TV.

Funny story: My dad was wearing a Notre Dame t-shirt, and these nice people said "hello, and Go Irish" when we walked past them. They were dressed nicely, and had a huge cut out of Demetrius Jackson from Notre Dame. Turns out, it was his parents!!!!! So cool!!

Notre Dame and Northeastern warming up

The anthem was played, the teams were introduced, and it was time for some hoops! The first game was SO exciting!! It came down to the wire, and Notre Dame squeaked out a victory! I was so impressed with Northeastern for sticking with the Golden Domers, and giving them a run for their money!

After the first game, we had 27 minutes until the next game

An absolute must!

started. That was just enough time to get a Primanti's sandwich. I was being good and split one with my dad, but man I could have finished a whole one myself. We got in line, ate our sandwich and still had 3 minutes left before the start of the second game. Whew!

Butler and Texas warming up

The second game was Butler and Texas, and that game was so good too! There was a 12-14 minute stretch where Butler didn't score, and they were STILL up by 3 points! Only in March! Butler ended up winning the game, and this fan was happy!


One the way home, my mom texted me and said that the NCAA
was going to be bringing the tournament back in 2018. Well, guess who is going to be there? Yep! You guessed it! ME! Maybe I can keep my fingers crossed Duke gets in that region next time!   ;)

Panoramic view from the seats and no, we weren't this far away!

Have you ever been to an NCAA Tournament? How was your experience? Do you have any questions for me? I'd love to interact with you@ Leave me a comment and let me know!