Seeking advice: getting best deal on tickets for Thurs game (sorry if bad)

Submitted by panthera leo fututio on

Despite being a broken and humbled grad student, I live in LA, and I'm thinking about springing to go to the game Thursday afternoon/evening.

Along those lines, does anyone have advice on the best way to do it? I'm happy to be anywhere in the arena -- in the absence of personal connections, are StubHub-style websites the best I'm likely to do (currently around $200 + fees)? Should I show up the day of and buy from scalper?

Thanks, and apologies if this post is redundant and bad.

mGrowOld

March 19th, 2018 at 1:44 PM ^

Try and only buy tickets for Thursday night.  You might pay a premium for only getting tickets for the first night but trust me - pricing at the regional finals craters for elite 8 game because half the fan base goes home after Thursday night's outcome and you'll more than make up for it in the savings Saturday.

Also - if you can do it, the closer it gets to gametime ticket prices will start to fall so hold out if you've got the stomach for it.  And lastly, you'll pay a premium (even if the seats are crappy) to sit with other Michigan fans.  If you dont care about that you can get pretty good seats reasonably priced from the tons of local people getting comp'd tickets that dont want to go.

 

J.

March 19th, 2018 at 1:51 PM ^

Especially for get-in-the-door prices.  Prices have already been dropping steadily for both games, and I expect they'll continue.  And quite a few of the full-game strips they do sell will come back on the market for Saturday.

I expect the total investment here to be considerably cheaper than Wichita due to the lack of a local team.

MGoOhNo

March 19th, 2018 at 3:00 PM ^

If you're local, there are always deals on stubhub 2 hours pre-game - just make sure your stubhub account is setup and your payment information is preloaded into the app on your phone. 

I have an office down the street from Staples and I've had the opportunity to sit even in suites for as low as $35/pp for multiple hockey/basketball/events using the last minute method.

However, sweet 16 is a different animal, especially in markets such as LA, CHI, DAL, etc. There will be plenty of college basketball fans not associated with a particular team that want to go for the scene.  There will also be losing team fans that want to dump tickets but the lack of guaranty and hassle may not be worth discount. 

I would buy the full strip now, as I do not see good seats being significantly discounted. I (hopefully) bought my full strip before the 1st round games, and the pricing is about the same. Paid about $100 over face for the PR sections at Staples (they take drink and food orders at your seat so you don't have to get up or deal with lines) and that's generally holding steady. 300 level seats aren't great, but there is more softness in those sections.

I will say that the "all in" price is cheaper using stubhub (the primesport.com official reseller has like double the fees).

For "get in door" pricing, its been holding steady, and the $90 difference you pay for the full strip as opposed to just the first session is relatively nominal and you know you'll be in the same seats, etc., if that's important to you.

panthera leo fututio

March 19th, 2018 at 4:57 PM ^

Great, thanks for this response. I'm more focused on just getting in the building than getting in any particular section (I've sat in cheap seats for Lakers/Clippers games and found all of them tolerable), and I'm def on a bit of a grad student budget. That said, these LA-based StubHub insights are solid (and I'd imagine probably apply for Dodgers games, etc., which I should start taking advantage of).

Zoltanrules

March 19th, 2018 at 10:33 PM ^

It's even a bigger drop because the Finals are on a Monday and the semi's loser no way wants to stick around for that.

MGoStory: In 1993, I got to see Webber call time up close from a great seat which I paid nothing for. We were in New Orleans and I paid a lot to sit in the nosebleeds of the Superdome to see UM beat Kentucky in the semis. Right after the game, we are out celebrating on Bourbon Street and run into Jamaal Mashburn who was already thinking about the NBA and was over the disappointment of losing to UM. He said he had to go to some function at the hotel where the alumni association/boosters were staying. My buddy has a brilliant idea to hang out in their hotel lobby. BEfore we know it, we are talking to some rich Kentucky alums and luckily were very complimentary of Kentucky  because next thing you know we were given two tickets ...they weren't hanging around for another shit show. As if it couldn't get any better, Rick Pitino walks in,looking like a slick Wall Street mogul,  with the team and walks up this huge staircase where he addresses the Kentucky fans and passionately thanks them for their support. One of the best talks I have ever heard! ...And then no need to talk about the UNC Final, but the "get the first day loser tickets" strategy is the best!!

SanDiegoWolverine

March 19th, 2018 at 2:13 PM ^

Scalpers in LA are more willing to come down than what I've experienced on the East Coast. Also, if you are load in looking for tickets there are always people with 1 extra ticket because someone in their party didn't show up and they couldn't unload them last minute. 

Matt EM

March 19th, 2018 at 2:14 PM ^

my advice is wait it out as long as possible. Can't really speak intelligently with respect to NCAA tourney games at Staples, but in my experience as a lifelong Laker fan that has attended tons of Laker games, season ticket holders often put up their seats for sale on Stubhub less than 30 minutes prior to the game once they take a look at their phone GPS and realize the 405 and the 10 are at a complete standstill.................particularly for a weekday game that tips off at 4:30.

Recently, I purchased a pair of PR tix (2nd level seats with extra leg room, private bathrooms, access to food, etc) for the Lakers-Celtics game for $220 total on Stubhub roughly 25 minutes before tipoff. For a Lakers-Celtics game that is a great bargain, especially with the Lakers fielding a competitive team that is clearly on the rise this year.

panthera leo fututio

March 19th, 2018 at 5:02 PM ^

Awesome, thank you. I think my new tentative plan is to hang out downtown day of, check StubHub ~30 minutes before tip, and then hit up scalpers if nothing seems like a great deal. Also, I'm almost definitely overthinking this, but if I go the scalper route, my brand new plan is to wear an obscuring jacket or something over my Michigan gear, and to put on a dgaf facade for the scalpers, see if I can get a little negotiational leverage. (I'm exteremely proud of my business cunning.)

PDX_Wolverine13

March 19th, 2018 at 2:54 PM ^

Heading down from Portland, so eager to see Seth's write-up and will likely employ a last minute strategy as well for tickets. Would like to be no worse than 200 level and not behind the basket (corner is ok).

CaliUMfan

March 19th, 2018 at 4:30 PM ^

I scouped mine up before the UNC/A&M and the FLoridaSt/Xavier games in anticipation of the demand going up once all the teams were decided. Looks like prices have gone up since then but only about 10%. At this point I think the best bet would be to monitor stubhub for deals Wednesday and Thursday to try to snatch up any great deals that pop up. I thought about waiting until the day of (which i've had good luck with in the past) but decided not to risk it. 

LAmichigan

March 19th, 2018 at 5:02 PM ^

PLEASE DO NOT do a ticketing write-up!  Scalpers/sellers monitor this stuff and adjust their prices accordingly.  Write-ups (including the obligatory Freep ticketing non-story) only increase prices for true fans who are now trying to buy.  We all know how Stubhub works.  Thanks!

panthera leo fututio

March 19th, 2018 at 5:06 PM ^

I'm probably being a little unfair with my synopsis, but this seems like saying "Don't write the article in case any scalpers check the internet to see how scalping works." Like, I don't think that checking StubHub for market trends and/or waiting til tip for desperation deals is a super undercover trade secret for professional scalpers or anything.

dmoo4u

March 19th, 2018 at 7:13 PM ^

I just scooped up my tickets on stub hub. Paid 115 a piece for two nosebleed tickets. Fees totaled about 60 bucks because they have to overnight the tickets. Can’t wait - go blue!

LAmichigan

March 19th, 2018 at 8:27 PM ^

Yes, those scoundrels read the papers, interwebs and freeps of the world.  Landlord just raised my rent 15 percent, quoting a 15 percent figure he read in the LA Times.  All it takes is one story/post about "How big the demand for tickets is" at Staples Center this weekend for prices to go sky-high.  No need to give them any reason to go higher.

Badkitty

March 19th, 2018 at 10:38 PM ^

Having one person post “how to get tickets” is not the same as “5000 UM fans descending upon Staples Center looking for tickets”. Your landlord raising your rent 15 percent simply reflects the market conditions that exist. That article you referenced didn’t make the market.

rdlwolverine

March 20th, 2018 at 9:48 AM ^

Bought tickets last year, but have a wedding to attend and can't go.  Seats are section Premier 11, row 5.  I am selling them only as a full strip and will let them go for below face (face is $400 per seat). Email me using my username @yahoo.com if interested and we can work something out. Avoid fees.