MN Daily: The Barnyard to miss Big Ten tournament

BleedGopher

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per the Daily:

The conference amended its policy for this year’s tournament so that students can only attend sessions that feature their school’s team, which could make it tough for students planning a trip with an unknown return date.

“A few years ago, we lost on a buzzer beater to Illinois, but 40 [to] 50 people still went to the rest of the games,” said Tim Jackson, a finance and management information systems senior and vice president of the Barnyard.

The Big Ten tournament is divided into six sessions, with most pieces featuring two games. Over the last two years, every session has sold out.

If the Gophers were to lose in the first round, University of Minnesota students would no longer be able to obtain the discounted student tickets to the rest of the tournament.

All-session tickets available to the public will cost between $200 and $375 depending on seat location, according to the conference.

“We look at that as a little obnoxious for students to spend that much money plus hotels and whatnot,” Jackson said.

The Barnyard’s president, Sami Kleiner, and seven other student section representatives sent a letter to the conference voicing their disproval of the new student ticket policy, saying, “the number of students able to attend will significantly diminish.”

http://www.mndaily.com/sports/mens-basketball/2015/02/23/barnyard-miss-big-ten-tournament

Go Gophers!!
 

This is disappointing. I know the NCAA is concerned about maximizing revenue, but (as they constantly remind us) they are still amateur collegiate sports. It is wrong when either schools or conferences adopt policies that prevent tuition paying students from being able to get affordable quality seats on reasonable terms. College sports should be first and foremost about students (both athletes and non-athletes).
 

This an absurd policy. It's been several years, but I attended some Big Ten Tournaments in Chicago that had enough empty seats that there was no issue with letting the students in for all games. This will discourage students from attending an event for which they create a lot of the atmosphere.
 




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