College basketball season isn’t over in Champaign, after all.
Illinois women’s basketball fans will have another chance to see their team take the State Farm Center court. Coach Shauna Green’s squad will take on Missouri State on Thursday, March 21, in the inaugural Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament (WBIT), the NCAA announced Sunday.
It’s the first time a postseason women’s basketball game has been hosted in Champaign since the 2012-13 season. Illinois hosted the first two rounds of the 2012-13 WNIT and advanced to the quarterfinals.
Tickets will be on sale to the general public starting Monday, March 18. Ticket prices range from $10-$25 each, depending on seat location (see below). Tipoff time is 6 p.m.
According to Illini athletics: “Since the WBIT is sponsored and funded by the NCAA, fans should be on the lookout for communication regarding WBIT tickets soon. Illinois season ticket holders received ticket information in their email. Any non-season ticket holder can purchase tickets beginning at 4 p.m. on Monday, March 18. Please reach out to the Illinois Athletics Ticket Office at 1-866-ILLINI-1 or illinitickets@illinois.edu for more information.”
The Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament (WBIT) is a newly created 32-team postseason single-elimination tournament owned and sponsored by the NCAA. The competition is the second-best women’s basketball postseason tournament available (behind the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament) and is in its first year of existence. The WBIT is equivalent to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) in men’s basketball.
The WBIT features 32 teams and will run from the first round (March 21) through the championship game (April 3). The single-elimination tournament features 16 seeded teams, with the top four seeded teams in four separate sections of the bracket.
The first three rounds will take place on campus sites, while the semifinal and championship games will take place at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. In each of the first three rounds, the higher-seeded team with an available facility will host the contest at campus sites.
Ticket prices for WBIT games at State Farm Center:
- Courtside: $25
- Loge: $15
- Lower bowl and general admission: $15
- Students/Youth: $10
- Ages 2 and older must have a ticket for admission