The figures, obtained by IBJ on Wednesday, show an average attendance of 2,180 people per game across the seven basketball courts at six venues. All venues limited crowd sizes because of the pandemic.
The seed numbers of the 16 remaining teams add up to 94, the highest total since the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament expanded in 1985. Here’s how that stacks up against some previous years.
Some local museums and cultural institutions say they saw a bump in visitation over the weekend related to March Madness. Meanwhile, the attractions are playing up their basketball connections in a bid to attract visitors.
The move will allow fans and other visitors to use the Hyatt Regency, Westin and JW Marriott hotels for the first time in 10 days, after the three properties were fully booked by the NCAA for tournament needs.
Indianapolis is home to several must-do attractions, including special restaurants, the Speedway, several museums and more. Here’s a list of attractions the IBJ staff recommends checking out.
There will be fans at this year’s Indianapolis 500, Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Roger Penske said Monday, but how many remains a moving target based on COVID-19 restrictions. More than 170,000 tickets already have been sold for the May 30 race, he said.
One of the biggest challenges for sports bars like Kilroys and The District Tap is that most people are sticking around for multiple games, rather than leaving after they finish eating, restaurateurs said.
Capacity was limited to no more than 25% and bands and cheerleaders were noticeably absent. Still, most of the elements that make the NCAA Tournament America’s most beloved sporting event were on display Friday in the games played around central Indiana.
Even with most of the seats empty, the roar of fans could be heard outside Hinkle Fieldhouse on Friday afternoon as Virginia Tech hit a three-pointer in the final seconds to send the game into overtime.
Wondering what other sports-related activities you can do here? The answer is plenty.
If you picture hotdogs and popcorn when you think about stadium food, meet Chef Shimelis Adem, who’s using local ingredients to create an Indiana-focused menu for NCAA games. On the list: Midwestern Madness Pork Chop Sandwich, Indiana Whiskey Sour Pork Wings and a Half-Pound Bracket Burger.
Along with a morale boost, the NCAA Tournament will serve as a major economic boost for our downtown businesses and outlying areas.
In a statement on Gen Con’s website, event organizers said they believe the calendar change is the “best approach both to meet the many challenges of the moment and to explore possibilities for the future.”
The 68-team men’s tournament, which starts Thursday, is usually staged in 14 cities across the country. Here’s how Indianapolis plans to pull off the whole thing all by itself.
Experts say attending events like the NCAA basketball tourney is relatively safe because of how big arenas with high ceilings work to move and mix air—as long as capacity limits allow for physical distancing and masks are still worn properly.
The weather is starting to warm up, meaning patio dining is much more comfortable than it was a few months ago.
Over the past few weeks, Jennifer Pope Baker has spent pretty much every waking moment overseeing Indy’s effort to host this year’s NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament.
It’s taken thousands of Hoosier residents willing to put community first in order to take Indy’s success to the next level.
More than 600 artists, musicians, dancers and other creative types are expected to take part in Swish, an arts and cultural festival that will take over sidewalks and outdoor cultural spaces in downtown Indianapolis starting Saturday.
A typical PRI Show brings upwards of 67,000 people to Indianapolis and generates an economic impact of $65 million, making it one of the city’s largest annual events.
