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President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron are scheduled to watch the First Four at UD Arena on Tuesday. |
— With the expected attendance of President
Barack Obama and British Prime Minister
David Cameron, University of Dayton Arena officials today issued guidance for ticketholders for the start of the First Four NCAA® Division I Men's Basketball Championship games Tuesday, March 13.
"We highly encourage everyone attending to arrive early,” said
Tim O'Connell, the University's senior associate athletics director.
"This is a great honor and a history-making moment for the University of Dayton Arena and the Dayton community. We're asking patrons to be patient," he said. "The presence of the President and the Prime Minister along with the competitive tradition of this great American sports event guarantee an unprecedented level of excitement and a night to be remembered."
Arena doors will open at 4:30 p.m
., as long as the first game starts as scheduled at 6:30 p.m., he said. Entry will only be allowed through the doors adjacent to B Lot and C Lot. Doors at the south and the west wing of the arena will not be available.
Parking in A and C Lots will be prepaid pass only, parking in D Lot will be cash-only at $10, and overflow parking on River Park Drive between Patterson Boulevard and South Main Street near the Marriott Hotel will be $3.
O'Connell said under no circumstances will carry-in items be permitted inside the arena, excluding small purses and small baby bags.
Specifically prohibited are: knives (including pocket knives), firearms (including toy guns), pepper spray (mace), tools (leathermen, screwdrivers), sharp instruments (scissors, razor blades, etc.), food or beverages of any kind, aerosol containers (hair spray), umbrellas, laser pointers, fireworks, noise makers, tripods (cameras are fine), coolers, sticks, or any other item that could be a used as a projectile.
O'Connell strongly suggested that any prohibited item be left at home and not even carried on the property.
Signs are permitted, but cannot be any larger than 8.5" x 11" in size and cannot be attached to any poles or sticks. The content must be tournament-related and in good taste, and University of Dayton officials reserve the right to disallow or confiscate any sign in violation.
Tickets are still available, but O'Connell said he expects the game to sell out when the teams are announced Sunday night.
The University of Dayton Arena, which has hosted more NCAA Division I men’s tournament games than any other arena in the country, is hosting the First Four this year and again in 2013, when it also will host second- and third-round games of the championship. Local fans have helped the University of Dayton regularly rank among the top 30 nationally in Division I men’s basketball attendance.
