March Madness Starts in Pensacola!
Tickets on Sale for Sun Belt Conference Basketball Championships: March 5-8
Media Contact:
Nicole Stacey
Visit Pensacola
(850) 434-2142
nstacey@visitpensacola.com
Pensacola, Fla. – The 2021 Sun Belt Conference Men's and Women's Basketball Championships will be held Friday, March 5, through Monday, March 8, at the Pensacola Bay Center. Individual tickets go on sale today through Ticketmaster.
“We are excited to welcome schools from the Sun Belt Conference and their fans to Pensacola. We hope everyone enjoys their time spent in our historic city and on our beautiful beaches as they cheer on their team,” said Darien Schaefer, president and CEO of Visit Pensacola.
All 12 members of the Sun Belt Conference will compete in the single-elimination tournament for women’s and men’s basketball. The men’s and women’s brackets will each include a total of 11 games to be played over the course of four days. The schedule for the first round of the tournament has four games for the men and for the women slated for Friday, March 5. The top four teams in the conference will receive a bye and will face the first-round winners on Saturday, March 6. The semi-finals will be played on Sunday, March 7. The women’s and men’s champions will be crowned on Monday and will advance to the NCAA Women’s and Men’s Basketball Tournament.
“We’re thrilled to host our tournament in Pensacola,” said Sun Belt Commissioner Keith Gill. “We look forward to four exciting days of basketball in Pensacola that will culminate in two teams earning invitations to compete in the NCAA Basketball Championships.”
Individual tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at Ticketmaster or at the Pensacola Bay Center Box Office during normal business hours.
Per COVID-19 protocols, fans attending must wear a facial covering and seating at the Pensacola Bay Center will be at 50% arena capacity for each tournament session.
A free trolley will run around Downtown Pensacola on Saturday and Sunday, stopping at 12 host bars dedicated to each team.
On Sunday, March 7, a special “Fan Fest” event will take place outside the Bay Center from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. with food and drink, games and activities planned.
For updates on where to stay and what to enjoy while in Pensacola visit visitpensacola.com/sunbelt or via Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
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About the Sun Belt Conference
The Sun Belt Conference is made up of 12 members: App State, Arkansas-Little Rock (Little Rock), Arkansas State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Louisiana, Louisiana-Monroe (ULM), South Alabama, Texas-Arlington (UTA), Texas State and Troy.
About Visit Pensacola
Visit Pensacola is the destination management organization for Escambia County which includes Pensacola, Pensacola Beach, and Perdido Key. With over 450 years of rich history and 18 miles of sugar-white sand beaches bordered by the emerald-green waters of the Gulf of Mexico, visitors from all over the world are lured to our pristine shores every year. Visit Pensacola supports the community vision of tourism by serving as the central body responsible for building tourism as an economic engine for our community through leadership, connection, collaboration, and communication.
About Pensacola Sports
Pensacola Sports is one of the oldest sports commissions in the United States, beginning in 1954. Today, Pensacola Sports manages and assists in numerous events a year throughout the Escambia, Santa Rosa, and Okaloosa county areas. Pensacola Sports is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life, health, wellbeing and economic development of the Pensacola and surrounding regions through sports and recreation.
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Media Note
To arrange for interviews with Sun Belt officials or Visit Pensacola please contact Nicole Stacey, Director of Marketing and Communications at Visit Pensacola. (850) 434 – 2142, Nstacey@visitpensacola.com.
For a full media kit including digital assets, maps, COVID-19 protocols and more click here.
