The University of Arizona is celebrating as the men’s and women’s basketball teams head into the 2024 NCAA March Madness tournament.
Both teams will play in their first rounds on Thursday, March 21; the 2-seed men take on Long Beach State at 11 a.m. while the women face Auburn at 4 p.m. as an 11-seed.
As Arizona fans get ready, it’s likely that stores selling UA merchandise will experience increased traffic this week.
“Sales will be going up this week. The basketball team has always been good but they’ve been better this year, I would say, because they’re making it to the tournament,” said Nicole Rivera, an employee at A-City Just Sports, 936 E. University Blvd., which sells UA-themed clothes and other merchandise.
On typical home game days, A-City sees increased sales from fans looking for themed gear, such as red or white shirts when the theme calls for everyone to wear the same color, Rivera said. She said she expects a similar increase because of March Madness.
“I give it to them, (the teams) have been pretty good lately and I (pick up on) when it’s gonna be busy at the store,” she said.
Though A-City will not be selling any March Madness specific apparel, the store will continue to sell its abundance of Arizona clothes and accessories.
The University of Arizona Bookstores is another popular outpost for school jerseys, sweatshirts, T-shirts, hats and other accessories.
Charlotte Gongaware, a student at the university, was browsing through the clothes at the bookstore on Monday, the day after the men and women learned where they would land in the NCAA tournament.
“I actually went to Las Vegas this past weekend to watch them play in the Pac-12 (tournament),” she said about the men’s basketball team. “I was really sad when they lost to the Oregon Ducks, but I am excited to see how they play in March Madness. We are all hoping for a win.”
The bookstore located within the Student Union Memorial Center on Tuesday had apparel on display such as Pac-12 Men’s Basketball Conference Championship t-shirts for $32.99 to $34.99 and various Arizona basketball jersey’s ranging from $80 to $110.
Arizona Sonoran News is a news service of the University of Arizona School of Journalism.
