March Madness Ticket Prices Jump 29%

CNN/Stylemagazine.com Newswire | 3/13/2017, 9:45 a.m.
Resale tickets for the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament cost an average of $316 -- that's up 29% from …
It's March. You know what that means. The Madness.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Want to watch the big dance in person? It's going to be more expensive this year.

Resale tickets for the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament cost an average of $316 -- that's up 29% from 2016.

TicketIQ, which tracks ticket data, said there are also fewer tickets available this year. That's because the opening round games are at venues that have smaller resale ticket markets.

The cheapest ticket to the opening rounds of the tournament and the regional rounds costs $43 this year. The cheapest available ticket for the Final Four is $196.

Last year the cheapest ticket cost $38 and fans could get into the Final Four for just $102.

The 68 teams that make up the men's tournament were unveiled on Sunday. This year's bracket includes first-timer Northwestern and Villanova, the winner of last year's tournament.

For fans hoping to catch Final Four action from the stands, it usually pays to wait. Lots of people rush to buy tickets after the Elite 8 games but, according to TicketIQ, Final Four prices are usually lowest within 48 hours of tip-off.

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