via AP
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Earlier in the month, the Fizz took a look at the state of Syracuse Football through secondary ticket sales.  While football sales are on the up due to a renewed success on the field, Syracuse hoops have been a staple in Central New York for years.  The 2013-2014 season was one of success for the Orange, as they were no. 1 in the AP poll for a share of the season.
SeatGeek has provided the Fizz with the secondary ticket sales from the past season, and the prices follow a trend that you might expect.¬† Syracuse‚Äôs first year in the¬†ACC aided ticket sales, as two of the Orange‚Äôs most expensive games since 2010 were last year’s home matchups vs. North Carolina and Duke.¬† Fans paid an average of $208 to be part of the record-setting crowd against the Blue Devils, and also forked up $128 on average to see the Tar Heels in the Dome.
There’s always plenty of betting action on Syracuse basketball games as well via¬†online sportsbooks, proving another avenue of popularity for nationally intriguing hoops matchups.¬†The Duke game was the 25th¬†most expensive event from the entire regular season last year, which is quite impressive considering the fact that the Dome fit about double the capacity of other arenas that day.
The next two most expensive games last season came against Villanova and North Carolina State, perhaps surprisingly.  When the Orange faced no. 8 Villanova, they were the no. 2 team.  The Orange were the #1 team in the nation, coming off of the 40-foot buzzer beater by Tyler Ennis against Pittsburgh.
Fans paid an average of only $14 to see the Orange play St. Francis Brooklyn and Fordam, a great value.  By looking at the trends over the past couple years, it is easy to see which games will be the most in demand, and which ones fans can see for the least amount of money.  Any non-conference game that has not been announced yet (all but St. Johns) will be relatively cheap.  The most expensive non-conference game from last season, excluding Indiana and Villanova, came against Eastern Michigan, which fans only paid an average of $26 to see.
On the other end, one can figure out which conference games will cost the most.  Fans should circle the matchups against Duke, Virginia and Louisville as the most expensive, and Pittsburgh could get pricey as well.  Last year’s game against Pittsburgh cost fans an average of $86, and when the Orange last hosted Louisville in 2012, tickets were over $120.  Everything else should be an average-priced game, which could fall anywhere between $50 and $100 for an average ticket.
Once single-game tickets go on sale, the secondary market will start to develop for the upcoming season.
Posted by: Jason Weingold
