As the first regular season basketball game approaches, students now can register for tickets through the University's new online ticketing system.
The system was created to guarantee students seats upon arrival at University Hall, eliminating the need to camp outside the venue days before a game.
But for students who want a seat on the floor, officials are unsure whether the line for those seats will begin at 8 a.m. the day of the game or earlier -- reinstating the camping-out tradition.
"There is an ongoing discussion and debate with regard to allowing students to camp out, the decision to which will be made before next week's game," said Hunter Yurachek, associate athletics director for marketing and promotions. "But in theory, the students do not need to camp out, because requesting tickets online will already guarantee them seats at the general admission area."
The system was first tested during last week's exhibition game against Lehman College, and according to Yurachek, over 500 students registered to request tickets.
"Although the attendance was not impressive, it worked out a whole lot better than I thought it would," Student Council Athletic Chair Graham Tucker said. "There were even a couple of students who forgot to register for tickets and were able to print them out using the University Hall lab and still attend the game."
Tom Gibson, a Council member who oversaw the creation of the online ticketing system, also is convinced of its effectiveness.
"I recently talked to students from the University of Maryland, which has a similar online ticketing system, and they all agreed that this works a lot better for the students," Gibson said.
The ticketing system will be tested once again for tonight's exhibition game against Marymount University, before the first regular season game next week.
The Athletic Department, together with Student Council, developed this online system to increase attendance during games by making it more convenient for students to obtain tickets, Yurachek said.
However, one of the main concerns regarding this new ticketing system is the lack of advertising about its availability, Gibson said.
"The Athletics Department originally agreed that [the online system] will be advertised during orientation," Gibson said. "But there haven't been a lot of advertisements released, and right now they are thinking of sending e-mails to students."
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