Elite Eight Ticket Prices Sinking After Houston, Nebraska Eliminated

The March Madness tournament is one of the best tournaments in college sports, but that doesn’t mean that it’s invincible against declining attendance. According to TickPick, an Elite Eight matchup between the three-seed Illinois Fighting Illini and nine-seed Iowa Hawkeyes has seen ticket prices plummet from $244 to $46.

There are a lot of contexts with this. Illinois and Iowa play on the South side of the bracket, with games taking place in Houston. Illinois just defeated the two-seed Houston Cougars to advance to the Elite Eight, extinguishing most local interest in the game.

There were also a lot of Nebraska fans who traveled in town to see the Iowa-Nebraska game. The Cornhuskers were experiencing highs they’ve never accomplished, reaching the Sweet 16 for the first time in their history. With Nebraska’s Cinderella run ending, the fans left.

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Mar 26, 2026; Houston, TX, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers forward Braden Frager (5) attempts to block the shot of Iowa Hawkeyes guard Bennett Stirtz (14) in the second half during a Sweet Sixteen game of the South Regional of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

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Still, it’s a bizarre turn of events for a matchup between the Big Ten’s elite. Illinois was considered a wild-card team, showing flashes of dominance along with bouts of inconsistency. Still, they are 24^th in points per game (84.2), sixth in rebounds per game (37.8), and 21^st in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.7).

The Hawkeyes have gone through their own Cinderella run, too. While the women’s basketball team rose to prominence with Caitlin Clark stealing the show, the men’s basketball team hadn’t made the Sweet 16 or the Elite Eight in the 21^stcentury. They’ve upset the defending national champion Florida Gators on their way to the Elite Eight too. Whoever goes to the Illinois-Iowa Elite Eight matchup will get a major bargain.