Wichita State puts 350 basketball tickets on sale for five games

For fans who felt squeezed out of Koch Arena in recent seasons, Wichita State basketball wants you back.

WSU put general admission tickets for its next five games on sale Tuesday. With school on semester break, those seats are taken from the allotment in two sections designated for student seats.

There are also a limited number of reserved seats available for most remaining games.

Associate athletic director Russell Wilkins, who oversees ticketing, said WSU is selling 350 GA seats for the next five games. Student attendance is down this season and is traditionally down while school is out of session.

“That’s kind of the average over the last few years that haven’t … been given out to students,” Wilkins said. “Once they get back, we’ll see how the pickups go and use our best judgment. We’re trying to get some people in there that want to see the games.”

Student tickets are free and WSU is contractually obligated to provide two sections of student tickets. Students agreed to help with the renovation of Koch Arena in 2000 through student fees, an agreement extended until 2037 when they helped pay for the indoor fieldhouse located next to Eck Stadium.

Tickets are $22 and are available for Thursday’s game against South Dakota State and Bradley (Jan. 1), Drake (Jan. 4), Loyola (Jan. 11) and Indiana State (Jan. 21).

They are available at the Koch Arena ticket office, by calling (316) 978-3267 and at goshockers.com.

Wilkins said around 150 tickets went unclaimed for WSU’s Dec. 6 game at Koch Arena against Saint Louis. Around 900 were picked up, but only around 470 were used, Wilkins said.

Students picked up all seats for Saturday’s game at Intrust Bank Arena.

WSU’s 45-game streak of sellouts, which started in 2013, ended on Nov. 29 when 70 tickets went unsold for a game against NCAA Division II Southern Nazarene. Attendance was announced at 10,436.

The game against Saint Louis attracted a crowd of 10,157. While seats in other areas of the arena are empty, the most noticeable gaps occur in the upper half of the student section.

“I’m kind of scratching my head,” Wilkins said. “Our whole department is, a little bit.”

Several factors could be contributing to the drop:

▪  The home schedule started with a soldout Friday game, followed by a Sunday night game. Since then, all Koch Arena games were played on Sunday, Tuesday or Wednesday.

“We’re all battling it in athletics right now,” Wilkins said. “We’re pushing them to the public more. That’s the next step.”

▪  All games are either on TV or streaming video.

▪  WSU’s most attractive opponent —Okahoma State — drew a sellout crowd of 15,004 to Intrust Bank Arena. Koch Arena opponents included South Carolina State, Long Beach State, Tulsa, Maryland Eastern Shore, Southern Nazarene and Saint Louis.

▪  Fans don’t bother to check on ticket availability because of Koch Arena’s reputation for sellouts.

“People just have that perception that we don’t have tickets,” Wilkins said. “It’s worth calling and asking to see what we have.”

This story was originally published December 20, 2016 at 4:03 PM with the headline "Wichita State puts 350 basketball tickets on sale for five games."