Season ticket prices going up for USC women’s basketball. Here are the details
South Carolina women’s basketball fans will see an increase in season ticket prices for next year, the school announced Tuesday.
The change will be the third increase in prices since Dawn Staley took over the program 14 years ago turned USC into one of the nation’s top basketball teams. South Carolina was ranked No. 1 all season and will play North Carolina in the Sweet 16 in Greensboro, North Carolina on Friday.
“Coach Staley has lifted her program to unprecedented heights both in the team she puts on the court and in the fan base she has built,” USC athletic director Ray Tanner said in a press release. “We have resisted changing that formula for ticket prices for many years, but it is time to reflect the value of what the fans are coming to see each night at Colonial Life Arena.”
Since 2011-12, the Gamecocks are 145-14 at home and 37-14 against Top 25 teams. The Gamecocks have led the nation in fan attendance for seven straight seasons — discounting the 2020-21 COVID year. USC has won six Southeastern Conference championships and has been to three Final Fours since 2014 since Staley took over.
In 2008-09, all tickets were general admission and $50 for the season and have had moderate increases. In 2015-16, the now six sections of reserved tickets rose to $60 and , the reserved tickets rose to $70 in 2017-18.
The most significant price increases are for reserved seating, particularly for anyone sitting in the lower bowl of Colonial Life Arena. In the area deemed “Lower 1” with the best view of the court — sections 104, 105, 106, 113, 114 and 115 — season tickets will go from $70 to $200 a year, or from $4.67 per game to $13.33.
The breakdown of what’s going up:
- Floor seating (78 seats): Increase from $470 to $565
- Premier seating (292 seats): Increase from $270 to $325
- Lower 1 (3,338 seats): Increase from $70 to $200
- Lower 2 (4,424 seats): Increase from $70 to $100
- Upper Reserved (876 seats): Increase from $45 to $85
- Upper general admission (5,776 seats): Increase from $45 to $55
General admission season tickets in the upper bowl will go from $45 to $55 for the 2022-23 season. Upper level reserved seats will now be $85, up $40 in price.
The other most significant increases will be in the premier ($325, up $55) and in floor seating ($565, up $95). The floor seating is the most expensive per-game ticket at $37.67, up $31.33.
“By comparison, in 2021-22, lower level tickets at other nationally ranked programs such as Stanford, LSU, Tennessee, Arizona, Louisville and Baylor ranged from $115 to $400,” the university said Tuesday in announcing the changes.
South Carolina added a seat donation requirement for courtside and premier seats ahead of the 2018-19 season. Those range from $400 for courtside/floor seating to $200 for premier seating.
Season ticket holders on the 10-month payment plan option will see the new pricing reflected on their first payment scheduled for April 15, according to the school. All other season ticket holders will have invoices loaded to their accounts in July.
This story was originally published March 22, 2022 at 3:14 PM.
