Kruger buys NIT tickets as reward for students

Steve Guiremand

Wednesday, March 16, 2005 | 10:57 a.m.

UNLV basketball coach Lon Kruger says he's been very pleased with the support his team has received from the school's students this year.

So much so that he has decided to put his money where his mouth is.

Kruger has personally purchased 200 tickets for UNLV students to attend Thursday night's first-round NIT game against Arizona State at the Thomas & Mack Center. The first-year Rebels coach made the move after learning that UNLV's student government had purchased 100 tickets to distribute to students for free.

"The students have been great all year at our games and this is a thank-you for their support," Kruger said. "Those who have attended the games have been very supportive and patient and we want to continue to build that support."

The first 300 UNLV students with valid ID to the student box office at the Thomas & Mack Center will receive a free ticket. The student box office opens at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. The free student tickets will not be distributed before then.

Melissa Meacham, director of marketing at UNLV, said tickets sales for the game have been very steady despite the late midweek starting time (9 p.m.) and also the fact that the contest will be shown live on ESPN2.

"It's going well," she said late Tuesday afternoon. "We've sold over 1,000 tickets today. We're up to about 1,700. We're hoping to get close to 5,000 for the game."

Because the NIT tickets are not part of the normal season ticket package, the school had to start over at zero on Monday morning.

Tickets for the game are priced at $15 for plaza (lower) level seats, $10 for balcony and $5 for UNLV students with valid ID. They can be purchased at the Thomas & Mack Center box office, by calling (702) 739-FANS or online at UNLVtickets.com.