Alabama Men's Basketball Becoming a Big-Ticket Team

The Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team will try and be giant killers once again.

Granted, No. 4 Alabama is ranked higher than No. 15 Gonzaga, but the Bulldogs have had the best record in college basketball over the last three seasons at 90-7 (92.8 percent), and are 8-3 this year.

Mark Few is bringing arguably the best program in the West to the C.M. Newton Classic at Legacy Arena in Birmingham, Ala., with tipoff set for noon CT (CBS).

Alabama (8-1), though, is on an amazing run that includes wins over last month's No. 1 North Carolina, last week's No. 1 Houston, plus a home win against Memphis (the team receiving the most votes outside of the AP Top-25) this week.

Consequently, the secondary ticket market is beginning to reflect the team's success.

Per SI Tickets, as of Thursday afternoon:

The cheapest seat available was going for $29.

The most expensive seats were priced at $635.

The average get-in ticket price was $106.53.

In comparison, there's only one other game between ranked teams scheduled for Saturday, No. 6 Tennessee at No. 9 Arizona. The average get-in ticket price is just $71.88.

However, the most expensive tickets on Saturday are being sold in New York City, where North Carolina is set to face Ohio State in the CBS Sports Classic at Madison Square Garden. The prices range from $81 to $6,318, with an average price of $286.88.

The Tar Heels will also play in the Jumpman Invitational in Charlotte, N.C., next week, against Michigan. The average get-in ticket price is $169.61.

As for how much of a difference the opponent makes for the Crimson Tide, Alabama is set to host Jackson State next week before taking a holiday break and then opening Southeastern Conference play. The average get-in ticket price is just $14.85.

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