What to know about NCAA Tournament regional in Birmingham: TV, times, tickets, parking
It has been known that Birmingham, will be hosting an NCAA Tournament regional, but after Selection Sunday the event has begun to take its final shape.
The regional is highlighted by Alabama, which is making the hour-long trip from Tuscaloosa. Filling out the South side of the regional is 8-seed Maryland, 9-seed West Virginia and the winner of the play-in game 16-seed Texas A&M Corpus Cristi/Southeast Missouri State. The Midwest side of the regional will have 1-seed Houston, 8-seed Iowa, 9-seed Auburn and 16-seed Northern Kentucky.
It is Alabama's second appearance in an NCAA Tournament regional in Birmingham.
Who is playing in Birmingham?
The No. 1 seed in the South region, Alabama (29-5), highlights the region and will play the winner of Texas A&M Corpus Christi and Southeast Missouri State in round one. The 8/9 matchup will be between Maryland (21-12) and West Virginia (19-14).
The No. 1 seed in the Midwest region, Houston (31-3), helps highlight the region and will play Northern Kentucky 22-12) in the first round. The 8/9 matchup will be between Iowa (19-13) and Auburn (20-12).
Where are the games?
The games will be played at Legacy Arena at the BJCC in downtown Birmingham. The arena hosted the C.M. Newton Classic earlier this season where Gonzaga beat Alabama 100-90 on Dec. 17. Legacy Arena last hosted an NCAA Tournament event in 2008, it will be the sixth time the arena has hosted the tournament.
What days, times, channels are the games?
The first-round games will be played on Thursday and the second round on Saturday. The south region games will start at 11 a.m. and the second game will start at 1:45 p.m. The west region games start at 5:45 p.m. and the second game starts at 8:15 p.m.
How to find tickets?
Tickets can be found on the BJCC website via Ticketmaster. Fans can buy tickets for individual sessions on Thursday and Sunday or for all sessions.
Where can I park in Birmingham for games?
There are many public parking garages around the BJCC, along with garages inside the BJCC:
22nd Street Garage
Protective Stadium Green Lot
11th Avenue Garage
Protective Stadium Gold Lot
BPA Deck 2
Other important information
Legacy Arena and the BJCC are cashless venues. The BJCC is located in the Uptown section of Birmingham near Protective Stadium off I-20/59.
Full Birmingham Regional
All times central at Legacy Arena
Thursday, March 16
First round
Game 1: Maryland 67, West Virginia 65
Game 2: Alabama 96, Texas A&M Corpus Christi 75
Game 3: Auburn 83, Iowa 75
Game 4: Houston 63, Northern Kentucky 52
Saturday, March 18
Second round
Game 5: Alabama vs Maryland, 8:40 p.m., TBS
Game 6: Auburn vs Houston, 6:10 p.m. TBS
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: What to know about NCAA Tournament regional in Birmingham: tickets, parking
