San Jose braces for March Madness surge as Sweet 16, Elite Eight hit SAP Center
San Jose gears up for March Madness at SAP Center
San Jose is preparing to host March Madness this week as the SAP Center welcomes the Sweet 16 on Thursday and the Elite Eight on Saturday.
SAN JOSE, Calif. - San Jose is preparing to host March Madness as the SAP Center welcomes the Sweet 16 on Thursday and the Elite Eight days later.
Major year for sports in South Bay
What we know:
The tournament is part of a major year for sports in the South Bay, which already hosted Super Bowl events and will also welcome World Cup matches.
City leaders say they are determined to build on that momentum.
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SAP Center prepares for tournament action
Local perspective:
Inside the SAP Center, crews have installed the basketball court, added extra seating and finalized preparations as teams get ready to compete.
"The hotels are sold out. I hope you have a room already," said John Poch, executive director of the San Jose Sports Authority. "We’re pretty excited, especially [with] the teams we have. Arizona, No. 1 team in the nation. You have Arkansas, with one of the biggest superstar freshmen there is, and then Texas and Purdue."
Teams are set to arrive Tuesday, with thousands of fans expected to follow.
City plans events to draw crowds downtown
San Jose officials say they want visitors to stay and explore downtown before and after games.
"We want to make sure that people have a reason to stay in downtown San Jose and things to do before and after the games, and that it’s open and free to everyone in the community," said Mayor Matt Mahan.
Planned events include a drone show, fan fests and a free show featuring DJ Diesel, also known as Shaquille O’Neal.
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'This is home base'
What they're saying:
Businesses in San Pedro Square are anticipating a surge in customers, potentially rivaling Super Bowl week, when sales were up 30% over previous records.
"A lot of people [who] came for the Super Bowl were spread out throughout the Bay Area, especially in San Francisco," said Randy Musterer of Sushi Confidential. "This is in our backyard. This is SAP Center. This is home base, so we expect to be extremely busy over the next few days."