Basketball Preview: BruinCard takes new role as season ticket holder

Putting football tickets on students’ BruinCards last year
was the first step toward creating an electronic ticket system for
UCLA sports.

Continuing the trend, this year’s men’s basketball
tickets will also be put on students’ BruinCards. With meal
swipes, dorm access, gym membership and cash credit already on the
card, UCLA aims to add to the efficiency of electronic
equipment.

David Lowenstein, director of UCLA’s Central Ticket
Office, said the move to sell men’s basketball tickets
electronically is progressive.

“(We’re) moving forward in the electronic
age,” he said. “Everything has to move forward. There
will be a decrease in costs in regard to the cost of printing
tickets as well as hiring personnel to count the ticket stubs.

“Electronic basketball tickets make sense because student
season ticket holders will no longer need to worry about whether
they brought their tickets with them.”

The student body had mixed feelings about the change.

“It is nice to be able to just walk down to the game
without worrying about picking up a ticket at the CTO,”
first-year bioengineering student Rohit Voleti said.

Meanwhile, Lauren Sachdeva, a fourth-year sociology major,
expressed annoyance with the new electronic tickets.

“It is a really bad idea. You can’t give your
tickets to other UCLA students, so there will be fewer students in
the student section.”

Mirroring this view is Den co-founder Alex Budak, a fifth-year
geography and political science student who said the shift will
make it harder to convert new fans.

“We are disappointed with the decision because this change
will make it harder for incoming students to become hooked on UCLA
men’s basketball. In previous years, students were able to
share their basketball tickets and encourage student involvement.
Now it will be harder for the average student to be able to
experience the men’s basketball games.”

Sam Cortina, a second-year communication studies student,
expressed a more conflicted opinion.

“I liked the ability to give out tickets to other
students, but having the tickets on the BruinCard makes it easier.
There is less chance to lose the ticket, which is good because
students do not have the most reliable memories.”

If available, men’s basketball individual game tickets
will be sold shortly before game time for students who want to
attend the game.