March 7, 2004

MILWAUKEE - Preparations are well underway and ticket sales have been brisk for the 2004 Horizon League Men's Basketball championship game at the U.S. Cellular Arena in Milwaukee Tuesday night.

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (19-9), the Horizon League regular season champions, will host the University of Illinois-Chicago (23-7) Tuesday at 8 p.m. CST with a berth in the NCAA Tournament on the line.

Tickets for the contest are available through all Ticket Master outlets, by phone at 414-276-4545 or online at ticketmaster.com. The box office at the U.S. Cellular Arena will also be open from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Monday. Remaining tickets are priced from $15-$20 for the general public, with all of the $25 tickets having been sold.

Students can purchase tickets from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at the UWM Union, from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at the UWM Ticket Office in Merrill Hall and throughout the day in Sandburg Hall. Student tickets are priced at $10.

Sunday, the first day tickets went on sale for Tuesday's contest, saw more than 4,000 tickets sold. Last year's championship game between UWM and Butler in Milwaukee drew a record crowd of 10,115.

Fans attending Tuesday's contest are invited to a pregame rally in the second-floor ballroom of Turner Hall downtown. The rally will run from 6-8 p.m.

UWM advanced to the title game with a 58-50 win over Detroit in the semifinals Saturday. The Panthers then earned hosting rights when UIC beat Butler, 65-56.