College notes: Tickets on sale for LCA basketball doubleheader
Tickets for the first college basketball games at Little Caesars Arena will go on sale to the public Saturday, Aug. 19, but if you’re itching to secure your seats now, there are presale options.
At Ticketmaster.com, you can use the promo code “TITANS,” “GRIZZLIES,” “SPARTANS” or “WOLVERINES” to have access to tickets now. Then, you can either select a specific team’s available tickets or “standard availability.”
The games are scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 16, and one ticket gets you both games — the opener between Michigan and Detroit Mercy, and the second game between Michigan State and Oakland.
Game times haven’t been set, but 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., or noon and 2 p.m., seem likely, given the Lions play in Detroit later that afternoon.
Ticket prices range from $25 to $75, with upper levels $25, mezzanine $40, and lower levels between $55 and $75. VIP tickets ($150-$250) aren’t available for presale, nor are the student tickets, which will be $20.
Michigan and Detroit Mercy are playing the first college basketball game at LCA, just like they did in opening Joe Louis Arena in 1979.
This will serve as a dry run for college hoops at LCA, which will host NCAA Tournament games in March 2018.
Chips’ Conklin has surgery
Central Michigan football might’ve already been dealt a significant blow for the 2017 season.
Senior tight end Tyler Conklin had surgery this week to repair a broken bone in his foot, and no timetable has been set for his return.
Conklin, of Chesterfield, was third on the team last season in receptions (42) and receiving yards (560), and had six receiving touchdowns, including two in the upset victory over Oklahoma State.
The injury was suffered in training camp.
“We’ll continue to listen to the medical professionals,” CMU coach John Bonamego said. “What’s most important now is Tyler’s health. Thankfully, this is a position where we have some depth.”
The Chippewas have five tight ends listed on their roster.
Konya earns spot on women’s hoops committee
Oakland athletic director Jeff Konya on Thursday was named to the NCAA Women’s Basketball Committee, which is charged with selecting, seeding and bracketing the teams in the Division I NCAA Tournament.
The term is five years, and starts Sept. 1.
“I am appreciative of the opportunity to serve the NCAA membership in this role,” Konya said in a statement. “I am ready to roll up my sleeves and get to work with my fellow committee members.”
The committee is made up of 10 athletic officials.
This and that
■ Michigan track-and-field is wasting no time in breaking in its sparkling new indoor facility, scheduling four major meets: the Wolverine Invitational on Jan. 13, when Notre Dame, Eastern Michigan, USF and Hillsdale will join Michigan in the venue’s inaugural event; the Simmons-Harvey Quad on Jan. 20, when Michigan State and Ohio State will visit; the Power Five Invitational on Feb. 2-3; and the Silverston Invitational on Feb. 16.
■ Detroit Mercy golf coach Luke LaFave won a pair of amateur tournaments this summer, including the Wes Dixon Memorial Golf Tournament in Keene, Ontario, in June, and the Western Ontario Men’s Golf Championship in Windsor earlier this month.
■ In more Detroit Mercy news, women‘s basketball coach Bernard Scott is awaiting word from the NCAA on a possible sixth year of eligibility for forward Kelsey Mitchell, a Detroit native and former Michigan player.
■ Former Central Michigan pitcher Dietrich Enns, a 19th-round pick in the 2012 draft, makes his major-league debut Thursday night, for the Twins. He was recently acquired from the Yankees in the Jaime Garcia trade.
tpaul@detroitnews.com
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