GREENSBORO, N.C. — While the vast majority of us will watch the Final Four matchup here at home, 1,400 lucky Duke and UNC students will see it in person after winning tickets in a lottery.
Thomas Altmann is one of them. He grew up a Tarheel fan here in Greensboro and he still can't believe he's heading to New Orleans Friday night.
"It could be a once in a lifetime opportunity," Altmann said. "It's hard to even picture. I've been to plenty of basketball games before but the stadium is much much larger than anything I've been to before so it's kind of a surreal feeling but also very exciting."
Altmann is a junior Political Science major at Carolina. He transferred from UNC Charlotte, where he went for his freshman year.
He's one of 700 UNC students who won a ticket to the game in the lottery but getting the ticket wasn't easy.
He lots on his first entry and thought that was it.
Then he got another email giving him a ticket after many went unclaimed by other students.
None of his friends got a ticket and he started trying to figure out how to get to New Orleans. It turned out he didn't have to worry about that.
He won another lottery for accommodations. The university provided a bus and hotel rooms.
Duke University students are also eligible for a ticket lottery. Altmann said he has some friends who'll be in the Blue Devil student section.
He feels good about Carolina's chances.
"We beat them last time in Cameron Indoor Stadium so I feel really great about it," Altmann said.
If UNC wins, he and other UNC students will automatically get tickets to the Finals on Monday.
If they lose, they'll be stuck in New Orleans until Tuesday but he's not worried about that.
"I think it's still gonna be a great opportunity because I've never been to New Orleans before so I will be able to use some time to explore the whole marvelous city and see new things so I think either way it'll be fun," Altmann said.
He and his classmates will leave for New Orleans late Friday night.