UNC Basketball: National Championship watch party at Dean Smith Center

The Dean Smith Center is hosting a watch party when the UNC basketball program takes on the Kansas Jayhawks in the National Championship Game Monday night.

It’s finally here.

The eighth-seeded North Carolina Tar Heels, a team that almost nobody thought would still be around on the final Monday night of the college basketball season, will face the top-seeded Kansas Jayhawks in the NCAA Tournament Championship Game for all the marbles.

Some UNC fans will be in New Orleans at the Superdome while others will watch intently from the comfort of their own homes. Some will stand in long lines to get into Chapel Hill’s most coveted watering holes and bars to share an ice-cold beverage next to their UNC brethren.

But there’s another option for those looking to split the difference.

There will be a title game watch party at the Dean Smith Center on Monday night and fans will be welcomed into Entry A at 8:15 p.m. Tip-off is set for 9:20 p.m. and fans will be able to watch the game on a large projection screen and arena video boards, according to a news release from university officials.

The event is free but concessions and Tar Heels fan merchandise will be for sale in and around the concourse. General fan parking is available for $5 in the Manning, Bowles, and Craige parking lots beginning at 7:30 p.m.

For those on the fence about going to the event, I can tell you it is an absolute blast. The Smith Center will be packed with thousands of like-minded, UNC-crazed maniacs and it will be a night to remember.

And provided the Tar Heels come out on top, a party on Franklin Street is just a hop, skip, and a jump away.

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