This year the final four teams were Auburn, Virginia, Texas Tech and our Alma mater Michigan State. This sporting event is the ‘pinnacle of fun’. It is a 4-day party on steroids.
The event was held at the luxurious 67,000 seat USB Stadium in the heart of downtown Minneapolis. The stadium opened in 2016 and is the home of the Minnesota Vikings.
In 2018, it was the host of the Super Bowl between the Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots.
We arrived on Friday and attended the open practice of our Alma mater Michigan State.
We also enjoyed connecting with our California friend and Final 4 announcer Jim Nantz. Jim also does the Super Bowl and heads to Augusta next week for the prestigious Masters golf tournament.
At the Minneapolis Convention Center, we enjoyed ‘Fan Fest’ that has exhibits, celebrity appearances, music, food and fun. You can also have your picture taken with National Championship Trophy.
The semi-final games took place on Saturday. In the first game, Virginia beat Auburn by 1 point with 3 clutch free throws with no time left 63-62. In the second game, Michigan State was upset by an aggressive Texas Tech team that had a brilliant defense 61-51. It was a very disappointing ending to a great year for Michigan State.
The National Championship game was played on Monday night.
On Sunday, we went to the Mall of America and enjoyed the indoor amusement park and a unique shopping experience at this massive mega mall. We also enjoyed eating at Jimmy Buffett’s restaurant highlighted by the Minnesota Wild Rice Chicken Soup. Opening in 1992, the Mall of America has over 350 stores. 40 million people visit every year and the mall generates 2 billion dollars of revenue.
After the Mall of America, we toured Paisley Park. This 9-acre 65,000 square foot property was the artist Prince’s home and studio. His performance of ‘Purple Rain’ at the 2007 Super Bowl is rated as the ‘best’ halftime show in Super Bowl history. The tour is very interesting and takes about 90 minutes. He died in 2016 but they told us he had enough music in his vault to make one album a year for the next 100 years. He was truly a musical genius.
The National Championship game was exciting as always. In overtime, Virginia edged Texas Tech 85-77 in a battle to the end. We were very happy for Virginia as it was their first National Championship victory in the school’s history.
In conclusion, our trip to Minneapolis was extra special this year with the MSU Spartans playing in the Final Four. We look forward to going to host city, Atlanta, in 2020 and seeing the Michigan State Spartans return to complete their unfinished business and win the National Championship.
We would also highly recommend a visit to Minneapolis, a great city filled with lots of things to do, restaurants and very friendly people. The best time to visit is April thru October as the weather is very cold and snowy the rest of the year.
