Fans Fill Pittsburgh For NCAA Tourney
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- March Madness means big business for the city of Pittsburgh.
Four NCAA Tournament games were held at CONSOL Energy Center on Thursday. More games will be held on Saturday and that means thousands of fans are in town.
"I think it's great," said Jerry Jones, a WVU fan from Morgantown. "I hope the locals support this event and bring it back every year!"
Unfortunately for Jones, WVU was defeated Thursday night.
Many of the visitors have never been to Pittsburgh before.
"Beautiful," said Rick Taylor, a Syracuse fan from Cleveland. "I like how the mountains are out on the sides and the houses and everything," he said as he pointed at the rolling hills.
All the visitors mean money for the city.
"It actually means $7.1 million in direct spending," said Beverly Morrow Jones from Visit Pittsburgh. "That's good news for all the businesses in town. Good news for the hotels."
A manager at the Renaissance Hotel in Downtown Pittsburgh, Matt Rosenberg, says business is wonderful.
"We've actually doubled in occupancy since it was originally forecasted," said Rosenberg. "We're actually anticipating a sell out on Saturday night."
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