“It’s truly unmeasurable to be quite honest,” Student Alumni Foundation Adviser Dan DiMaggio said. “The hundreds of dollars students save is remarkable.”

Izzone members (currently more than 3,000 students) pay $168 for access to 13 of the 16 total home games this upcoming season, averaging out to $11 per ticket, not to mention the $10 handling fee from Spartan Athletic Ticket Office as well as a $15 charge for membership into the SAF.

And the lower bowl of bleacher seats holds 1,400 students while the upper bowl of aluminum bleacher seats has room for up to 1,800 Izzone members. With the 1,400 courtside seats priced at $11 a game, the administration is taking in roughly $15,400.

Quite a nice little profit for each of the 13 home games.

That is, until that number is compared to the price the administration could sell each ticket for.

“If the administration really wanted, they could sell each of those tickets for between $50-$60 every game,” DiMaggio said. “And since we have those seats, being so close to the action, they would all be high donor-level seats as well.”

The administration could make $77,000 for each of the home games if they sold each seat for $55 as opposed to the $11 Izzone members pay. So, for the 13 games the Izzone attends, MSU could rake in more than $1 million in lower-bowl seating as opposed to their current rate of $200,200 per season — a difference just below $800,000.

Even if the administration did open up the lowest ring to the general public for season tickets, DiMaggio said each person would have to give a generous donation per seat.

With the current system, each person who wants a reserved spot at Breslin Center for the season’s home games has to donate either $125, $250 or $400 per seat depending on where in the arena it is located, not counting the actual ticket price added on top of those figures.

The closest a fan can get to the players is in the slab of padded folding chairs on the court across from the teams’ benches, which require a $125,000 donation per chair.

“If the lower bleachers were opened up, I’d imagine they would have a high donation rate as well,” DiMaggio said. “Not to mention the season ticket fee added on top of that.”

And while one business entrepreneur might say this difference in profit is unreasonable, Paul Schager, associate athletic director for branding, resources and marketing, would be on the opposite end of the spectrum — not regretting a thing.

“The Izzone and the students are a huge part of the Spartan basketball tradition; it’s what’s expected,” he said. “They are getting a lot of opportunity for the seats they get but the enthusiasm is brought to each game. We want them there and that’s the decision of the athletic department because we know they have an invaluable and positive effect.”

As a student Izzone co-director, Shane Smith said he’s worked closely with the administration and ticket office to continue to provide benefits to students in the well-known cheering section.

“The team was undefeated at home in the regular season last year and they want to keep that up,” Smith said. “They really think we help out a lot, in the game environment especially. We’re respectful and we will always continue to be. We get tickets for 11 bucks a game – we don’t want to abuse that because we know they could sell them to alumni and other students for a lot more.”

And for the upcoming year, Smith and his fellow Izzone co-directors Kyle Clemons and Adam Heins helped choose a new slogan to best portray what they want their cheering section to emulate.

They wanted to continue the Breslin winning streak so they didn’t have to look far to agree on a motto, deciding on “The definition of home-court advantage.”

Schager even commented that in the few games the Izzone doesn’t attend, such as during winter break, there is definite change in public atmosphere.

“Not that the other fans who fill those seats for those games don’t get loud and continue to support the Spartans,” he said. “They’re great — but it’s just different. We need our students, there’s no question.”