Tickets available for Governor’s Holiday Hoops Classic

Virginia Commonwealth University fans can show their support for the Rams and the region’s most vulnerable residents by collecting food and money for FeedMore’s Central Virginia Food Bank.

The VCU men’s basketball team competes against the Virginia Tech Hokies at the 2013 Governor's Holiday Hoops Classic on Saturday, Dec. 21, at 5:30 p.m. at the Richmond Coliseum.

Tickets for the 2013 Governor’s Holiday Hoops Classic are available through the VCU Athletics online ticket office.

State employees can receive a $5 savings off of the original price through Ticketmaster.com, or in-person at the Richmond Coliseum Box Office on 7th Street near Nina F. Abady Festival Park from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. At the beginning of the purchase, employees must provide the ticket representative the code “STATE” for the discount to apply.

Free tickets are available for VCU students with valid ID while supplies last. One ticket per student. Tickets are available at the 6th Street entrance and are good for both games of the doubleheader.

The VCU student entrance opens at 2 p.m. and will consist of two lines: one for Rowdy Rams and one for general student line. Rowdy Rams must present their valid Rowdy Ram card in addition to their valid VCU ID. Tickets will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis on the day of the game. There will be no online claiming process, and no print-at-home tickets. No tickets will be allocated to students before the day of the game.

Fans of the Rams and Hokies are competing through Dec. 15 to see who collects the most pounds of food. The winner of the food drive will be announced at halftime.

VCU’s effort is called “RAMS Win To Feed.” Students, faculty, staff and supporters can donate money at www.feedmore.org/holidayhoops. One dollar equals four pounds of food. Employees also can donate through the Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign (CVC) at www.cvc.virginia.gov. Select code 3883.

Peanut butter; cans of meat, tuna, vegetables and fruit; boxes of pasta and cereal are especially needed. Additional information is available at http://wp.vcu.edu/ramswintofeed/.

The winner of a similar competition between Hampton University and James Madison University will be announced during halftime of their game, which also takes place at the Richmond Coliseum, beginning at 3 p.m. on Dec. 21. VCU President Michael Rao and the presidents of the other universities are serving as co-chairs of the Governor’s Holiday Hoops Classic.

The Rams and the Hokies last met on the basketball court in 1995. The former Metro Conference competitors have split their head-to-head series 10-10, with the Rams winning the most recent meeting, 62-57.

FeedMore is Central Virginia’s hunger-relief organization and serves the region’s most vulnerable residents through the Central Virginia Food Bank, Meals on Wheels Serving Central Virginia and the Community Kitchen.

For more information about the “RAMS Win to Feed” effort, contact Tom Diehl at (804) 827-0322 or tdiehl@vcu.edu or Tito Luna at (804) 827-1904 or taluna@vcu.edu.

Subscribe for free to the weekly VCU News email newsletter at http://newsletter.news.vcu.edu/ and receive a selection of stories, videos, photos, news clips and event listings in your inbox every Thursday.