The National Sports Collectors Convention (nsccshow.com) is an annual summer gathering of collectors/dealers who have a passion for trading cards, autographs, and any kind of memorabilia that you can think of. First formed in 1980, it is now the premier collectibles industry event that attracts a majority of the licensing agencies from around the professional sports world. The 37th “National” was held during the 1st week of August at the Atlantic City Convention Center, and next summer it will head back to the Midwest in Chicago. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel attended this year’s event and will present photo essay installments of all the college basketball merchandise he saw in person.
If you are into Final 4 ticket stubs then the man to talk to is Mark Townsend of Tickets from the Past (TicketsFromThePast.com). It is fascinating to see how these big-time tickets have changed over time: prices have gone up, bar codes have been added, etc. I have only been fortunate enough to attend 1 Final 4 (Arizona’s loss to Duke in the 2001 title game in Minneapolis) but with the inspiration of seeing all these memorable tickets I hope to make it to Glendale this spring for championship #2. Here are 3 of my favorites:
1. The oldest 1 I saw was from the 1995 Final 4 at the Kingdome in Seattle which featured a pair of legendary programs (UCLA/North Carolina), the defending national champs (Arkansas), and a team (Oklahoma State) whose coach (Eddie Sutton) was 1 of the 1st to win 800 games in D-1. UCLA needed a buzzer-beating coast-to-coast layup from Tyus Edney in a 75-74 win over Missouri just to make the Sweet 16, then beat Arkansas 89-78 in the title game to win its 11th NCAA title. Ed O’Bannon had 30 PTS/17 REB en route to being named tourney MOP, and a couple of decades later he became 1 of the most famous athletes to ever sue the NCAA. The face value of this ticket to the national semifinals is only $35, but it will cost you $95 for a keepsake from a time when they still played basketball in Seattle. 
2. If you like back-to-back titles then your best option is this ticket to the 2007 title game. Florida returned its entire starting lineup from the year before when it beat UCLA in the title game, but the Bruins were good enough to make it back to the Final 4 in the Georgia Dome as well. The 2 other past championship programs who joined them were Ohio State/Georgetown, who had faced each other in the 2nd round of the 2006 NCAA tourney. The Gators had destroyed the Buckeyes 86-60 in December of 2006, then their football team beat the Buckeyes in the BCS National Championship Game in January of 2007, and a few months later their basketball team gave them another title with a an 84-75 win over Ohio State. Corey Brewer scored 13 PTS and was named tourney MOP: this fall he prepares to begin his 10th year in the NBA. Back-to-back titles are quite rare in college basketball, which is why this ticket is listed for $195. 
3. Last up is a stub from the 2014 title game at Jerry World that was the 1st to ever not have a top-3 seed (#7-seed Connecticut has a 60-54 win over #8-seed Kentucky). The Huskies became the 1st #7-seed to ever win the title, then the very next day UConn’s women’s team won its own NCAA basketball title. Florida also made the Final 4 after only having 2 regular season losses, but the 2 teams they lost to were the 4th team in the Final 4 (Wisconsin) and national champion UConn. Shabazz Napier scored 22 PTS in the title game and was named tourney MOP. The face value of this ticket up in the 400 level is $95, but the price has tumbled and you can own this for just $50. 