Lobo tourney games mean big business

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - Local bars and restaurants are bracing for a big turnout on Thursday night for the New Mexico Lobo's first round game in the NCAA Tournament.

The biggest crowds may show up at local hangouts around the UNM campus.

"We'll have a full bonus of staff all day long from 6 in the morning to late at night with 3 managers and 2 bartenders," Coaches Sports Bar and Grill Manager Brad Condon said.

Condon said reservations for tables for the game are filling up fast. He expects the bar will make three to four times the amount of money it would take in on a normal night.

But the crowds are expected to be just as big farther fromcampus.

"We're bringing in extra staff and actually we have about eight new TV's behind the bar," Billy's Long Bar Manager Brian Snyder said.

Billy's has seen capacity crowds for Lobo games in the past few weeks.

Up in the Northeast Heights, Spectators Sports Bar will not take reservations for tables for the Lobos game.

"People have been calling for reservations and we can't take them because we plan to have people here all day and we can't ask them to leave," Spectator's Manager Frank Sanchez said.

Bar workers also tell News 13 that the first round NCAA Tournament games already draw crowds even before the bar opens.

The Lobo game will only add to their own March Madness.