There's a lot of good that comes with making it to the NCAA Tournament: Excited fans, community support, and of course exposure for our players. But, a trip to the Sweet 16 also means something sweet for the university.

"Everyone's real excited," says WKU Student Chris Taylor.

"The community is really energized about this. It's been awhile", says Darrell Horn, WKU's associate athletic director for Business Affairs.

"It's raising the morale of the school and it's great publicity with ESPN and everything else," says WKU Student Justin Howard.

The Hilltoppers are in the spotlight as they prepare to take on UCLA.

"Do you know that they're in the Sweet 16?” we asked 8-year-old Jenna Ross.
"Yes," says Jenna Ross.
"What do you think about that?” we asked.
"That's amazing!” Jenna Ross said.

National exposure like this means one thing: WKU merchandise is flying off the shelves.

"It's nothing like we've ever seen before. We had no idea how to anticipate this," says Assistant Director of WKU's University Bookstore, Jim Sears.

In one hour on Wednesday morning, 900 Western shirts for the Sweet 16 sold out at the university bookstore!

"The phone has rang non-stop. Everybody's wanting one of those new t-shirts," said the University Bookstore's Head Cashier, Laura Ramsey.

The Hilltoppers making the Sweet 16 is not only a huge boost for places that sell WKU merchandise, but it's also a huge boost for Western.

"I think it will help your applicant pool for just general admissions to the university," adds Horn.

With more exposure to the university, that not only means more students interested in WKU, but that also means money.

The further teams go in the tournament, the more units they earn, which are translated into dollars by the NCAA and sent to the team and their conference.

"There is a financial reward for going and everyone shares in that in the conference and we probably would be weighted a little heavier since we actually went and did the work so to speak," Horn explains.

And, beating the bigger teams helps the school and the area.

"I think it's great anytime a 12 seed beats a 5 seed, but it's really putting Bowling Green on the map," says Glenn Petersen, with Duke's Sporting Goods.

A big game that fans say they won't miss out on!

"I think class kinda’ goes out the window when the Toppers come on," says Taylor.

"It's a big deal. People get excited!" adds Horn.

And, it’s a game others are already looking forward to!

"I like it here," says 8-year-old Jenna Ross.

"You can tell there's a lot of WKU pride. There really is," says Sears.

If you missed getting your Sweet 16 shirt, the University Bookstore at Western will sell more beginning at 7:30AM, Thursday.

Then, if there are some left over after the morning rush, they will sell them at Double Dogs and Diddle Arena.