UCLA fans can get closer to action with new Pauley Pavilion seats

How would you like to sit within selfie distance of Mick Cronin while he’s stomping the sideline inside Pauley Pavilion?

Hear what the UCLA men’s basketball coach tells his team during timeouts? Be close enough to players checking in at the scorer’s table to provide a jersey thread count?

A handful of fans will get that opportunity starting next season, The California Post has learned.

UCLA is planning to sell at least 12 courtside seats next to the teams — half near the Bruins’ bench, the rest near the visiting team’s bench — as part of an elevated fan experience that will also include a new courtside lounge.

What are being called the “Hollywood Seats” won’t be cheap. Or easy to get.

UCLA is offering first dibs to corporate sponsors and its biggest donors. While seat prices have not been finalized, the hope is to raise roughly $2 million in revenue per season between the seats and an imminent naming-rights deal for the courtside lounge.

The napkin math works out to six figures for each seat over the course of a season. That’s at least three times what the courtside seats opposite the bench command.

Those who sit in the Hollywood Seats will have access to the courtside lounge that’s replacing the bulk of a media room situated near the hallway leading to UCLA’s locker room. The expectation is that space will be limited to fewer than 100 occupants, with admittance granted to high-end donors — via a yearly fee — and their guests.

The vibe will be stylish and exclusive, like a speakeasy.

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It’s expected to be a hangout spot pregame, during halftime and postgame. There will be a bar and couches, the walls tastefully decorated with UCLA memorabilia as a reminder of the school’s unparalleled athletics success.

Groundbreaking is set for July, with a soft launch expected for the nonconference games so that tweaks can be made before a grand unveiling in January. The lounge is also expected to be open for a select number of women’s basketball games.

The new courtside seats and lounge are just part of UCLA’s efforts to generate additional revenue while remaining competitive in an increasingly cutthroat college sports landscape.

The Bruins have sold more than 400 premium seats associated with a new field-level club at the Rose Bowl, which will generate at least $1 million of new revenue. Around 80% of those sales involve new season ticket holders, meaning that the team is attracting fans who had not been invested previously in making such a big commitment.

The school plans to offer multigame ticket packages that include access to the premium seating to give fans a taste of what sitting there is like — with the hope they will be enticed to return.

Season ticket sales are up at the Rose Bowl since the team hired coach Bob Chesney, who continues to create buzz as the steal of the last hiring cycle after leading James Madison to the College Football Playoff. The team is already projected to exceed its football ticket revenue from last season and plans to offer low get-in prices for football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball games as part of new ticket packages.

UCLA is also launching a new rewards program via its ticketing app. Fans who meet designated attendance thresholds will receive perks including free concessions, merchandise, collectibles and pregame field access at the Rose Bowl.