Best College Basketball Towns

It's basketball season! These college towns can be great places to visit -- full of spirit and history -- especially this time of year.

University of Kentucky - Lexington, KY In downtown Lexington, KY, the historic Kentucky Theater has been providing entertainment since 1922. The theater started off as a concert hall and playhouse, and is now a place for modern cinema, both wide-release and art-house films.

Ohio State University - Columbus, OH South Campus Gateway is a hub of entertainment in Columbus, OH. Considered the Main Street of Columbus, it is frequented by university students and neighborhood residents alike because of its many shops and restaurants.

Syracuse University - Syracuse, NY A triangle-shaped park, Hanover Square was the first commercial district in Syracuse, NY, and comprises 17 historic buildings. Now the setting for many cultural gatherings and live music, the square was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.

University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, NC Considered the social hub for university students, Franklin Street was named after Ben Franklin and has been in use since the university's construction began in the 1790s. The street is celebrated for its festivals, nightlife and myriad of shops.

University of Arizona - Tucson, AZ In Tucson, AZ, the university's athletics teams were nicknamed the "wildcats" after the LA Times praised Arizona for showing "the fight of wildcats" in a 1914 football game against Occidental College. The image stuck as the school's official mascot.

Marquette University - Milwaukee, WI The largest private university in Wisconsin (and one of the largest Jesuit universities in the country), Marquette is located 1 mile from Lake Michigan, and is responsible for Milwaukee's reputation as one of America's great college basketball towns.

University of Texas - Austin, TX With more students than any other college in Texas, the University of Texas at Austin has been recognized as "America's Best Sports College" by Sports Illustrated. The Texas Longhorns have long been revered as a powerful football team. In recent years, their men's basketball team has also made their name among the elite.

Indiana University - Bloomington, IN Located in the heart of Bloomington, IN, Kirkwood Avenue is lined with bars, shops and restaurants. It was named for astronomer Daniel Kirkwood in 1895, whose observatory can be seen from the avenue.

Vanderbilt University - Nashville, TN Located a little more than a mile from downtown Nashville, Vanderbilt University started calling its sports teams the "Commodores" or the "'Dores" after the university's namesake Cornelius Vanderbilt, who made his fortune in shipping.

Georgetown University - Washington, DC In Washington, DC, M Street is part of a major shopping district in the Georgetown neighborhood. Georgetown University is the oldest Jesuit and Catholic university in the US. To this day, no one is quite sure why the university's team is called the "Hoyas."

Duke University - Durham, NC The American Tobacco skyline is home to Duke University, which changed its name to Duke in 1924 for tobacco industrialist James B. Duke. Durham, NC, embraces college basketball with fervor, selling out every men's home basketball game.

Michigan State University - East Lansing, MI The pride of East Lansing, MI, Michigan State University is not only home to a championship-winning men's basketball team, but it is also considered one of the country's "public Ivies." Meanwhile, Grand River Avenue is the hub of shopping and entertainment at the university.

University of Kansas - Lawrence, KS The home of the University of Kansas, downtown Lawrence, KS, is full of culture. It's home to an annual film festival, as well as a festival for buskers, or street performers. Lawrence is also filled with history; it was named one of the National Trust for Historic Preservation's "most distinctive destinations."