The Mega Millions jackpot continues to grow, climbing to $498 million for Tuesday night’s drawing.

A winner in tonight’s drawing would have the choice of taking home the $498 million jackpot as an annuity or $245.3 million in cash.

“The excitement in North Carolina really builds when we see a jackpot of this size,” said Terri Rose, Chief Brand Officer of the N.C. Education Lottery. “We hope to celebrate with a big winner in our state.”

North Carolinians are already winning when they play Mega Millions:

• 23,601: That’s the total number of winning tickets in North Carolina in Friday’s Mega Millions drawing
• $6.9 million: That’s the estimate of how much money has been raised for education in North Carolina during the current Mega Millions run

The odds of winning a Mega Millions jackpot are 1 in 302 million.

Players can buy Mega Millions tickets at any lottery retail location or through Online Play on the lottery’s website, www.nclottery.com, or with the NC Lottery Official Mobile App.

For details on how money raised by the lottery makes a difference for education programs in all 100 North Carolina counties, visit www.nclottery.com and click on the “Impact” section.