In division I college basketball, there are 12 schools with arenas that have a capacity that’s smaller than 2000. Three of those schools are in the Big South (Longwood, High Point, Charleston Southern) while the two smallest venues, both with less than 900 seats, hail from the state of South Carolina.
Alumni Gymnasium, Lawrenceville, New Jersey (Rider Broncs): 1950 Seats
Image: Source
Rider play in the smallest arena in the MAAC. The school has three NCAA tournament appearances: 1984, 1993, 1994.
Willett Hall, Farmville, Virginia (Longwood Lancers): 1807 Seats
Image: Source
Willett Hall opened 35 years ago and was originally known as Lancer Hall. It had a bigger capacity (2522) prior to changes in 2007. It’s also the record attedance for a game against VCU in 2006. It’s the third smallest venue in the Big South.
Cotterell Court, Hamilton, New York (Colgate Raiders): 1750 Seats
Image: Source
Colgate famously made the NCAA tournament in the 1990’s twice with Adonal Foyle (1995, 1996). They’ve been playing in Cotterell Court since 1959. It’s named for Wesley M. Cotterell, a two-time letterwinner in basketball and school trustee. It’s the smallest arena in the Patriot league.
Millis Athletic Convocation Center, High Point, North Carolina (High Point Panthers): 1750 Seats
Image: Source
Opened in 1992, it’s based on Alumni Hall, which was built in 1957. The facility was added upon, creating the office space, classrooms and pool on the western side of the facility, as well as adding a state-of-the-art press box. It’s the second smallest arena in the Big South, a conference the Panthers have won the last three years in the regular season.
Matadome, Northridge, California (Cal State Northridge Matadors): 1600 Seats
Image: Source
The Matadome was opened in 1962 and despite its name, it resides inside a building with a flat roof (Redwood Hall). Before the 1994 Northridge earthquake, the Matadome had a capacity of over 3,000. After the earthquake, the upper section seats were removed to create more classroom space for Redwood Hall, and walls were put up to separate the Matadome from these new classrooms. It’s considered as one of the worst arenas in the nation, known as the Kinesiology building with a basketball court inside. It’s the smallest arena in the Big West.
Alumni Gym, Elon, North Carolina (Elon Phoenix): 1585 Seats
Image: Source
The smallest venue in the Colonial Athletic Association, Alumni Gym has been around since 1949, undergoing some extensive renovations in recent years.
Fleisher Center, Newark, New Jersey (NJIT Highlanders): 1500 Seats
Imge: Source
Fleisher Center has been the home of the New Jersey Institute of Technology teams since 1967. It’s the smallest arena in the Atlantic Sun conference.
Generoso Pope Athletic Complex, Brooklyn, New York (St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers): 1200 Seats
The Generoso Pope Athletic Complex is composed of three levels, including the Daniel Lynch Gymnasium (where the basketball teams play), named after Daniel J. Lynch, who coached the Terriers for 21 years and led them to 3 Regular Season Conference Championship wins and is the All-Time Terrier Coach wins leader. The court is named after Peter Aquilone, the son of former Athletic Director and St. Francis alumnus Edward Aquilone. It’s the smallest venue in the Northeast conference.
Colberg Court, Sacramento, California (Sacramento State Hornets): 1012 Seats
Image: Source
The smallest arena in the Big Sky conference, it opened in 1955 and was renamed from The Hornets Nest in 2008, honoring 32-year volleyball head coach Debby Colberg, who retired after the 2007 season. Colberg posted an 828-292 record, garnered two national titles and posted winning volleyball seasons in 30 of her 32 years as head coach.
Sharp Gymnasium, Houston, Texas (Houston Baptist Huskies): 1000 Seats
Image: Source
Built in 1963, it’s the smallest arena in the Southland conference, and that’s all I have to say about that.
CSU Field House, North Charleston, South Carolina (Charleston Southern Buccaneers): 881 Seats
Image: Source
It’s mainly known as the Buc Dome, but actually, the Buccaneers play in another arena as well, hosting major conference teams or local opponents such as The Citadel or the College of Charleston in the North Charleston Coliseum. It’s the smallest arena in the Big South.
G. B. Hodge Center, Spartanburg, South Carolina (South Carolina Upstate Spartans): 818 Seats
Image: Source
The smallest stadium in division I basketball, it’s been open since 1973 and underwent massive renovation in the second half of the 00’s thanks to the larget ever donation to the university’s athletic department ($4 million) coming from alumnus Dolores Anderson.
0 comments:
Post a Comment