Rupp Arena

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Rupp Arena
The Rupp Arena in Lexington
The Rupp Arena in Lexington
Data
place 432 West Vine Street Lexington , Kentucky 40507
United StatesUnited States
Coordinates 38 ° 2 '57.9 "  N , 84 ° 30' 10"  W Coordinates: 38 ° 2 '57.9 "  N , 84 ° 30' 10"  W.
owner Lexington - Fayette Urban County Government
operator The Lexington Center
start of building June 21, 1974
opening 7-10 October 1976
First game November 27, 1976
Kentucky - Wisconsin
Renovations 2014-2016
surface Concrete
parquet
ice surface
sand
earth
costs 53 million US dollars (1976)
16 million US dollars (2014-2016)
architect Ellerbe Becket
capacity 23,500 places (basketball)
10,011–21,300 places (ice hockey)
7,550–21,300 places (arena football)
5,000–24,500 places (concerts)
Societies)
Events

The Rupp Arena is a multifunctional arena in the US city ​​of Lexington in the state of Kentucky . It is the heart of the Lexington Center , a convention and shopping mall that was opened in 1976 by the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government .

history

The first user of the arena, which opened in October 1976, was the University of Kentucky , which first used Kentucky’s largest arena for the games of the men's team, the " Kentucky Wildcats " from the Southeastern Conference (SEC), and later also for their women's teams. From 1996 to 2001, the Rupp Arena was also home of the Kentucky Thoroughblades , a Hockey - franchise , which now after Worcester has moved and there as a farm team of the San Jose Sharks of the NHL under the name Worcester Sharks in the American Hockey League play. Another ice hockey team that used the hall for its home games were the Lexington Men O'War from the minor league ECHL in the 2002/03 season. From 2003 to 2009 the Lexington Horsemen from the second-rate arenafootball2 also played their home games in the Rupp Arena. The building complex also includes a theater with 2,300 and a concert hall with 10,000 seats. The arena is named after the legendary American basketball coach Adolph Rupp , who himself worked at the University of Kentucky for a long time.

Over the 2014/15 and 2015/16 seasons, the Rupp Arena was modernized for 16 million US dollars . So one was Daktronics - video cube mounted under the ceiling. The parquet of the basketball court was sanded down and given the new logo. Additional spaces for journalists have been installed in the eastern corner. Furthermore, the hall u. a. equipped with LED advertising boards, a new sound system , display boards , new basket systems and throwing clocks .

In addition to the sporting events, the hall also serves as a concert and show arena. The most famous concert in the Rupp Arena never took place. On August 23, 1977 Elvis Presley was supposed to perform in the Rupp Arena. A week earlier, on August 16, the King died .

NCAA basketball tournaments

  • 1977: Mideast Region semi-finals and finals
  • 1980: Mideast Region semi-finals and finals
  • 1984: Mideast Region semi-finals and finals
  • 1985: Final Four of the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
  • 1989: Semifinals and finals of the Southeast Region
  • 1992: Semifinals and finals of the Southeast Region
  • 1994: First and second final round
  • 1996: Semifinals and finals of the Southeast Region
  • 1998: First and second final round
  • 2002: South Region finals
  • 2007: First and second final round

capacity

Although the official spectator capacity for basketball games is only 23,500, there has often been space for more than 24,000 spectators at college games in the arena. This is possible because only the lower tier and thus less than half of the seats are equipped with seat shells, the entire upper tier consists of benches. In addition, there is a standing block in the lower tier, directly behind one of the two baskets, the so-called "eRUPPtion zone". Unlike many stadiums built during this period, the Rupp Arena does not have any luxury suites, and these were not added during one of the later renovations. This is mainly due to the fact that suites would significantly reduce the capacity for the heavily attended basketball team games. Furthermore, in the past, atypically, the hall did not have a video cube, as the hall ceiling could not hold it. Instead, two video screens were installed in the arena. Since the renovation, the arena has had a modern video cube since 2016.

Possible new arena

The city of Lexington is currently planning to build a new basketball arena by 2018. The capacity of the new arena will be between 24,000 and 30,000 seats.

Trivia

  • The first basket to be scored in the new arena was ceremoniously thrown by Rupp's grandson Chip.
  • The audience record in the Rupp Arena was achieved on February 10, 2007 with 24,465 visitors in the 61-64 defeat against the Florida Gators .
  • The Kentucky Wildcats are the only NCAA basketball team that plays each of its home games off campus.
  • Since the University of Kentucky has played in the Rupp Arena, it has achieved the highest average attendance in the entire league in 19 of 31 seasons, eleven of them in the last twelve seasons. In the remaining twelve seasons, in which the university could not achieve the highest average attendance, the Wildcats took just second place behind Syracuse University , which played their games in the 33,000-seat Carrier Dome .

gallery

  • University of Kentucky cheerleaders before a basketball game (2005)

  • Interior view (2013)

  • The video cube hanging under the hall ceiling (2016)

  • Inside view (2016)

Web links

Commons : Rupp Arena  - Collection of Images

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ rupparena.com: The History of Rupp Arena (English)
  2. ↑ ukathletics.com: Rupp Arena (English)
  3. ↑ rupparena.com: Event history of the arena (English)
  4. ↑ #TBT Rupp's most famous Concert ( Memento from April 12, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) (English)