Arena #148: Williams Arena - Minnesota vs. DePaul

Living in Wisconsin, it’s hard to believe it’s taken until Arena #148 to make a visit to Williams Arena (aka The Barn) in Minneapolis for a game, but given the University of Minnesota is the only Division 1 program in the state, I needed something more than just 1 game to make the drive up.  A top 12 rivalry matchup on the gridiron between the Golden Gophers and the Wisconsin Badgers for Paul Bunyan’s Axe and a spot in the B1G championship game seemed a great occasion for just such a trip when the schedule worked out perfectly by having a mid-afternoon Black Friday basketball game with the football game on Saturday afternoon.  Turns out the basketball game ended up being a much more exciting matchup than expected in the preseason as the DePaul Blue Demons headed up from Chicago to the Barn with an undefeated record.  Before talking about the game, let’s talk about the Barn and it’s “uniqueness.”  Given the arena was built in the 1920’s, it certainly has some interesting design features such as having to walk through the stands on the first level to reach the upper level seats, but it’s most well-known unique feature is obviously the elevated court.  The Final Four uses a similar layout now each year since it’s played in a football stadium, but seeing it in a much smaller venue like Williams Arena is even more interesting.  Onto the game, DePaul was extremely impressive throughout the contest led by Charlie Moore dropping dimes all over the court and Jalen Coleman-Lands making timely 3s to fend off a huge day in the paint from Minnesota’s center Daniel Oturu who put up 19 points and 18 boards in a losing effort.

Historic Williams Arena aka "The Barn"

Pregame view of the elevated court from the upper level

Gophers attacking the basket in the first half

Jalen Coleman-Lands from DePaul for 3 late in the contest

Arena #120: Prudential Center - Seton Hall vs. Saint Louis

For the Saturday nightcap, and third game of the day, we make the mile walk back to the Prudential Center to see the Seton Hall Pirates take on the Saint Louis Billikens.  Now I’m not a huge fan of multi-purpose arenas as I think those with NHL and basketball teams compromise basketball sight lines for hockey sight lines, but in situations like this it helps a school like Seton Hall get to play in a large, modern venue with a host of amenities for their fans.  I admit I didn’t know much about Seton Hall or Saint Louis going into this matchup, but I hoped for a competitive game and boy did we get that!  No matter what two teams are playing, it’s always fun when a game comes down to the final possession like this one did.  The Pirates trailed most of the night, but closed the deficit late and had a chance to take the final shot down 2 to force OT or take home the win.  Sadly for the home fans, the Hall was unable to convert at the buzzer and the Billikens took home the win in front of a surprisingly decent crowd of probably half capacity or so for this non-conference tilt.

Outside the Prudential Center on a Saturday evening

Quite an impressive arena, buoyed by the fact that the NHL's Devils also play here

Opening tip between the Pirates and the Billikens

A battle for the rock during the second half of play inside The Rock

Arena #118: Finneran Pavilion - #8 Villanova vs. #18 Michigan

Sixth game in as many days took us to the Northwest suburbs of Philly this time and the campus of Villanova University for a highly anticipated National Championship rematch between the defending national champion Villanova Wildcats and the Michigan Wolverines from the newly refurbished Finneran Pavilion.  While this was technically the second game at The Finn as the locals call it now, it was the first big game and the fact that it was a national championship game rematch increased the excitement that much more.  I don’t know too well what Finneran Pavilion looked like before the refurbishment and before GQ Jay brought home two national titles in three years, but the entrance and concourse was a great display of Villanova’s basketball prowess over time and especially over these last 3 years with their trophies and championship banners on display.  The game however, was much more of a disappointment for both myself and all the Villanova fans in the building as the Wildcats were thoroughly pounded by the Wolverines from the opening tip.  The capacity crowd of 7000 or so was fully engaged at tip and the student section was going crazy, but all that ended quickly as Michigan jumped to an early lead and Villanova couldn’t buy a bucket.  I knew Villanova lost a lot over the summer, but Michigan was utterly impressive on the road in a very hostile environment for this one.

Main entrance to the newly refurbished Finneran Pavilion

Numerous banners honoring Villanova men's and women's Big East Championships hanging on the concourse 

Ribbon cutting ceremony pregame (naming donor Bill Finneran holding the scissors next to Jay Wright)

Capacity crowd hyped before the tip for this 2018 National Championship rematch

Scrum for the ball during the second half of action

2017 PK80 - Phil Knight Invitational

When a one-off, 16 team college basketball extravaganza was announced back in 2015 for Thanksgiving weekend 2017, I knew right then what my holiday plans would be for this year.  Having the opportunity to see both of my teams (UConn and Gonzaga) in the same "tournament" for the 2nd time in 3 years was definitely going to be a can't miss event.

The ability to have 2 tournaments running simultaneously in buildings a few hundred yards from each other was a perfect setup for the event in that it allowed me to catch 15 games over the course of the 3 days(including 7 of the 8 games on Day 1).  ESPN did manage to botch scheduling on Day 2 making the semifinal matchups overlap with each other (when both my teams were playing in them no less!), but other than that the coordination of the event was pretty strong.

Can't say I was thrilled having to watch Duke and Michigan St. win their respective brackets, but it was definitely a memorable event over a memorable weekend honoring the man behind Nike, Mr. Phil Knight.

Moda Center glowing in a clear Portland evening

The man being honored with PK80 - Mr. Phil Knight

Outside the Veterans Memorial Coliseum - the 2nd building hosting PK80 games all weekend long

Jalen Adams (UConn) with the jumper in a PK80 quarterfinal matchup with Oregon

Upstairs vantage point inside the Veterans Memorial Coliseum during the PK80

Josh Perkins (Gonzaga) pulls up for 3 against Ohio St. in a PK80 quarterfinal