Arena #137: FedEx Forum - Memphis vs. Connecticut

For the final game of the weekend, it was back to Tennessee for an American Athletic Conference matchup between the Memphis Tigers and the Connecticut Huskies.  As a UConn fan, I’ve been waiting to go to this game ever since UConn was left in the AAC after the dissolution of the old Big East through realignment, but it seemed like the conference always scheduled this game on a weeknight in mid-January that would make it impossible for me to attend.  It would figure that finally when the game falls on a weekend, it’s when UConn has been pretty bad for the last few years and Memphis is a bit down on its luck as well.  However, with the hirings of Dan Hurley at UConn and Memphis St. alum, Penny Hardaway, at Memphis, this game is likely to be good in a couple years (summer update: will be interesting to see if these matchups continue with UConn having announced its return to the Big East in 2020).  Since Memphis is playing its games in the FedEx Forum it shares with the NBA’s Grizzlies, I expected a nice and modern facility and for the most part the venue didn’t disappoint.  The arena has a prime location along Memphis’s world-famous Beale St. allowing for a multitude of pregame activities to be available within walking distance of the arena.  The seating bowl itself doesn’t feel as spread out as a typical professional sports facility either, which is likely helped by the main tenants of the arena both being basketball programs versus when an arena has to be designed with hockey in mind as well.  We had some pretty good lower level corner seats for the game, which provided decent sightlines while also not being buried too far in the corner.  The product on the court turned out to be about what I expected from both teams as UConn had too many stretches throughout the contest where they struggled to put the ball in the basket, which allowed Memphis to build a 7-10 point lead on a regular basis that they would never relinquish in defending their homecourt on this Sunday afternoon.

The FedEx Forum - prime location right on famous Beale St. in Memphis

Yeah we were there a bit early for tip...

Hey what happened to 2008?? ;)

Memphis with the hook shot in the lane over UConn's Tyler Polley

Sidney Wilson of UConn attempting a runner in the second half

Arena #135: Elam Center - Tennessee-Martin vs. Tennessee Tech

After a weekend off, it was back on the road starting with a stop at Tennessee-Martin for an Ohio Valley Conference matchup between the Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks and the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles.  Not many people know that Tennessee-Martin is where the winningest coach in women’s college basketball history, Pat Summitt, got her first head coaching job before heading east to Knoxville.  As such, her name and likeness are prominently displayed in and around the Elam Center with a statue out front and the playing surface itself being named after her.  It’s pretty obvious the Elam Center has been around for awhile and was constructed with multiple uses in mind with the very square footprint of the building consisting of a set of temporary bleachers on each side of the court.  The most interesting part to me being that the main entrance is on the upper level of the bleachers and one has to walk down tens of rows to get to the playing surface level.  It’s an interesting setup that adds some uniqueness to an otherwise fairly bland facility.  This matchup ended up being another contest that was never all that competitive.  The Skyhawks led early and often in completing a 30 point win over one of their in-state conference rivals, who scored a partly 42 points in the entire 40 minute contest!

Entrance to the Elam Center in Martin, TN

Statue outside the arena of Pat Summitt coaching and teaching

Opening tip between the Skyhawks and Golden Eagles

Not exactly a big crowd, but a crowd that left happy after a dominating UT-Martin win

Arena #112: Dunn Center - Austin Peay St. vs. Murray St.

The final game of the 2017-18 travel season certainly turned out to be one of the top 3 or 5 most memorable stops of my 112 thus far, but for nothing that had to do with the on-court action itself!  With about 5 minutes left in the game, we all of a sudden hear a huge BANG! in the arena and water starts pouring in near one of the hoops!  Turns out a severe storm had just passed through the area and tore a hole in the roof of the building!  We were moved out of the seating bowl and into some team and coaches offices behind the seats where were waited for an hour or more for the storm to pass and for the teams to decide what was going to be done to complete the game.  We ultimately left after about 90 minutes of waiting, but it turned out that they managed to patch up the roof and complete the game 45 minutes or so after we left.  Murray St. ended up winning the game so not much changed from their 9 point lead established prior to the "weather break."

The Winfield Dunn Center on the campus of Austin Peay State University

Crowd filling in for the Border Battle between Austin Peay St. and Murray St.

Best chant in all of sports!!

Ja Morant before he became a household name the following season

The APSU solution to drying the court with a hole in the roof...

Arena #110: Eblen Center - Tennessee Tech vs. Belmont

Second game of this Tennessee doubleheader weekend took us about 90 minutes east of Nashville to Cookeville, TN and the Eblen Center on the campus of Tennessee Technological University for an Ohio Valley Conference matchup between TTU and Belmont.  While the outside of the Eblen Center and the concourse inside show some age, it seems like the seating bowl itself has been re-done recently.  I was incredibly impressed with the pre-game introductions and the graphics used to show and enhance images on the court as this was the first time I'd seen outside of a pro arena and it was at an OVC school nonetheless!  As for the game itself, TTU kept the game closer than I expected throughout, though Dylan Windler and his crew from Belmont ultimately came out with the W on this rainy evening.

Outside of the Hooper Eblen Center in Cookeville, TN

Bring out the Tennessee Tech flags to welcome the team onto the court!

Loved the pre-game graphics that were NBA arena-worthy

Tennessee Tech taking the ball to the rack in the first half

Arena #109: Allen Arena - Lipscomb vs. North Florida

Second time to Tennessee during this season, this time starting in Nashville to complete the triumvirate of schools in the city with a visit to Allen Arena on the campus of Lipscomb University.  Lipscomb hosted the fairly overmatched North Florida Ospreys in this Atlantic Sun contest.  Lipscomb, like it's Nashville rival Belmont, has a beautiful campus with lots of southern architecture and brick buildings that justify the $50k/yr or more students pay to attend.  Allen Arena fits well into the landscape of campus being fairly modern both inside and out, while having a capacity of a few thousand that seems a perfect size for the school.  The crowd wasn't full but any means for this one, but UNF brought more fans from Jacksonville than I expected and there were lots of students (many late-arriving...) helping to create a pretty solid atmosphere for this matchup.

Main entrance of Allen Arena

Impressively nice arena on the inside; just as nice as local rival Belmont

Opening tip between the Bisons and Ospreys

The Bisons love the 3 ball

Arena #96: McKenzie Arena - Chattanooga vs. Charlotte

2nd game of the Tennessee weekend brought about a drive to the southern edge of the state and the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga for my first visit to a venue in the Southern Conference.  McKenzie Arena is definitely a bit large for Chattanooga's needs (at least on this day) and it has some crazy steep seating, especially in the upper level.  Not by any means the nicest or most unique place I've been on the journey so far, but the few fans that were at the game were engaged and energetic.

Entrance to McKenzie Arena

Baseline view from the concourse

Chattanooga securing the defensive rebound

Arena #95: Murphy Center - Middle Tennessee St. vs. Mississippi

Finding a cheap $98 RT flight from Milwaukee to Nashville meant a chance to get a couple more random venues checked off the list in Tennessee, starting with a short trip south of Nashville to Murfreesboro for a rare opportunity to see a Power 5 conference team play a true road game against a Conference USA school.  Appreciated the free T-shirts and the nearly full building after the last couple games where the fans were few and far between.  Plus it's always fun seeing how one of the better "smaller" conference teams is able to defeat a team from the SEC.

Exterior view of the Historic Murphy Center at Middle Tennessee St.

Opening tip between the Blue Raiders and Rebels

MTSU with the flush

Having an SEC team in their building certainly brought the fans out to this one