Is The Barn Magic Back?

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station19

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Feb 18 Men take down #6 Maryland.

Feb 24 Women take down #5 Ohio St.
 


Over 9,000 at the women's game last night. Would be thrilled if the Barn magic mirrored the Clem era. Dont think it will ever get to what it was during the Musselman era. ( maybe if Eric comes back)
 


In 1996-97, it was wild in there. Probably not Muscle Man era worthy, but there were 5000 less seats. 14,625 every night though.
 



GopherJake said:
In 1996-97, it was wild in there. Probably not Muscle Man era worthy, but there were 5000 less seats. 14,625 every night though.
Click to expand...

I have often wondered how they ever fit 5,000 more people in there. They must have lost some seats to the handicapped areas near the court and behind the east basket, and I recall there being a few more seats in the corners of the lower deck back by the wall as well. The biggest change was probably the chair seating in the lower bowl.

Replacing most of the lower bowl benches with chairs probably accounts for much of the capacity loss. Unlike below, the seats upstairs are really tight with numbers painted close together and no leg room. I hate it up there and it reminds me of being in Kinnick Stadium. If course, if you stand the whole game that is a lot better.

Does anyone remember what Williams Arena was like as far as extra seating back I the early 70's?

If they ever renovate the place they need to open up some of the old windows, make great use of the space between University Avenue to build something large that services the upper deck fans, and somehow blow out the west wall and take much of the Pavillion.

Of course doing all this would cost as much as a nice new Oregon or Missouri like arena.
 

Seating capacities

1928–1950 14,100
1950–1971 18,025
1971–1987 17,500
1987–1993 16,434
1993–1997 14,321
1997–present 14,625

From 1950 until the opening of Marriott Center at Brigham Young University in 1971, it had the largest capacity of any collegiate basketball arena in the country. Hinkle Fieldhouse at Butler University also was constructed in 1928, and held the honor of being the highest capacity arena until the remodeling of Williams Arena in 1950.

Before Williams Arena

When the Gophers basketball team first organized, they played games in the on-campus YMCA. In 1896, the team moved into the campus Armory, a large building with gymnasium space for the team to use, even if basketball was not its primary purpose.[11]:6 The Gophers remained in the Armory for almost thirty years. Halfway through the 1924-25 season, coach Harold Taylor moved the team from the University Armory to the Kenwood Armory in downtown Minneapolis.[11]:50 This significantly increased the attendance: capacity at the University Armory was 2,000, but it was 6,500 at Kenwood. The team only played at Kenwood for a few seasons, however, as the University of Minnesota Field House (later known as Williams Arena) opened partway through the 1927-1928 season. The team moved in on January 31, 1928.[11]:50

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Williams_Arena
 






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