Vandy's Court

[Mudge]

What is the deal with Vanderbilt's basketball court-- every time I see a game there, I wonder why they have that huge open border area around the court (with cheerleaders sitting in formation in it)... it always reminds me of other weird floor setups around the country--like Minnesota with the coaches and players seated down a couple of feet from floor level, and Indiana with that big wall at the end of their gym that looks like a HS gym (sort of like in Maui).

[DU82]

What is the deal with Vanderbilt's basketball court-- every time I see a game there, I wonder why they have that huge open border area around the court (with cheerleaders sitting in formation in it)... it always reminds me of other weird floor setups around the country--like Minnesota with the coaches and players seated down a couple of feet from floor level, and Indiana with that big wall at the end of their gym that looks like a HS gym (sort of like in Maui).

-jk has attended a game there, and can give a better description. The wide border is because the floor sits higher than the first rows of seats, like Minnesota, Purdue, and one or two more. It's the raised floor, if I recall correctly, which is why Vandy's been allowed to keep the benches on the end lines rather than side lines. They may be the last ones. (It's been quite a while since the 1980 NCAA second round game at Purdue, but I think I would have noticed if those benches were on the end line.)

The seating's real funky too. I believe there's something like 13 scoreboards in the place, in order for everybody to see at least one of them.

[IStillHateJimBain]

It's a quirky old place. Definitely a different perspective if you're seated close to the floor. The extra space is to keep the players from landing in someone's lap. My father went to Michigan State in the 1940s and he told me their old gym was built in the same style and they had a circus-type net in place to keep the players from getting knocked off the floor. At Vandy, the seats behind the basket are bleacher-style and rise from floor level. It's a big homecourt advantage, making it hard for visiting coaches to communicate to their team when they're at the other end. I kind of like it because I don't really like all the attention the TV cameras give to all the sideline maniacs in the NCAA like G.Williams, Greenberg, Pearl, etc. Sometimes I wish the old NCAA rule prohibiting coaches from standing while the clock runs was still in play (anyone remember Lefty wearing a seat belt on the bench?). Vandy's gym does have a lot of weird sight lines, causing the need for all the scoreboards. The Tennessee high school state tournament used to be played there but it ran its course.

[DevilAlumna]

Vandy's Memorial Gymnasium is a great place to watch a basketball game. (I mean, it's no Cameron, but it's 1,000x better than Charlotte or Greensboro coliseums...)

The court is indeed raised -- when I was standing in the student section, iirc, the floor came up to about armpit level on me. The benches are under the baskets, because if they were on the sidelines, the crowd's sight lines would be through the legs of the benchwarmers.

The students are right up to the court on one side, so they can make it VERY loud, and can have an impact on opposing teams.

Here's a pic: http://vucommodores.cstv.com/facilit...orial-gym.html

And a seating chart: http://grfx.cstv.com/schools/vand/NC...ng-2008-09.jpg

[dukemomLA]

Good win over UTenn tonight. So cool. No one is safe. All sharks are shooting to dethrone champs. Of course, most of all Duke. Every time, storm the court.... so be it. GO DUKE. BLUE DEVILS FOREVER!

[Mudge]

Vandy's Memorial Gymnasium is a great place to watch a basketball game. (I mean, it's no Cameron, but it's 1,000x better than Charlotte or Greensboro coliseums...)

The court is indeed raised -- when I was standing in the student section, iirc, the floor came up to about armpit level on me. The benches are under the baskets, because if they were on the sidelines, the crowd's sight lines would be through the legs of the benchwarmers.

The students are right up to the court on one side, so they can make it VERY loud, and can have an impact on opposing teams.

Here's a pic: http://vucommodores.cstv.com/facilit...orial-gym.html

And a seating chart: http://grfx.cstv.com/schools/vand/NC...ng-2008-09.jpg

What still doesn't make sense to me, is the huge border area between the sideline edges of the court and the fans-- I get that the court is raised, and that the benches are on the ends to prevent blocking spectator views-- but why not eliminate maybe 15-20 feet of that ~30 foot open hardwood expanse between the sideline and the spectators-- you don't need that much for safety, do you? The sideline fans look like they're sitting at another ballfield.

[DevilAlumna]

What still doesn't make sense to me, is the huge border area between the sideline edges of the court and the fans-- I get that the court is raised, and that the benches are on the ends to prevent blocking spectator views-- but why not eliminate maybe 15-20 feet of that ~30 foot open hardwood expanse between the sideline and the spectators-- you don't need that much for safety, do you? The sideline fans look like they're sitting at another ballfield.

Just guessing, but it might be that the width is long enough to accommodate a full-length basketball court, so for practice purposes, they can have two courts side by side (like how Cameron can be set up when the bleachers are rolled back.)

[jjasper0729]

the extra width on the sidelines is because of how the gym itself is laid out. I worked there for a year after graduating from Duke. Memorial Gym is laid out (floor plan) like one long, narrow rectangle laid over a wider, shorter rectangle. the length of the floor "fits" in the long, narrow rectangle and is as wide as the openings in each end zone. It is about 3 1/2 - 4 feet above the "floor" that would be the sideline areas so if you're seated in the first row, your eye line is sneaker level. the endzone bleachers do not go down below the floor level, they stop at it. there are also no corner seats so the seats do not wrap around a-la cameron. they are in the endzones and on the sidelines and in the corners of the court, the walls form sides of the rectangles.

Memorial gym is also one of the only places i've been with a "press box" a-la football for statistics and press. this was up at the ceiling, 4 levels above the floor (that's a lot of stairs). they no longer use that I believe, unless there's overflow.

[Carlos]

Anyone remember Lefty wearing a seat belt on the bench?

That was actually Bones McKinney.

[dukeENG2003]

theres so many other wierd things though, a lot of it seems like its different just to be different. The basket support, for example, the fact that the shot clock is in a different place another.

[CLT Devil]

As far as I know Cameron is he only stadium where the goals are attached to the ceiling and lift up

[DukeFencer]

The court is indeed raised -- when I was standing in the student section, iirc, the floor came up to about armpit level on me. The benches are under the baskets, because if they were on the sidelines, the crowd's sight lines would be through the legs of the benchwarmers.

What is it like to watch a basketball game from the point at which the floor is at armpit level? Which row would be the most desired - partway up, or do students still like being in the front?

Reading the official link to the stadium site, I find it interesting that the capacity started smal (6,583) and they built from that original stadium to get to 14,168, instead of having to start from scratch.

[Olympic Fan]

Memorial gym is also one of the only places i've been with a "press box" a-la football for statistics and press. this was up at the ceiling, 4 levels above the floor (that's a lot of stairs). they no longer use that I believe, unless there's overflow.

Carmichael Auditorium in Chapel Hill used to have a press box for all the media located high above the floor ... a long climb that I made many times. I haven't been back for a women's game there, but I understand that they have removed the press box and now seat the media courtside.

The end zone team seating at Vandy is the holdover for what used to be a common arrangement. Back in 1961, when Larry Brown assaulted Art Heyman and touched off the greatest brawl in ACC history, the team benches in Cameron were in the end zones -- the fight took place right in front of the UNC bench and 95 feet away from the Duke bench.

As for the selt belts. Bones McKinney was the first to use a seatbelt on the bench ... I know Duke's Bucky Waters also did it. I don't recall Lefty using one, but it's possible.

BTW: Speaking of restraining coaches on the bench: Has any basketball story fizzled more in recent times than all the preseason hype about the new bench decorum standards? Has anybody noticed any change in coaches behavior on the bench? And has anybody noticed a rash of technicals on coaches leaving the box or using bad language?

[DukeFencer]

http://www.uwire.com/2008/01/29/m-ho...line-seatbelt/

"Wagner coach unbuckles his sideline seatbelt"

[hurleyfor3]

As far as I know Cameron is he only stadium where the goals are attached to the ceiling and lift up

Stanford's gym (Maples Pavilion) used to until a few years ago. A Google image search will dig up before and after renovation pics.

[HaveFunExpectToWin]

What is the deal with Vanderbilt's basketball court-- every time I see a game there, I wonder why they have that huge open border area around the court (with cheerleaders sitting in formation in it)... it always reminds me of other weird floor setups around the country--like Minnesota with the coaches and players seated down a couple of feet from floor level, and Indiana with that big wall at the end of their gym that looks like a HS gym (sort of like in Maui).

Someone mentioned Memorial's unique layout, take a drink.

[dukeENG2003]

As far as I know Cameron is he only stadium where the goals are attached to the ceiling and lift up

Right, but I've never seen the funky split basket support like at Memorial. Usually its just the conventional one post that goes down. At Vandy, it splits, and the two basket support posts are like 20 feet apart when they hit the ground. Look at the pic linked above, you can sorta see it there. Its probably necessary given how far out the goal sits from its support, but it it pretty unique.

[KyDevilinIL]

Vandy's setup is interesting, but nothing beats the hogwash at UT-Arlington. Look up Texas Hall. It's an old theater, complete with a balcony. The court and a small set of bleachers are on the stage. Most of the crowd is out in the regular seating area, like it's watching a movie. Bizarre.

[gw67]

Going back a ways, I recall that several of the high school gyms that I played in had the baskets hung from the ceiling. Most of those had metal backboards. It took a while to get used to the glass backboards at schools that had them.

When I first went to Cole to see Maryland play, they did not have seats behind the baskets and there was empty space there. Teams who played in smaller gyms with fans behind the baskets would often have trouble with their depth perception while shooting.

gw67

[gvtucker]

Vandy's setup is interesting, but nothing beats the hogwash at UT-Arlington. Look up Texas Hall. It's an old theater, complete with a balcony. The court and a small set of bleachers are on the stage. Most of the crowd is out in the regular seating area, like it's watching a movie. Bizarre.

Dang, does UTA still play there? Boy, those are times long gone by. Texas Hall was used by the theater majors at UTA, and it really did double as a stage for student performances.