Rupp Arena

Rupp Arena
"The Cathedral of Basketball"[citation needed]
Location	432 West Vine Street Lexington, KY 40506
Coordinates	38°02′58″N 84°30′10″W
Broke ground	June 21, 1974
Opened	November 28, 1976
Owner	Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government
Operator	The Lexington Center
Surface	Cawood's Court
Construction cost	$53 million ($216 million in 2012 dollars
Architect	Ellerbe Becket
General Contractor	Huber, Hunt & Nichols
Capacity	23,500 (Basketball) 21,300 (Hockey) 7,550 (Arena Football) 5,000-23,500 (Concerts)
Tenants
Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball (NCAA) (1976–present) Lexington Horsemen (AF2) (2003–2009) Kentucky Thoroughblades (AHL) (1996–2001) Lexington Men O' War (ECHL) (2002–2003)

Rupp Arena is an arena located in downtown Lexington, Kentucky, U.S. Since its opening in 1976, it has been the centerpiece of Lexington Center, a convention and shopping facility owned by an arm of the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government, and serves as home court to the University of Kentucky men's basketball program. With an official capacity of 23,500, it is the largest basketball arena in the United States. In Rupp Arena, the Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team annually leads the nation in college basketball attendance. The arena also regularly hosts concerts, conventions, and shows.

History

The arena's primary tenant is the Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball program, but the Kentucky Wildcats women's basketball team has also hosted games there in recent years, particularly an upset in early 2006 of the #1 Tennessee Lady Vols. Rupp Arena was the host of the 1985 NCAA Final Four, won in an upset by Villanova. It also formerly hosted the Kentucky Thoroughblades (currently the Worcester Sharks) (capacity 10,011) and the Lexington Men O' War (capacity 7,500) minor-league hockey teams, and the Lexington Horsemen arena football team (capacity 7,550), numerous concerts (theater capacity 2,300; concert hall 10,000; arena capacity 23,500), conventions, and other events. It is named after UK coaching legend Adolph Rupp, and opened in 1976, a little more than a year before Rupp's death in late 1977. Since the 1985 Final Four, Rupp Arena has hosted a number of NCAA Tournament regional games, most recently in 2007. Rupp Arena is scheduled to host second and third round NCAA Tournament games in 2013. Rupp Arena is also home to Kentucky's high school boy's basketball Sweet Sixteen, a single elimination tournament which determines the state champion with sixteen teams representing each of Kentucky's regional high school champions.

Seating arrangement

The arena has an official capacity for basketball of 23,500, but has packed in well over 24,000 for many UK basketball games. This is possible because less than half of the seating (approx. 10,000) consists of chair-back seats, all of them in the lower seating bowl. The lower bowl also incorporates a student standing-room area called the "eRUPPtion Zone" behind one goal, which was named in 2002 by Andrew Acker from Lincolnton, NC. Acker won a student body contest where his submission was picked from nearly 200 when he was a freshman at UK. One of the zone's most popular tenants is Kentucky native and UK alum Ashley Judd. The upper bowl is completely made up of bleacher bench seats that allow more capacity than chair-back seats. Unlike many arenas built in the following years, it has no luxury suites, and has never been renovated to add them. However, in 2001 the arena received some minor renovations including: four oversize video boards, new lower bowl seating, new locker rooms and a new court. The demand for UK basketball tickets is so overwhelming that adding suites would inevitably reduce the capacity and possibly lead to a fan backlash. Due to the success of the many great players, coaches, and teams of the University of Kentucky, Rupp Arena has the reputation as one of the most intimidating venues for opposing teams in college basketball.

Milestones

• The ceremonial first basket in the new facility was sunk by Adolph's young grandson Chip (Adolph III), who went on to play college basketball at Southeastern Conference (SEC) rival Vanderbilt.
• Rupp staged three Southeastern Conference men's basketball tournaments between 1982 and 1993; it was also the host of the Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball tournament in 1992 and 1993.
• It hosted WWE Backlash in 2006.
• The Rupp Arena attendance record was set on January 2, 2010, when 24,479 people watched #3 Kentucky play rival Louisville. The final score was a 71-62 victory by the Kentucky Wildcats.

University of Kentucky cheerleaders at Rupp Arena during a basketball game.

• The UK men are the only basketball program in the SEC that plays home games in an off-campus facility. All of the other programs play on-campus, including the UK women, who play in the men's former home of Memorial Coliseum. However, when the women's program expects an unusually large crowd, it will shift an occasional game to Rupp; they notably upset then top-ranked Tennessee there on January 26, 2006.
• Rupp is also home to the annual KHSAA State Basketball Championship, with teams from throughout the commonwealth appearing for a shot at the state title.
• Rupp Arena is the home court of the Kentucky Wildcats Man's Basketball Team, and Kentucky Men's Basketball now boasts an overall Rupp Arena record of 476-60 (.888) since beginning play there in November of 1976. (UK's first win in Rupp Arena was on November 27, 1976, vs. Wisconsin, and their most recent win was on February 18th, 2012 vs. Ole Miss.)
• The University of Kentucky has led the nation 23 times in NCAA Men's home basketball attendance since the 1976-77 season (35 seasons), including 15 out of the last 16 seasons (and the last 6 seasons in a row). This is a national record.
• On December 21, 2009, in Rupp Arena, the Kentucky Men's basketball team became the first college basketball program to win 2000 games, in an 88-44 win against the Drexel University Dragons.
• It hosted the August 2, 2011 tapings of SmackDown and WWE Superstars, with the former set to air on August 5, 2011, and the latter having aired on August 4, 2011.

NCAA Tournament games

• 2013 Second and Third Rounds
• 2007 First and Second Rounds
• 2002 South Regional Semi-finals and Final
• 1998 First and Second Rounds
• 1996 Southeast Regional Semi-finals and Final
• 1994 First and Second Rounds
• 1992 Southeast Regional Semi-finals and Final
• 1989 Southeast Regional Semi-finals and Final
• 1985 NCAA Final Four
• 1984 Mideast Regional Semi-finals and Final
• 1980 Mideast Regional Semi-finals and Final
• 1977 Mideast Regional Semi-finals and Final

Attendance record progression

The Kentucky Wildcats have set or broken the Rupp Arena attendance record 25 times since the arena opened in 1976. In those games, the Wildcats have won 22 times and lost 4 times.

Attendance	Date	Kentucky opponent	Result
23,266	November 27, 1976	Wisconsin	Won 72–64
23,271	January 12, 1977	Tennessee	Lost 71–67 (OT)
23,392	February 14, 1977	Florida	Won 104–78
23,412	February 26, 1977	Alabama	Won 85–70
23,472	November 26, 1977	SMU	Won 110–86
23,521	December 5, 1977	Indiana	Won 78–64
23,608	March 4, 1978	UNLV	Won 92–70
23,798	December 15, 1979	Indiana	Won 69–58
23,809	December 3, 1980	Ohio State	Won 70–64
23,875	December 13, 1980	Kansas	Won 87–73
24,011	March 1, 1981	LSU	Won 73–71
24,165	December 8, 1981	Indiana	Won 85–69
24,185	February 27, 1983	Tennessee	Won 69–61
24,203	December 7, 1985	Indiana	Won 63–58
24,288	January 14, 1989	LSU	Lost 64–62
24,301	February 15, 1990	LSU	Won 100–95
24,310	March 2, 1991	Auburn	Won 114–93
24,324	January 25, 1992	Arkansas	Lost 105–88
24,332	March 7, 1992	Tennessee	Won 99–88
24,340	December 23, 1995	Tennessee	Won 89–66
24,459	February 4, 2003	Florida	Won 70–55
24,465	February 10, 2007	Florida	Lost 64–61
24,468	December 5, 2009	North Carolina	Won 68–66
24,479	January 2, 2010	Louisville	Won 71–62

External links

• Official site

Preceded by Memorial Coliseum	Home of Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball 1976 – present	Succeeded by current
Preceded by Kingdome	NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament Finals Venue 1985	Succeeded by Reunion Arena