Rupp Arena

Rupp Arena

Location	432 W Vine St Lexington, KY 40506
Owner	Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government
Operator	The Lexington Center
Capacity	23,000
Surface	Cawood's Court
Construction
Opened	1976
Construction cost	$53 million
Tenants
Kentucky Wildcats (Men's Basketball) Lexington Horsemen (AF2) (2003–2009) Kentucky Thoroughblades (AHL) (1996–2001) Lexington Men O' War (ECHL) (2002–2003) 1985 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament KHSAA Boys' Sweet 16 State Basketball Tournament

Rupp Arena is an arena located in downtown Lexington, Kentucky, U.S. It is the centerpiece of Lexington Center, a convention and shopping facility owned by an arm of the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government. Rupp Arena was the host of the 1985 NCAA Final Four, won in an upset by Villanova. With an official capacity of 23,500, it was the largest arena ever built specifically for basketball in the United States at the time of its opening in 1976. It is once again currently the largest basketball arena in the United States. In Rupp Arena, the Kentucky Wildcats almost always lead the nation in college basketball attendance.

History

The arena's primary tenant is the Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball program. 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. It also formerly hosted the Kentucky Thoroughblades (currently the Worcester Sharks) and the Lexington Men O' War 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 first and second 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. One of the zone's most popular tenants is Kentucky native and UK alum Ashley Judd. The upper bowl is completely made up of bleachers. Unlike many arenas built in the following years, it has no luxury suites, and has never been renovated to add them (although it has received some minor renovations in other areas); the demand for UK basketball tickets is so overwhelming that adding suites would inevitably reduce the capacity and possibly lead to a fan backlash. Also, it is unlike other facilities in that it has no large center-mounted scoreboard or other such amenities, as the arena's roof was not designed to withstand the weight; however, it does have video boards mounted in the corners and scoreboards/clocks in between the upper and lower bowl. It has a reputation as one of the most intimidating venues for opposing teams in college basketball.

Possible New Arena

In August 2008, the city of Lexington and the University of Kentucky announced a proposal to build a new downtown basketball arena to replace Rupp Arena. The proposal calls for private financing for a new arena as well as new facilities or improvements for other Kentucky facilities. The new arena could open possibilities for luxury boxes and priority seating, and could open by 2015. The new arena will hold between 24,000- 30,000 seats.

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.
• The University of Kentucky calls the arena home and boasts a home record of 445-60 (.881) since beginning play there in November 1976. (UK's first win in Rupp Arena was on November 27, 1976, vs. Wisconsin, and their most recent win was on March 7, 2010, vs. Florida.)
• The University of Kentucky has led the nation 22 times in NCAA Men's home basketball attendance since the 1976-77 season (34 seasons), including 14 out of the last 15 seasons (and the last 5 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.

NCAA Tournament Games

• 2007 First and Second Rounds
• 2002 South Regional 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 24 times since the arena opened in 1976. In those games, the Wildcats have won 20 times and lost four 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