73-49 over butler / Everyone Rates Stadia

[UICJason]

pnthr30 said:

First of all, there is glare on the court at Hinkle during the day, but it DOES NOT make it difficult to play there. Secondly, I agree, the locker rooms at BU are VERY small. To BU's credit, they tried their best to make them nice, but they are still TINY. Thirdly, unless the Pavillion has undergone a renovation recently, the locker rooms there are only a tad better than the ones at BU. They are larger, but not very nice. It is obvious that they are/were used for hockey as they are not really "finished". They are similar to the locker rooms at the old Brown County arena in GB.

My apology. I did not mean to talk about playing there. I was speaking from a fan perspective watching. It is VERY difficult to watch a game there...and yes, the Pavilion has undergone renovations to finish a lot of the unfinished-ish areas.

I don't why we're having this argument with fans from a team who plays in an arena that hasn't been touched since 1970. While the Cell makes for a fun place if it is packed full and loud, the bathrooms, concessions, spacing, and UWM fans make it all very uncomfortable.

[HackPanther]

UICJason said:

I don't why we're having this argument with fans from a team who plays in an arena that hasn't been touched since 1970. While the Cell makes for a fun place if it is packed full and loud, the bathrooms, concessions, spacing, and UWM fans make it all very uncomfortable.

1970?

The U.S. Cellular Arena got an overhaul (new seating, paint job, new scoreboard, etc.) about 3-4 years ago. Pretty good building for its age ... and loud.

[UICJason]

HackPanther said:

1970?

The U.S. Cellular Arena got an overhaul (new seating, paint job, new scoreboard, etc.) about 3-4 years ago. Pretty good building for its age ... and loud.

Then that truly is the saddest thing I've ever heard. It is loud, I've said that. It is not, however, modern. It is one of the oldest, crappiest places I've ever been. If it were on campus, it would have character and charm, but since it's just some corporate named place 5 miles from campus that can barely stand up to it's neighbor stadium, it's just sucky.

[pnthr30]

Forgive me, the Cell and the Pavilion are world apart!

[HackPanther]

UICJason said:

Then that truly is the saddest thing I've ever heard. It is loud, I've said that. It is not, however, modern. It is one of the oldest, crappiest places I've ever been. If it were on campus, it would have character and charm, but since it's just some corporate named place 5 miles from campus that can barely stand up to it's neighbor stadium, it's just sucky.

Did I say it was modern? No ... and that's the way I like it. I'll take history (Arena, Hinkle, Callihan) over modern in almost every aspect (Nutter, Gentile). The Resch Center is probably the exception to the rule that it's much better than it's predecessor, the Brown Co. Arena, which was built more for hockey.

And if you think the Bradley Center is far and away better than the Arena, you are in the minority. Most Marquette fans wish they were still playing at the Arena.

[UICJason]

HackPanther said:

Did I say it was modern? No ... and that's the way I like it. I'll take history (Arena, Hinkle, Callihan) over modern in almost every aspect (Nutter, Gentile). The Resch Center is probably the exception to the rule that it's much better than it's predecessor, the Brown Co. Arena, which was built more for hockey.

And if you think the Bradley Center is far and away better than the Arena, you are in the minority. Most Marquette fans wish they were still playing at the Arena.

Well, those MU fans are talking about games when they have low attendance...the non-conference crap games and so. It's a great place to have 8000 screaming fans. But, on many occassions, including this Saturday, that would mean turning away thousands of MU fans who want to see the game.

I understand pride in one's own stuff. I think we'll just disagree. I find the Pavilion being on campus and being what it is to be awesome. If we filled it, like we did when I was a freshman, it is outstanding. I'm sure to be the tenant of the Cell, you think its great...I think its good for noise and that's about it.

We can probably all agree that the Gentile Center is a joke though.

[pnthr30]

UICJason said:

If we filled it, like we did when I was a freshman, it is outstanding.

I don't think a good crowd for one game a season constitutes "filling it". I don't know when you were a freshman, but in recent history, correct me if I am wrong, but UIC has never had to beat people away with a stick because they had capacity issues.

UICJason said:

We can probably all agree that the Gentile Center is a joke though.

I definitely can't argue with that.

[UICJason]

pnthr30 said:

I don't think a good crowd for one game a season constitutes "filling it". I don't know when you were a freshman, but in recent history, correct me if I am wrong, but UIC has never had to beat people away with a stick because they had capacity issues.


I definitely can't argue with that.

Ya know, I try to be nice and you come back with some stupid remark. I was a freshman in 1997. The Pavilion was packed.

I don't think UWM fans need to smart off about attendance.

[UWMKrazie]

The discussion was never actually about the Cell, only the Pav. with Hinkle added for reference. I'd agree that there's nothing really special about the Cell, but it does feel less cramped and our students have the luxury of no seats in our section.

I also don't think saying the Cell getting an overhaul of seating, sign, scoreboard, etc anywhere implies the statement of a "modern" building. Simply put it proves that the US Cell has been touched since 1970, period.

Justifying the blue curtain as a way to afford space for more activities...it's a load of B.S. If it were truley designed well, this would have been accounted for in a seperate space.

Lastly, I don't think ANY HL school needs to smart off about attendance! We all struggle at sub 5,000 averages...with the possible exception of Butler.

[FreeRadical]

"First off, the Pav is more of a hockey arena than a basketball arena. Please feel free to educate as to why. Did UIC have a hockey team at some point? Because of this hockey based sizing, it fails for other venues like basketball."

Since when is meeting the design criteria a sign of poor design? The Pavilion was always envisioned (and sold to the board of trustees) as a multi-use facility. In the world of public works, combined / multi use is generally perceived as a plus.

What exactly is "hockey-based sizing" and why is it a problem for basket ball? Is it too big, or too small? For the sake of argument, I'll be Baby Bear. I say its JUST RIGHT.

FYI, the pavilion is currently being used by a professional indoor soccer team. So you can add one more sport to the list.

"The blue curtain is hideous and makes the entire arena feel cramped. All the curtain does is condence the small attendance numbers into a smaller area. "

The whole purpose of the blue curtain is to make the place seem less empty. Maybe someday enough cocky cheeseheads will get bored with their over-sized suburb of Chicago, want to come to visit a REAL city and fill the place up. In the mean time, we're just gonna have to make do with the fans we have.

By the way, the city of Chicago would LOVE to have you. Clown wigs and all.

"The upper level mezzanine seating is dark and un-noticed. Sight lines you say? How about being eye level with the trusses and looking between your knees the whole time."

There is no way in hell you are at eye-level with the trusses in the upper deck of the pavilion. Stop it.

I SIT in the upper deck at UIC games. Not because I have to, but because the view is so good. I'm not a basketball guru, so the bird's eye allows ME to focus on what the TEAM is doing rather than what the INDIVIDUALS are doing.

Let me enlighten you to one of the truisms of stadium design: ANY idiot can get the sky boxes and the box seats right. And they do. THAT'S what the owner and owner's reps pay attention to. What sets a good design apart from a mediocre one is the quality of the nosebleeds. If you are optimizing for quantity rather than quality, you push back, flatten, and generally stuff in all the seats you can to get the mandated seat count. That's the primary reason why the upper deck at New Comiskey Park was so awful and so ridiculously tall . It is set back roughly 20 feet farther back than it should have been. The next time you are at a Sox game, try to picture the upper deck pulled forward those twenty feet. I think you'll agree that the whole character of the stadium changes.

The upper deck at the pavilion, on the other hand, is EXACTLY WHERE IT BELONGS. Move it forward or back and it doesn't work.

The only other stadium I CHOOSE to sit in the upper deck at is Wrigley Field. I'm not going to tell you where, because they are cheap seats and I don't want you cheeseheads flocking down here and making it impossible for me to get my Cubs tickets. But honestly, in my opinion the best view in the stadium is in one particluar spot in the upper deck.

Another potential trouble spot is the zipper seats. By zipper I mean the seats adjacent to the diagonal lines where the framing changes direction. This is an area that amateurs struggle with but take a seat there during a game (including the upper deck) and I think you'll agree they nailed that one, too.

"All the praise you give about bathroom placement, concourse size, parking...it is really all irrelevant in my book. To me aesthetics top all."

What you are referring to is frequently referred to "Ass"-thetics in the construction world. And since Scatology seems to be a popular major at UWM, you MUST know that "Bathrooms DON'T matter" implies "hopelessly full of sh_t".

My cornball humor aside, I'll take your statement as a concession that the amenities are excellent at the pavilion. They are.

[mayurT]

FreeRadical, you seem to be a fan who's a little too proud of UIC. The Pavilion is a nice and cozy arena, and this is why I like it, but how can you compare it to places like the United Center? Clearly you've been drugged.

As for the Cell, it's a great college basketball venue. I loved it there when we were all there last year for the championship game.

I've always been a fan of small arenas (12k or less capacity, i.e. Cameron) because when the venue is small, the atmosphere is a lot greater and more personal. It is also much easier for home-team fans to psychologically "get in the heads" of opposing teams. Just ask everyone who plays at Duke.

The Allstate Arena is hideous. FreeRadical, if you said that the Pavilion is superior to the Allstate, I would've agreed with you, but you sound like a UIC supremacist.

[uicstomper]

Ill take the pavilion over the uc. The uc is all about the most seats they can get. the 300 level there you better bring binoculars, and binoculars have no part in basketball.


Uwm Krazie is right, only butler has rooom to talk in this league

[UICJohn]

I'll chime in here as I have been to both the Pav and US Cellular Arena before. And all I have to say is thank God neither team plays in the Allstate Arena. I had to go there this year for the UIC / DePaul game and I'm glad I don't have to go back.

[panther backer]

did you guys play this game like a week ago? maybe it's tiem to move on, but you guys to enjoy living in the past, since all you can talk about is winning last year at the cell and not talk about the fact that your team has had so many problem this year that you have had someone voluntarily quit your team.


Wow doesn't that scream unity

[UICJason]

Guest-panther said:

did you guys play this game like a week ago? maybe it's tiem to move on, but you guys to enjoy living in the past, since all you can talk about is winning last year at the cell and not talk about the fact that your team has had so many problem this year that you have had someone voluntarily quit your team.


Wow doesn't that scream unity

Hey Panther,

You are more than welcome to post here, but make it have a point. Some of your brethren post here and we have fun, but your post makes no sense. This post has clearly diverged from its original subject, hence the change in subject. If you read more than the subject next time, you'll have better luck making some sense.

Say something, or stay away.