NSIC ARENAS

[Moorhead123]

[vikingfaithful]

Can only comment on two facilities. Augustana and Wayne.

The Pentagon is a primo facility for The Vikings in almost every way. My only gripes are it isn't ours and not located on campus.
In general I was a big fan of the Elmen Center on campus, as I went to many games there. Games against SDSU and USD had sellout crowds and the noise was deafening, chants of moo u, hate state and screw the U were answered back with Augie sucks. Elmen Center is a cozy intimate setting with downfalls. The plastic bleacher seats were uncomfortable, Texas Tom complained that the facility was not impressive enough for recruits, women's coach Dave Krauth wanted to stay on campus. Tom Billeter got what he wanted.

Wayne St. is an hour and 20 minutes from where I live. The first game I went to was in the late 90's and current Creighton coach Greg McDermott was the men's head coach and I sat behind legendary QB Silas Fluellen. Rice Auditorium looks like a large high School facility from the 50's with all wood bleachers on one side and a stage for plays/musicals and other events on the opposite side, there is some seating behind one hoop for rowdy students. It is a good place to watch Basketball. After I became confined to a wheelchair I emailed the AD around 2011 and asked where I could watch a game, his reply was an apology stating facility was outdated and there was no real spot except in a corner, perhaps that has changed. Wayne's AD hit a homerun in hiring Jeff Kaminsky and thus far John McMenamin.

[MrMustang]

1. Augie - if they play at the Pentagon
2. Northern -- if there is a good crowd it is great
3. Minot - underrated. It is very nice
4. Mankato -- I agree top arena but zero atmosphere. could be # 1 easily
5. SMSU - great facility and new floor and video upgrades
6. Wayne -- I love that old place
7. Augie - if Elmen
8. Upper - love the small arena. perfect for that size of school. It is underrated. home court advantage for sure
9. SCSU - has some character
10. UMD - blah
11. Mooorhead - blah
12. Winona - overrated
13 - Concordia - terrible - hate the nets etc/

haven't been to Bemidji or renovated UMC or Mary

Damn I have been to a lot of away arenas

[MrMustang]

I wonder how attendance will be at Moorhead? Any thoughts ? I know they are mask crazy up there. My daughter goes there and works at the Wellness Center. They literally have security guards monitoring it.

I was up there for a football game and the guard got mad at me as I didn't have one

[vikingfaithful]

Wonder why the Mavericks get so little basketball support? It's the 2nd largest university in the state with excellent support for football and hockey. It's not like Margs puts a bad product on the floor.

[laker]

Wonder why the Mavericks get so little basketball support? It's the 2nd largest university in the state with excellent support for football and hockey. It's not like Margs puts a bad product on the floor.

Too many nights with home hockey games when basketball plays at home. But you are right, there is no reason for the intimate gatherings in the TC. It is a great place to watch a game but you are socially distancing without even trying to do it.

[SW_Mustang]

Wonder why the Mavericks get so little basketball support? It's the 2nd largest university in the state with excellent support for football and hockey. It's not like Margs puts a bad product on the floor.

Scheduling conflicts with hockey are the big issue, but then you consider that both soccer and football tend to play deep into the postseason. I was also at a game in 2019 where East vs. West in the section hockey finals was going on at the same time in Rochester. Seems the Mavs just can't catch a break.

I think I asked Margenthaler about it on Insta as occasionally he posts about wanting a stronger student section. He said there's nothing he can do about scheduling as it's way over the school's head.

[SW_Mustang]

I wonder how attendance will be at Moorhead? Any thoughts ? I know they are mask crazy up there. My daughter goes there and works at the Wellness Center. They literally have security guards monitoring it.

I was up there for a football game and the guard got mad at me as I didn't have one

Seemed like they were locked up pretty tight when I was up there a couple months back. No clue how that will translate to basketball season.

[SW_Mustang]

Here are the arenas I've been too - though I haven't seen an NSIC game in all of them.

Northern:

-Wachs is by far the Cameron of our conference, and it felt like it. Maybe not the *nicest* arena, but it definitely had a special feel to it. Sometimes the character of an older arena outweighs what a nicer arena would bring though, and I think that's the case here. Would love to actually see a game here.

Augustana:

-Elmen was okay. A little underwhelming with no video board, and it felt kinda small. I bet the atmosphere is pretty great for basketball though, seems kinda tight in there. Who's office overlooks the court?

-Was just at the Pentagon (and met Mike Miller oddly enough). It's a gorgeous basketball facility. I like almost everything about it. It's not Augustana's arena though, and that's pretty apparent. It's for the Skyforce. The only real knock I have against it was I thought sitting in the first row would be a good idea, and it wasn't. Decent view when it wasn't blocked by concession-goers.

Minnesota State:

-The Taylor Center (or technically Bresnan Arena) is a great facility. I like that the concessions are actually in the arena so you don't have to miss much of the game just to get a hot dog. Would like to see them add credit card machines at the ticket booth, and a better video board/scoreboard. There are actually classrooms in the basement of the Taylor Center too, which is neat. I think the class I'm taking now meets down there.

Sioux Falls:

-Felt like an above average HS arena honestly. I like that the track around the top is open for spectators though, as I'm one who likes to stand. USF probably doesn't need anything bigger than it right now though. A good spit shine would do this place a world of good.

SMSU:

-I kinda like the R/A. Much like the Stewart Center, I think it's time for a little spit shine - but they have made some recent improvements. New floor, new courtside video boards, and they even added some graphics to the windows at the entrances which I really appreciated. SMSU nor Marshall is super big, so I don't think we need anything else (even though we do draw a crowd at times). It's definitely home.

-The PE Gym is still set up for basketball and has hosted games since the R/A was built, but it's more of a neat little sidenote than it is an actual basketball arena. It belongs to the volleyball team now. It's nice to have as a backup for scheduling conflicts though, as rare as they are.

For the others (based on Google Images) -

Minot is the most intriguing. Curiously, I think it's the biggest basketball arena in North Dakota and MSU has been it's primary tenant for much of the duration. I wonder why, maybe it's just that the city wanted a big gathering space for general purpose and MSU got the nod to be the primary user. Recent renovations have made it look really nice, though I still think it's a bit rough around the edges and needs some more work. The stands also seem to be kinda far from the court at ground level.

Wayne, Crookston, Bemidji, Mary, and Upper Iowa all have arenas that remind me of a standard high school gym - though I haven't been to any of them.

The Ganglehoff Center at Concordia looks awkward to me - like the architecture of the building is nice, but the exposed track and curtains remind me of the court the 8th grade basketball team at my school used. Space is probably at a premium, so I get it - but I think it could be configured better. Moorhead also has some of the same awkwardness, the fragmented stands and the large curtain - but it's not as noticeable. It's not nearly as cool as the other Concordia's facility though - and I think the Dragons could do a bit better.

UMD plans to dump $10 million into the Romano Gymnasium. Besides the name reminding me of Everybody Loves Raymond (my favorite sitcom), the arena has some cool features - like the exposed brick. I don't like how tight the walls are to the sidelines behind the baskets though. We'll see where they rank after the reno is finished. The design is similar to SCSU in many ways, though I like Halenbeck a lot more in pictures. My favorite picture of Halenbeck Hall features Andre the Giant.

I think that leaves only Winona State. McCown ranks up there in history with Wachs, IMO - so even though it's small, it looks like it feels kinda right. Recent renovations have definitely helped as well.

As you can tell, I love arena talk.

[Thunder]

I don't have really any in person experience at other arenas in the NSIC. I'm obviously biased, but I think NSU clearly has the best arena and environment in the conference. The new center hung was much needed and looks great. When it is packed for a big game it is a great environment.

I also love Wachs South in Sioux Falls. The Pentagon is a great place to watch a game and also comes across cool on TV. The only problem I have is the 87 lines on the court. They host a ton of events in different sports at different levels, but it looks crazy on the floor. The good people at Daktronics need to partner with a floor company so they can put LED lights in the court based on what event they are hosting. Doubt it would ever happen, but would be cool.

[MrMustang]

Wonder why the Mavericks get so little basketball support? It's the 2nd largest university in the state with excellent support for football and hockey. It's not like Margs puts a bad product on the floor.

Always a great question. My take is as follows.

1, hockey is the main thing in winter
2. Mankato is big enough that there are many options for people to do things. As compared to Marshall or Wayne, etc where college sports are something to do
3. Many Gopher fans
4. Not "cool". I have a couple real good freinds. Both Mankato alumns. Not even on their radars. Big sports fans but they watch Minnesota

[Stanger86]

I've been to all arenas except Mary, Minot, Upper Iowa and Sioux Falls. Most (all except Southwest?) visits were a decade ago so before any new upgrades. But seen everywhere on video as well.

Mankato - In terms of the physical structure, there are none better.
Northern - I didn't get the same feeling others do inside Wachs, but I can understand why they feel the way they do about it. That's why I keep them this high.
Augustana - I actually am one of the few who seemed to like Elmen. Wish they were still there. But I get it.
---
Southwest - Nothing special, but nothing lacking.
St. Cloud - I actually like the old charm of the facility. Do they still price gouge like they did in the NCC days?
Duluth - Upgrades are very nice.
Wayne - Classic auditorium style makes it a unique gem.
Moorhead - Video upgrades bumped it up some.
Winona - The redesign alone put them here. I went to a game before their national prominence, and the facility and environment were on par with Crookston at that time.
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Minot - Too big for its own good, but they've made good upgrades recently.
Concordia - It's nothing special. Video upgrades this year.
---
Crookston - Upgrades made a significant difference.
Upper Iowa - Just a box, but don't need much more in Fayette.
Mary - Just a box.
Sioux Falls - Just a box.
Bemidji - Just a box.

[SW_Mustang]

Always a great question. My take is as follows.

1, hockey is the main thing in winter
2. Mankato is big enough that there are many options for people to do things. As compared to Marshall or Wayne, etc where college sports are something to do
3. Many Gopher fans
4. Not "cool". I have a couple real good freinds. Both Mankato alumns. Not even on their radars. Big sports fans but they watch Minnesota

All great points. Have the same experience with #4. Oddly enough, they tend to be big Adam Thielen fans - but couldn't name one starting QB for the program. I don't want to go down the gatekeeping route, though.

I think most people grow up as fans of the big schools, and when they can't get into them - they go to the state schools just to check the degree box on the resume. They often have no ties to the college and/or have no interest in participating in the campus community. Most of the alumni of the state schools I know don't really care or talk about them, but that's not true with alumni of flagships that I know. Some stay heavily involved.

Just a different way of looking at things.

[Purple Mav Man]

All great points. Have the same experience with #4. Oddly enough, they tend to be big Adam Thielen fans - but couldn't name one starting QB for the program. I don't want to go down the gatekeeping route, though.

I think most people grow up as fans of the big schools, and when they can't get into them - they go to the state schools just to check the degree box on the resume. They often have no ties to the college and/or have no interest in participating in the campus community. Most of the alumni of the state schools I know don't really care or talk about them, but that's not true with alumni of flagships that I know. Some stay heavily involved.

Just a different way of looking at things.

Agree. So many students from the suburbs who grew up idio... gopher fans. They come to MSU and remain gopher fans. Many have no interest in going to basketball games on Friday/Saturday night when you cannot drink there like you can at the hockey games. And the hockey games are downtown, where allllll the fun is at night.

[wscsuperfan]

Wayne is about ready to spend some serious money on renovations to Rice Auditorium from what I gather. I'd rather see a new facility, but take what you can get I suppose.