The 25 best arenas in college basketball

MisterGopher

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10. Williams Arena (Minnesota)
Williams Arena (Minnesota)

Brad Rempel/USA TODAY Sports
"The Barn" opened in 1928, and thanks to several renovations and upgrades over the years, it still upholds the strong tradition of Golden Gophers basketball. Williams remains one of the more unique arenas in the nation, particularly for the player seats below the raised court, meaning it takes some effort to check into the game and run the famous Minneapolis floor.

 






Love the Barn, not the floor. A swing and a miss on that one.
 

I gotta go against the grain here. I like the new floor just because it brightens the place up a little bit. That was a dungeon with old floor. Gotta renovate her a little bit.
 

I gotta go against the grain here. I like the new floor just because it brightens the place up a little bit. That was a dungeon with old floor. Gotta renovate her a little bit.
It’s too light for TV because the cameras try to adjust for the extra light off the floor by darkening the image making it harder to see the players faces. The high def cameras are better at it then 20 years ago, but it still is annoying.

They could have lightened the floor some without going to a sun bleached look.
 

I gotta go against the grain here. I like the new floor just because it brightens the place up a little bit. That was a dungeon with old floor. Gotta renovate her a little bit.
I agree. New floor looks great to me.
 




Love the Barn.
I find it interesting that the Barn comes in as the #10 venue, yet there was an entire thread here at the GH talking about how the U should destroy it and build a new venue because kids don't want to play at the Barn.
Solution: spruce up the place with some new amenities and keep it. It's a legendary gem.
 

We gotta get this place rockin' again. Nothing like packed house games at The Barn/Bank. So much fun. Football was great this past year.
 

I am going to get roasted for this but I think it is time to replace Williams Arena. The sight lines are horrible, concourse and concessions are awful and the seats are uncomfortable. Why cant we build a new modern facility and keep the raised floor. That is the main reason why people even care about Williams Arena. So bring it to a new modern facility.
 



I am going to get roasted for this but I think it is time to replace Williams Arena. The sight lines are horrible, concourse and concessions are awful and the seats are uncomfortable. Why cant we build a new modern facility and keep the raised floor. That is the main reason why people even care about Williams Arena. So bring it to a new modern facility.
No one should roast you for expressing your opinion. I am old so i like it. My grandsons and their friends think it is a dump. We will not be doing anything anytime soon.
 

I am going to get roasted for this but I think it is time to replace Williams Arena. The sight lines are horrible, concourse and concessions are awful and the seats are uncomfortable. Why cant we build a new modern facility and keep the raised floor. That is the main reason why people even care about Williams Arena. So bring it to a new modern facility.

I don't get your site lines comment, other than the obstructed seats it's an intimate setting no matter where you are sitting, you can be second deck behind the basket and have great views of the court, last few row's of the first deck obscures the scoreboard but who cares, you are there to watch the game not the scoreboard.
 

I might be imagining this, but I thought if you sat in the upper rows of each end, you couldn't see the other end of the court because the scoreboard blocked your view. Is that right?
 

It is such a cool place when it is rocking but i do know younger people that think it is a dump. It could be updated like Hinkle or Allen but the reason they are full and rocking is because they win.
 

The new white floor is awful, and there is minimal leg-room for taller people.
 




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