Taco Bell Arena
| Taco Bell Arena | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Former names | BSU Pavilion (May 1982-June 2004) |
| Location |
1910 University Drive Boise, ID 83725 |
| Broke ground | February 1981 |
| Opened | May 16, 1980 |
| Owner | Boise State University |
| Operator | Boise State University |
| Construction cost |
$17.5 million ($42.3 million in 2014 dollars[ 1]) |
| Architect | CSHQA |
| Capacity |
12,480 (basketball) 12,644 (tennis) 8,272-13,390 (end-stage concerts) 13,090 (center-stage concerts) 6,795 (half-house concerts) 3,158-4,292 (concerts) |
| Tenants | |
| Boise State Broncos | |
The Taco Bell Arena (formerly BSU Pavilion) is a multi-purpose indoor arena, on the campus of Boise State University, in Boise, Idaho. The arena is located on the east end of campus, between West Campus Lane and Cesar Chavez Circle, immediately northwest of Bronco Stadium.
It is home to the Broncos basketball, wrestling, and gymnastics teams. It is the home of the Boise State Broncos of the MW and its current seating capacity is 12,480, for basketball.
The venue is also used for concerts (capacity 13,390) and many community events, including trade shows (17,000 square feet of arena floor space plus 10,000 square feet (930 m2) at auxiliary gym). It is the site of the 2013 second-round tie of the tennis Davis Cup between the United States and Serbia.
History
Ground was broken for the arena in February 1980, directly north of the Bronco Gymnasium (capacity 3,000). Construction displaced the tennis courts and the right field area of the baseball field, currently the site of the auxiliary gym on the west side of the arena.
(photo - 1971) (photo - late 1970s) Eight tennis courts were rebuilt on the former baseball infield, (photo - mid 1980s) west of the arena. The baseball field was not rebuilt as BSU dropped baseball as a varsity sport following the 1980 season. During their final season, the Broncos played their home games at Wigle Field at Borah High School, four miles (6 km) west of campus.
The arena opened in May 1982, as the BSU Pavilion, its first three events were the graduation ceremonies for the city's public high schools. Later that year, the arena hosted a Billy Graham Crusade.
The BSU Pavilion was renamed in June 2004, after Taco Bell signed a 15-year naming rights agreement with the university for $4 million. [1]
Basketball tournaments
The venue hosted four Big Sky Conference men's basketball tournaments: 1985, 1989, 1990, and 1994. BSU moved to the Big West Conference after the 1995-96 basketball season, and then moved on to the WAC following the 2000-01 season.
Taco Bell Arena has been a familiar site for early-round NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament games, hosting first and second round competition eight times (1983, 1989, 1992, 1995, 1998, 2001, 2005 and 2009). The tournament games played at the arena have resulted in some of the most memorable moments in NCAA history. In 1995, UCLA's Tyus Edney dashed the length of the 94-foot (29 m) court in just over 4 seconds to make a layup that gave the Bruins a 75-74 win over Missouri, which sustained UCLA's run to a national title.[2] In 2001, it was the site of the closest first-round day at a single host location ever, with the four games played on March 15 decided by a combined total of 7 points. One of those games included #15 seed Hampton's upset of #2 seed Iowa State -- making Hampton only the fourth #15 seed to beat a #2 seed in tournament history.
The NCAA Basketball Tournament returned to Taco Bell Arena in 2009, with four first round games on Friday & two second round games on Sunday (March 20 & 22). Teams playing included Missouri, Xavier, Florida State, Wisconsin, and Marquette.
Concert Events
Many different genres of music have been played at this arena. Many rock bands have played here over the years it has been open. Some of the newer musicians include Phish, Kelly Clarkson, Katy Perry, Beyoncé, and Michael Bublé.
References
- ↑ "ESPN.com - Taco Bell pays $4 million for naming rights". sports.espn.go.com. Retrieved 2009-03-22.
- ↑ Friend, Tom - N.C.A.A. TOURNAMENT: WEST; U.C.L.A. Dash Knocks Wind Out of Missouri. New York Times, March 20, 1995. Quote: U.C.L.A.'s Tyus Edney ran a 94-foot (29 m) dash in 4.7 seconds today. That he also managed to toss in a swooping layup left Missouri with its hands over its face. The No. 1-seeded Bruins trailed the No. 8-seeded Tigers by 1 point with 4.8 seconds remaining when Edney, a turbo point guard, started his cross-country journey. He took the inbounds pass under his own basket, was neck-and-neck with defender Jason Sutherland at midcourt, freed himself with a behind-the-back dribble, made a hairpin turn to the lane and banked in a shot over 6-foot-9-inch (2.06 m) Derek Grimm at the buzzer.
External links
- Taco Bell Arena.com - official site
- Bronco Sports.com - Taco Bell Arena
- Boise State Library - digital archives - BSU Pavilion (Taco Bell Arena)
- Aerial photo (1998) & topographic map - BSU campus from USGS The National Map
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Coordinates: 43°36′12.84″N 116°11′56.01″W / 43.6035667°N 116.1988917°W