To help increase home
court advantage, fan
seating is situated
closer to the action
BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
BASKETBALL PAVILION,
TEXAS, USA
In November 2018, Baylor University in
Texas, USA, announced an athletics
masterplan outlining its vision to invest
US$1.1bn into dramatically overhauling
the school’s sporting facilities. As part of
the Give Light Campaign, Baylor identified
its aging basketball facility, the Ferrell
Center, as a priority in the project. Being
the oldest intercollegiate athletics facility
on the University’s campus, it has been home
to the Bears and Lady Bears basketball teams
for 31 years, but not for much longer.
Using a portion of a US$100m anonymous
donation received in May 2019, the university
revealed it is close to advancing with the
build of a new basketball arena and unveiled
renderings of the modern venue.
Designed by US-based engineering
company AECOM, the Baylor Basketball
Pavilion is located on the south bank of the
Brazos River, and renderings show features
including a dual-pitched transparent roof,
large glazed entrance and airy lobby.
The biggest design feature is the seating
bowl, where capacity for 7,500 fans,
compared to the Ferrell Center’s 10,284, is
laid out in an steeply pitched arrangement to
put fans much closer to the court than before.
Baylor’s aim is to emulate other Power
Five schools that have renovated or
constructed smaller venues to create a
more intimate atmosphere that enhances
home-court advantage, and focuses on fan
experience. Based on analytics that ranks
Division 1 basketball programs on homecourt
advantage, Baylor is placed second
to last against Big 12 Conference teams. To
remain competitive, the school has taken
the decision to follow the national trend of
reducing seating capacity to create a more
intense environment. Since 2015, nine
major programs have built new arenas or
reconfigured existing arenas. Eight of those
nine reduced capacity by at least 1,000 seats.
A timeline has not yet been set for a
completion date as further funds are still
required to reach the estimated target of
US$105m to formally begin construction
on the project.
When the basketball teams eventually
move into the new venue the university has
reveled that the Ferrell Center will undergo
an extensive US$20m renovation to become
the new home for Baylor’s volleyball,
acrobatics, and tumbling programs. n
www.aecom.com
Renderings present
a large glazed
entrance and lobby
www.stadia-magazine.com June 2019 07
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