University Hall (University of Virginia)
University Hall was an 8,457-seat multi-purpose arena on the University of Virginia Grounds in Charlottesville, Virginia.[1] The arena opened in 1965 as a replacement for Memorial Gym; it was demolished on May 25, 2019, with Ralph Sampson leading the demolition. Like many arenas built at the time, the arena was circular, with a ribbed concrete roof and blue and orange seats (the orange seats arranged in a "V" near the top of each section) that surrounded the arena. Unlike many other facilities, however, the floor was never lowered for additional seating around the court, which left large areas behind press row, the team benches, and the announcer's table empty during games.
U-Hall Ralph's House | |
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Location | Massie Rd Charlottesville, VA 22904 |
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Owner | University of Virginia |
Operator | University of Virginia |
Capacity | Official: 8,457; Record: 11,174 |
Construction | |
Opened | November 3, 1965 |
Closed | 2006 |
Demolished | May 25, 2019 |
Tenants | |
Virginia Cavaliers |
University Hall was replaced by the John Paul Jones Arena as the home to the men's and women's basketball teams in 2006.
UVa's athletic department held "final game" ceremonies for University Hall in connection with the men's basketball game against the Maryland Terrapins on March 5, 2006, which Maryland won 71–70. UVA legend Ralph Sampson sank ceremonial "last baskets" at U-Hall, dunking twice during postgame festivities.
However, the women's basketball team made the Women's National Invitational Tournament and played and won two WNIT games in University Hall.
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Records
University Hall Records | |||||||||
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Scoring | |||||||||
Virginia | Opponents | ||||||||
Player | Opponent | Date | Points | Player | Opponent | Date | Points | ||
1. | Barry Parkhill | vs. Baldwin-Wallace | December 11, 1971 | 51 | 1. | Kevin Braswell | Georgetown | March 15, 2000 | 40 † |
2. | Donald Hand | vs. N.C. State | February 14, 1999 | 41 | 2. | Tate Armstrong | Duke | February 11, 1976 | 38 |
3. | Ralph Sampson | vs. Ohio State | January 25, 1981 | 40 | – | Calvin Natt | N.E. Louisiana | March 7, 1979 | 38 † |
4. | Richard Morgan | vs. North Carolina | January 15, 1989 | 39 | 4. | Sam Perkins | North Carolina | January 15, 1983 | 36 |
5. | Cory Alexander | vs. George Mason | January 28, 1995 | 36 | 5. | Mike Pegues | Delaware | December 27, 1998 | 35 |
Rebounding | |||||||||
Virginia | Opponents | ||||||||
Player | Opponent | Date | Rebounds | Player | Opponent | Date | Rebounds | ||
1. | Norm Carmichael | vs. Richmond | January 3, 1968 | 22 | 1. | Bill Jews | Johns Hopkins | January 26, 1972 | 23 |
– | John Gidding | vs. George Washington | December 7, 1968 | 22 | – | Tim Duncan | Wake Forest | February 22, 1997 | 23 |
3. | Bill Gerry | vs. Maryland | February 11, 1970 | 20 | 3. | Mike Lewis | Duke | December 18, 1965 | 20 |
– | Ralph Sampson | vs. Pennsylvania | January 16, 1980 | 20 | – | Antawn Jamison | North Carolina | January 17, 1996 | 20 |
– | Ralph Sampson | vs. Wake Forest | February 24, 1982 | 20 | 5. | Christian Laettner | Duke | February 8, 1990 | 19 |
– | Travis Watson | vs. Wofford | January 2, 2003 | 20 | |||||
†NIT game |
References
- The arena sat on the boundary between the City of Charlottesville and Albemarle County, which encloses but does not include the city. For more details, see UVa's "Building Category Map", which clearly shows the city-county boundary and University Hall on the boundary, downloadable here.
External links
- "JPJ rocks: But what about ol UHall?" article in The Hook weekly