NCAA regionals -- identical courts?

[SteveR]

It looks as if the NCAA is breaking out an identical court color scheme for all four regionals of the tournament -- black OB and the foul-shooting half-circle a Carolina-esque blue.

One end line has the city name, the other has the venue name. The host institution/conference gets their logo on either side of the mid-court line, along with the obligatory red/white/blue ribbon and the blue NCAA logo at midcourt.

[saturn93]

It looks as if the NCAA is breaking out an identical court color scheme for all four regionals of the tournament -- black OB and the foul-shooting half-circle a Carolina-esque blue.

One end line has the city name, the other has the venue name. The host institution/conference gets their logo on either side of the mid-court line, along with the obligatory red/white/blue ribbon and the blue NCAA logo at midcourt.

I have the SIU/Kansas on TV and Texas A&M/Memphis on the computer and...I REALLY HATE IT!!! It's OK for the Final Four, but the regionals??? I'm worried that in a couple of years, we could end up seeing it in the 1st/2nd rounds. Just get the normal court, put the decals on there and call it a day. Really going to be annoying.

[SteveR]

I can see the one advantage being that it eliminates the tackiness that comes with having to cover up NBA logos, depending on their number and/or size.

[totc]

I can see the one advantage being that it eliminates the tackiness that comes with having to cover up NBA logos, depending on their number and/or size.

Yeah, when they are at MSG, the NCAA logo used to be too small to cover up the Knicks logo.

Now, I've been on an NBA court which has been converted (in my case, NBA to WNBA) using decals. Do you think these floors are brand spanking new or is this decal artistry?

And are these decals the same that often wrap NASCAR race car bodies?

[JQK]

You know what, this makes it more cost effective for the NCAA. Instead of having to make up decals every year for the different locations, just make 4 floors, and change the name and locations on the baselines.

For design, yea, it sucks, but it saves cash for the NCAA, and also provides uniformity to the Tournament. Which, in my eyes, sucks. I always loved the different court looks during the dance...

[MJWalker45]

I'd be fine with these if they came up with a special logo instead of just the NCAA logo at midcourt

[BRice16]

I believe they started doing this last year.

These are the same physical courts as last year. They have the NCAA logo at center and inside the arcs painted on. The city and arena names, as well as the host school logs are decals.

The decals are a different style than NASCAR decals, these have a special adhesive that does not scar the floor when taken up. They are also a rougher material so they do not become slippery when wet and have the same basic consistencey as the wood floor itself.

[Old School Fool]

They'd use a pre-made court, but the thing here is that I don't think arenas like HP Pavilion have a court of their own because NOBODY plays there.

[MJWalker45]

HP Pavillion hosted the Pac-10 women's tourney this year so they do have a court. The Alamodome has a court featuring the dome, ala Charlotte Hornets old court with the bug and the swirl behind him. The also have used UTSA's home court as well which is orange keys and blue outline.

[Old School Fool]

I wanna see the said Alamodome court.

[totc]

They'd use a pre-made court, but the thing here is that I don't think arenas like HP Pavilion have a court of their own because NOBODY plays there.

It would make sense that the NCAA would invest in permanent courts. After all, the next several Final Fours are being held in big-ass domed facilities such as the St. Pete Times Forum, Ford Field, and The Edifice Formerly Known As TWA Dome.

[TBGKon]

They'd use a pre-made court, but the thing here is that I don't think arenas like HP Pavilion have a court of their own because NOBODY plays there.

It would make sense that the NCAA would invest in permanent courts. After all, the next several Final Fours are being held in big-ass domed facilities such as the St. Pete Times Forum, Ford Field, and The Edifice Formerly Known As TWA Dome.

1. The St. Pete Times Forum is an arena in downtown Tampa, home to the Tampa Bay Lightning, seating just over 21,000 fans or so, and is not a huge domed stadium.

2. We host the Women's Final Four next season, not the Men's

[winghaz]

Wait. The St. Pete Times Forum isn't even in St. Pete?

[NJTank]

They'd use a pre-made court, but the thing here is that I don't think arenas like HP Pavilion have a court of their own because NOBODY plays there.

It would make sense that the NCAA would invest in permanent courts. After all, the next several Final Fours are being held in big-ass domed facilities such as the St. Pete Times Forum, Ford Field, and The Edifice Formerly Known As TWA Dome.

1. The St. Pete Times Forum is an arena in downtown Tampa, home to the Tampa Bay Lightning, seating just over 21,000 fans or so, and is not a huge domed stadium.

2. We host the Women's Final Four next season, not the Men's

If Tampa hosts another Final Four it will be at Tropicana Field again

[Drew22]

Wait. The St. Pete Times Forum isn't even in St. Pete?

I'm pretty sure its named after the newspaper, not the city.

[yh]

I'm guessing that the NCAA-issued floors are being used in an attempt to ensure the highest degree of uniformity among the venues. I imagine that they'll eventually go with uniform floors for every venue for that very purpose. It takes away any complaints a school might have regarding what region they are assigned to, at least as far as the quality of the game surface is concerned. There's always going to be grumbling about travel distances, hostile crowds, etc.

[VitaminD]

It would make sense that the NCAA would invest in permanent courts. After all, the next several Final Fours are being held in big-ass domed facilities such as the St. Pete Times Forum, Ford Field, and The Edifice Formerly Known As TWA Dome.

But the courts from the Final Fours are given to the champions to do with it whatever they please. Some schools (Michigan State) took their Final Four court, repainted it and now use it at the Breslin Center. Other schools (UNC) cut it up into pieces, and sell them as momentos (I'm looking at my slice of the '05 court as we speak).

So while permanent courts may work - especially in places like the Alamodome or San Jose, where there isn't a resident college/pro team around - the Final Four court is made new every year.

[fufkin]

It would make sense that the NCAA would invest in permanent courts. After all, the next several Final Fours are being held in big-ass domed facilities such as the St. Pete Times Forum, Ford Field, and The Edifice Formerly Known As TWA Dome.

But the courts from the Final Fours are given to the champions to do with it whatever they please. Some schools (Michigan State) took their Final Four court, repainted it and now use it at the Breslin Center. Other schools (UNC) cut it up into pieces, and sell them as momentos (I'm looking at my slice of the '05 court as we speak).

So while permanent courts may work - especially in places like the Alamodome or San Jose, where there isn't a resident college/pro team around - the Final Four court is made new every year.

As the old saying goes, nothing in this world is free. The winning team has the option to BUY the Final Four floor.

Tropicana Field got a big thumbs down when it hosted the Final Four. The baseball seating alignment is much more difficult to adjust for basketball than a football stadium. The Final Four is also going to be at Reliant Field in Houston and will probably be awarded to University of Phoenix Stadium in the next cycle.

[TBGKon]

They'd use a pre-made court, but the thing here is that I don't think arenas like HP Pavilion have a court of their own because NOBODY plays there.

It would make sense that the NCAA would invest in permanent courts. After all, the next several Final Fours are being held in big-ass domed facilities such as the St. Pete Times Forum, Ford Field, and The Edifice Formerly Known As TWA Dome.

1. The St. Pete Times Forum is an arena in downtown Tampa, home to the Tampa Bay Lightning, seating just over 21,000 fans or so, and is not a huge domed stadium.

2. We host the Women's Final Four next season, not the Men's

If Tampa hosts another Final Four it will be at Tropicana Field again

You are correct, and that will be a big IF the Tampa Bay area gets the Final Four...it's a big stretch.

[fufkin]

I went to the regional finals at Tropicana Field the year prior to the Final Four. It was, hands down, the worst place I had been to see a basketball game. It didn't help that the building was a complete mess in preparation for the Devil Rays' first season.