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Comcast Center (arena)
Encyclopedia
Comcast Center is the arena for the University of Maryland
Terrapins men’s and women's basketball teams. The Comcast Center, dubbed "The House Gary Built", was ranked the 7th toughest venue to play in by EA Sports
. The on-campus facility is named for the Comcast Corporation
, which purchased a 20-year, $25 million corporate naming agreement. Comcast Center replaced Cole Field House
as home court, which had served as the home of Maryland basketball since 1955. Ground was broken in May 2000 and construction was completed in October 2002 at a cost of $125 million. Comcast Center, which has a capacity of 17,950, opened for Midnight Madness on October 11, 2002 and the first official men’s game was a 64-49 victory over Miami University
(Ohio) on November 24, 2002.
The student section contains 4000 seats arranged in the first ten rows on all sides of the arena, plus the most notable feature of the arena, the steeply pitched seating area at the west end of the arena behind the visiting team’s second half basket, informally known as "the Wall." Originally designed to reduce excavation costs due to a hill, the area features 2600 student seats meant to intimidate opposing players who shoot free throws in the second half.
Although it is Maryland's largest arena, it is actually the second-largest arena in the Washington, D.C.
area, behind the Verizon Center
. It is also used for concerts, graduation
ceremonies including those for the University of Maryland, and other special events. Concert seating capacity is nearly 19,000.
retirement press conference on May 6, 2011, University of Maryland president Wallace Loh
announced that the Comcast Center court would be named after the former coach, pending approval by the Board of Regents
.
Maryland students are primarily positioned along courtside and "The Wall," a kop
style seating section behind the opponent's 2nd half basket filled with only students. Normally there are 4,000 students in attendance, so Maryland is considered one of the most intimidating student sections in the ACC alongside North Carolina and Duke. Because of the athletic department's online lottery system which distributes tickets to students, most games are student sell-outs. Student attendance is typically highest for conference games (especially Duke, for which the demand for tickets is exceedingly high), non-conference games against top teams (such as the annual ACC–Big Ten Challenge) and the annual "Maryland Madness" event (formerly, though still colloquially, known as "Midnight Madness") held in October to signify the team's ability to begin practicing. Attendance by students is generally lowest for early season exhibition and non-conference games, as well as games played while the students are on Thanksgiving and winter break.
The online ticket system was implemented for both football and men's basketball beginning with the 2002–2003 season, as an alternative to the traditional method which required students to camp out for tickets to big games. Though it is somewhat more fair in that it gives all students an opportunity to attend games without forcing them to give up time waiting in lines, it has come under fire by students for several reasons. Because there are more than twice as many tickets available for football games, these problems are generally not significantly associated with football.
Tickets are given via a weighted lottery; students accumulate loyalty points for claiming and attending games and Maryland Madness. Each point gives the student one more entry in the lottery for subsequent games. For example, a student with 10 loyalty points will have his or her name entered 11 times for the game he or she wishes to attend (once by default, and once more for each point); by contrast, a student with zero loyalty points will have his or her name entered only once. Though the system does give a decided advantage to students with more points, as it was designed to do, it is still possible (and somewhat common) for students with no or few points to receive tickets to late season games. This aspect is most commonly debated leading up to the yearly home game against Duke, when an abnormally high amount of students request tickets, and it is not uncommon for students who have attended every home game to lose the lottery while students who have attended no games win a ticket.
In Maryland's debut game against a ranked opponent at the new arena, they fell to the #17 University of Florida
Gators 69–64. Despite a valiant effort, Maryland's inability to contain Anthony Roberson from behind the arc and shooting just 36% from the free throw line led to a less than auspicious christening of the facility against a ranked opponent.
January 18, 2003
The Terrapins defeated then undefeated #1 Duke
, 87–72.
February 17, 2003
Due to a major snowstorm in the area, the game against #10 Wake Forest
was postponed from the previous night. Since most ticket holders were unable to travel to College Park, the athletic department instituted an open attendance policy. Anyone with a valid student ID was given free admission and the general public was charged $20. The near-capacity crowd was composed mostly of students enjoying their snowday, and the Terrapins defeated the Demon Deacons 90–67.
February 22, 2004
The third largest crowd to watch an Atlantic Coast Conference
women’s regular season basketball game and the second largest crowd to watch a women’s game at the Comcast Center (13,346), went home disappointed as No. 4-ranked Duke defeated the Terrapins 72–59.
February 12, 2005
The Terrapins won their third consecutive game against Duke and became first team to sweep the regular season series from the Blue Devils since Wake Forest did it during 1995–96 season. The 99–92 overtime thriller coincided with a visit from ESPN
's College GameDay
.
February 13, 2005
The No. 18-ranked women's team lost to No. 4-ranked Duke 60–49 in front of the largest crowd to watch an Atlantic Coast Conference women's regular season basketball game (17,243).
March 20–22, 2005
Comcast Center hosted first- and second-round games for the NCAA women's basketball tournament
. The No. 7-seeded Terps used their home court advantage to defeat 10-seed Wisconsin–Green Bay but lost to No. 2-seeded Ohio State
. In the other games, Liberty
became only the second 13-seed to advance to the Sweet 16 by upsetting fourth-seeded Penn State
and fifth-seeded DePaul
.
February 7, 2006
Maryland came from behind to beat Virginia
, 76–65, to give Gary Williams
349 wins at Maryland, surpassing the record previously set by Charles "Lefty" Driesell.
January 28, 2007
The largest crowd in ACC women's history, 17,950, watched 2nd ranked North Carolina defeat 3rd ranked Maryland 84–71, surpassing the record set the previous season.
February 17, 2007
Undefeated and No. 1 Duke women's team beat #6 Maryland on Senior Day 69–57 on only the second ever sold out game for women's basketball at the Comcast center.
February 25, 2007
The men's team shrugged off a 12 point deficit to UNC to defeat the #5 ranked Tar Heels 89–87. The win broke Carolina's 5 game winning streak over the Terps, and helped boost Maryland's bid for the NCAA Tournament
.
January 14, 2008
The #4 Maryland women's team beat #10 Duke 85–70 at home for the first time in ten years. The crowd of 15,531 is the fifth largest in ACC women's basketball history.
February 21, 2009
Down 9 points with 1:38 left in the game, the men's team came back to defeat #3 ranked North Carolina 88-85 in front of 17,950 fans. With a team high 35 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists, Greivis Vasquez
records MD's first triple-double since 1987.
March 3, 2010
On senior night for Vasquez, Eric Hayes and Landon Milbourne, the Terps broke a six-game losing streak against No. 4 Duke
with a 79-72 victory. The Terps led by 14 in the first half, but trailed 63-60 late in the second half before taking the lead for good on a Jordan Williams putback. Thousands of fans flooded the court in seconds after the closing horn.
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland, College Park is a top-ranked public research university located in the city of College Park in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C...
Terrapins men’s and women's basketball teams. The Comcast Center, dubbed "The House Gary Built", was ranked the 7th toughest venue to play in by EA Sports
EA Sports
EA Sports is a brand of Electronic Arts that creates and develops sports video games. Formerly a marketing gimmick of Electronic Arts, in which they tried to mimic real-life sports networks by calling themselves "EA Sports Network" with pictures or endorsements of real commentators such as John...
. The on-campus facility is named for the Comcast Corporation
Comcast
Comcast Corporation is the largest cable operator, home Internet service provider, and fourth largest home telephone service provider in the United States, providing cable television, broadband Internet, and telephone service to both residential and commercial customers in 39 states and the...
, which purchased a 20-year, $25 million corporate naming agreement. Comcast Center replaced Cole Field House
Cole Field House
The William P. Cole, Jr. Student Activities Building, more commonly known as Cole Field House, was the home of the University of Maryland basketball teams from 1955 until it was replaced by Comcast Center in 2002...
as home court, which had served as the home of Maryland basketball since 1955. Ground was broken in May 2000 and construction was completed in October 2002 at a cost of $125 million. Comcast Center, which has a capacity of 17,950, opened for Midnight Madness on October 11, 2002 and the first official men’s game was a 64-49 victory over Miami University
Miami University
Miami University is a coeducational public research university located in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1809, it is the 10th oldest public university in the United States and the second oldest university in Ohio, founded four years after Ohio University. In its 2012 edition, U.S...
(Ohio) on November 24, 2002.
Facilities
In addition to the main basketball court, Comcast Center also features a 1500-seat gymnasium for volleyball, gymnastics and wrestling; an academic support center; a 400-seat banquet hall; and the offices of the athletics department. Inside the lobby on the east side of the facility is the Terrapin Walk of Fame and History, featuring many images of the past of Maryland athletics as well as the 2002 men’s national championship trophy and the 2006 women’s national championship trophy.The student section contains 4000 seats arranged in the first ten rows on all sides of the arena, plus the most notable feature of the arena, the steeply pitched seating area at the west end of the arena behind the visiting team’s second half basket, informally known as "the Wall." Originally designed to reduce excavation costs due to a hill, the area features 2600 student seats meant to intimidate opposing players who shoot free throws in the second half.
Although it is Maryland's largest arena, it is actually the second-largest arena in the Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
area, behind the Verizon Center
Verizon Center
Verizon Center is a sports and entertainment arena in Washington, D.C., USA, named after telecommunications sponsor Verizon Communications, and has been nicknamed the "Phone Booth" because of its association with telecommunications companies...
. It is also used for concerts, graduation
Graduation
Graduation is the action of receiving or conferring an academic degree or the ceremony that is sometimes associated, where students become Graduates. Before the graduation, candidates are referred to as Graduands. The date of graduation is often called degree day. The graduation itself is also...
ceremonies including those for the University of Maryland, and other special events. Concert seating capacity is nearly 19,000.
Court
At Gary Williams'Gary Williams
Gary B. Williams is an American university administrator and former college basketball coach. He served as the head coach at the University of Maryland, Ohio State University, Boston College, and American University. In 2002, he led Maryland to the NCAA Tournament Championship...
retirement press conference on May 6, 2011, University of Maryland president Wallace Loh
Wallace Loh
Wallace D. Loh, Ph.D. is the current president of the University of Maryland, College Park, having assumed his role on November 1, 2010....
announced that the Comcast Center court would be named after the former coach, pending approval by the Board of Regents
Board of Regents
In the United States, a board often governs public institutions of higher education, which include both state universities and community colleges. In each US state, such boards may govern either the state university system, individual colleges and universities, or both. In general they operate as...
.
Student Section
Kop
Spion Kop is a colloquial name or term for a number of terraces and stands at sports stadiums, particularly in the United Kingdom...
style seating section behind the opponent's 2nd half basket filled with only students. Normally there are 4,000 students in attendance, so Maryland is considered one of the most intimidating student sections in the ACC alongside North Carolina and Duke. Because of the athletic department's online lottery system which distributes tickets to students, most games are student sell-outs. Student attendance is typically highest for conference games (especially Duke, for which the demand for tickets is exceedingly high), non-conference games against top teams (such as the annual ACC–Big Ten Challenge) and the annual "Maryland Madness" event (formerly, though still colloquially, known as "Midnight Madness") held in October to signify the team's ability to begin practicing. Attendance by students is generally lowest for early season exhibition and non-conference games, as well as games played while the students are on Thanksgiving and winter break.
The online ticket system was implemented for both football and men's basketball beginning with the 2002–2003 season, as an alternative to the traditional method which required students to camp out for tickets to big games. Though it is somewhat more fair in that it gives all students an opportunity to attend games without forcing them to give up time waiting in lines, it has come under fire by students for several reasons. Because there are more than twice as many tickets available for football games, these problems are generally not significantly associated with football.
Loyalty Points
"Scan and Leave"
As a result of the advantages students gain by attending games early in the season against typically underwhelming non-conference opponents, a phenomenon developed known among students as "scanning and leaving." In order to receive a loyalty point, a student must do three things: request a ticket online, claim it (if selected in the lottery) and, finally, present their ticket and student ID at the entrance to Comcast Center to be scanned and authenticated. Once the student's ticket is scanned and he or she is allowed into the game, the ticketing system awards the student a loyalty point. The student is then free to leave the game whenever he or she pleases. As a result, many "diehard" fans complain that a significant number of students "scan and leave" games, even well-attended conference games, as a means of building up loyalty points for games later in the season with a greater degree of perceived significance and/or a higher chance of demand exceeding supply.Notable games at Comcast Center
December 14, 2002In Maryland's debut game against a ranked opponent at the new arena, they fell to the #17 University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
Gators 69–64. Despite a valiant effort, Maryland's inability to contain Anthony Roberson from behind the arc and shooting just 36% from the free throw line led to a less than auspicious christening of the facility against a ranked opponent.
January 18, 2003
The Terrapins defeated then undefeated #1 Duke
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
, 87–72.
February 17, 2003
Due to a major snowstorm in the area, the game against #10 Wake Forest
Wake Forest University
Wake Forest University is a private, coeducational university in the U.S. state of North Carolina, founded in 1834. The university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina, the state capital. The Reynolda Campus, the university's main campus, is...
was postponed from the previous night. Since most ticket holders were unable to travel to College Park, the athletic department instituted an open attendance policy. Anyone with a valid student ID was given free admission and the general public was charged $20. The near-capacity crowd was composed mostly of students enjoying their snowday, and the Terrapins defeated the Demon Deacons 90–67.
February 22, 2004
The third largest crowd to watch an Atlantic Coast Conference
Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...
women’s regular season basketball game and the second largest crowd to watch a women’s game at the Comcast Center (13,346), went home disappointed as No. 4-ranked Duke defeated the Terrapins 72–59.
February 12, 2005
The Terrapins won their third consecutive game against Duke and became first team to sweep the regular season series from the Blue Devils since Wake Forest did it during 1995–96 season. The 99–92 overtime thriller coincided with a visit from ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
's College GameDay
College GameDay (basketball)
College GameDay is an ESPN program that covers college basketball and is a spin-off of the successful college football version. Since debuting on January 22, 2005, it airs on ESPN Saturdays in the college basketball season at 11am ET and 8pm ET at a different game site each week...
.
February 13, 2005
The No. 18-ranked women's team lost to No. 4-ranked Duke 60–49 in front of the largest crowd to watch an Atlantic Coast Conference women's regular season basketball game (17,243).
March 20–22, 2005
Comcast Center hosted first- and second-round games for the NCAA women's basketball tournament
NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Women's Division I Championship is an annual college basketball tournament for women. Held each April, the Women's Championship was inaugurated in the 1981–82 season...
. The No. 7-seeded Terps used their home court advantage to defeat 10-seed Wisconsin–Green Bay but lost to No. 2-seeded Ohio State
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
. In the other games, Liberty
Liberty University
Liberty University is a private Christian university located in Lynchburg, Virginia. Liberty's annual enrollment is around 72,000 students, 12,000 of whom are residential students and 60,000+ studying through Liberty University Online...
became only the second 13-seed to advance to the Sweet 16 by upsetting fourth-seeded Penn State
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University, commonly referred to as Penn State or PSU, is a public research university with campuses and facilities throughout the state of Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1855, the university has a threefold mission of teaching, research, and public service...
and fifth-seeded DePaul
DePaul University
DePaul University is a private institution of higher education and research in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by the Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th century French priest Saint Vincent de Paul...
.
February 7, 2006
Maryland came from behind to beat Virginia
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
, 76–65, to give Gary Williams
Gary Williams
Gary B. Williams is an American university administrator and former college basketball coach. He served as the head coach at the University of Maryland, Ohio State University, Boston College, and American University. In 2002, he led Maryland to the NCAA Tournament Championship...
349 wins at Maryland, surpassing the record previously set by Charles "Lefty" Driesell.
January 28, 2007
The largest crowd in ACC women's history, 17,950, watched 2nd ranked North Carolina defeat 3rd ranked Maryland 84–71, surpassing the record set the previous season.
February 17, 2007
Undefeated and No. 1 Duke women's team beat #6 Maryland on Senior Day 69–57 on only the second ever sold out game for women's basketball at the Comcast center.
February 25, 2007
The men's team shrugged off a 12 point deficit to UNC to defeat the #5 ranked Tar Heels 89–87. The win broke Carolina's 5 game winning streak over the Terps, and helped boost Maryland's bid for the NCAA Tournament
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
.
January 14, 2008
The #4 Maryland women's team beat #10 Duke 85–70 at home for the first time in ten years. The crowd of 15,531 is the fifth largest in ACC women's basketball history.
February 21, 2009
Down 9 points with 1:38 left in the game, the men's team came back to defeat #3 ranked North Carolina 88-85 in front of 17,950 fans. With a team high 35 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists, Greivis Vasquez
Greivis Vasquez
Greivis Vásquez is a Venezuelan basketball player with the Memphis Grizzlies, who selected him in the first round of the 2010 NBA Draft. He was chosen after a stellar U.S. college career with the University of Maryland men's basketball team...
records MD's first triple-double since 1987.
March 3, 2010
On senior night for Vasquez, Eric Hayes and Landon Milbourne, the Terps broke a six-game losing streak against No. 4 Duke
Duke
A duke or duchess is a member of the nobility, historically of highest rank below the monarch, and historically controlling a duchy...
with a 79-72 victory. The Terps led by 14 in the first half, but trailed 63-60 late in the second half before taking the lead for good on a Jordan Williams putback. Thousands of fans flooded the court in seconds after the closing horn.