Hawkins Arena

Hawkins Arena
Location	1730 Adams; Macon, GA 31207
Coordinates	32°49′47″N83°39′07″W / 32.82972°N 83.65194°W
Owner	Mercer University
Operator	Mercer University
Capacity	3,500
Surface	Hardwood
Construction
Broke ground	October 12, 2001
Opened	January 8, 2004
Construction cost	$40 million; ($62 million in 2022 dollars)
Architect	Cooper Carry Inc.
General contractor	Beck Group/New South
Tenants
	Mercer Bears men's basketball (2004–present); Mercer Bears women's basketball (2004–present)

Last updated November 11, 2023

The Hawkins Arena is the basketball arena on the campus of Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, United States. The arena is located in the University Center, a large multi-purpose facility centrally located on the university campus.

History

The University Center opened in 2004. The $40 million, 230,000-square-foot (21,000 m²) center, houses Mercer's athletics department, a 3,500-seat basketball arena, an indoor pool, work-out facilities, intramural basketball courts, offices, a food court, and numerous meeting facilities. Mercer's baseball and softball fields are located adjacent to the center along with the university's tennis complex and football-lacrosse complex Moye Complex.

The University Center replaced Porter Gym, which stood on the Mercer campus from 1937 to 2004; Porter Gym was located on the central quadrangle and was razed when the University Center opened. The center is also located on the central quadrangle on the site of the university's original fraternity row, which was razed after a new Greek Village opened. In 2007, a 101-room Hilton Garden Inn opened on university-owned land adjacent to the University Center. Parking lots are available for visitors-spectators arriving via the Mercer University Drive exit off Interstate 75.

The University Center arena was renamed Hawkins Arena in 2012 to honor J. B. Hawkins, former high school athletic director and basketball coach in Crawford County.^[4]^[5]

Athletics

Mercer is an NCAA Division I member competing in the Southern Conference; the university's basketball teams play in Hawkins Arena. The men's team won the first game played at the center, a 73–55 victory over Georgia State University, on January 27, 2004. The women's team won the first game it played in the center, a 43–40 victory over Troy State University, on January 30, 2004.

In 2010, for the first time in university history, Mercer hosted the men's and women's Atlantic Sun Conference basketball tournaments.^[6] The men's team advanced to the championship game losing 72–66 to East Tennessee State University.^[7] Mercer hosted the 2011-13 tournaments as well.^[8]

In 2013, the men's team was undefeated at Hawkins Arena and won the regular season Atlantic Sun Conference championship. The team advanced to the Hawkins Arena conference tournament championship game losing to Florida Gulf Coast University; FGCU advanced to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament.

Other uses

Aside from athletics events, Hawkins Arena hosts commencement, university press conferences, concerts, and other special events. The board of trustees meeting room, named for Mercer alumnus Griffin Bell, and the president's dining room are also in the University Center.

Related Research Articles

The Curb Event Center is a multipurpose arena on the campus of Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee.

The CURE Insurance Arena is a multipurpose arena in Trenton, New Jersey. It hosts events including shows, sporting events and concerts.

Mackey Arena is located in West Lafayette, Indiana. Part of the Purdue University campus, it is home to the university's basketball teams, and occasionally hosts home games for the volleyball and wrestling teams. The arena opened in 1967 as a replacement for Lambert Fieldhouse.

Richmond Coliseum is a defunct arena located in downtown Richmond, Virginia, with a capacity of 13,500 that was most often used for various large concerts. The arena opened in 1971 and the region is looking to replace the aging facility with a larger one. The arena was quietly shuttered in February 2019 while new proposed replacements are in development.

University of Dayton Arena is a 13,409-seat multi-purpose arena located in Dayton, Ohio. The arena opened in 1969. It is home to the University of Dayton Flyers basketball teams. From 2001 to 2010, the facility hosted the annual "play-in" game in the NCAA men's basketball tournament which featured the teams rated 64th and 65th in the tournament field. Beginning in 2011, when the tournament expanded to four opening-round games, the arena continued to host all "first four" games. Overall, the arena has hosted more men's NCAA Division I basketball tournament games than any other venue.

Thompson–Boling Arena at Food City Center is a multi-purpose arena on the campus of the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. The arena opened in 1987. It is home to the Tennessee Volunteers (men) and Lady Vols (women) basketball teams. Since 2008, it has been home to the Lady Vols volleyball team. It is named after B. Ray Thompson and former university president Edward J. Boling. The basketball court is named "The Summitt" after the late Lady Vols basketball coach Pat Summitt. It replaced the Stokely Athletic Center. The mammoth octagonal building lies just northwest of the Tennessee River, and just southwest of Neyland Stadium. As an echo of its neighbor and a tribute to the brick-and-mortar pattern atop Ayres Hall, the baselines of the court are painted in the familiar orange-and-white checkerboard pattern.

The Jon M. Huntsman Center is a 15,000-seat indoor arena in the western United States, on the campus of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. It is the home of the Utah Utes of the Pac-12 Conference, the primary venue for basketball and gymnastics.

Desert Financial Arena is a 14,198-seat multi-purpose arena located at 600 E Veterans Way in Tempe, Arizona, a suburb of Phoenix. It sits immediately east of Sun Devil Stadium on the northern edge of the Tempe campus of Arizona State University (ASU).

The Hulman Center is a 9,000-seat multi-purpose arena on the campus of Indiana State University in Terre Haute, Indiana, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">E. A. Diddle Arena</span> Sports venue in Bowling Green, Kentucky

E. A. Diddle Arena is a 7,326-seat multi-purpose arena in Bowling Green, Kentucky, United States. The arena, built in 1963, is home to the Western Kentucky University Hilltoppers men's basketball team and Lady Toppers basketball and volleyball teams. It is also known as Academic-Athletic Building #1. It also holds Military Science and Physical Education & Recreation classes and offices.

Fant–Ewing Coliseum is a 7,085-seat multi-purpose arena in Monroe, Louisiana, United States, on the campus of the University of Louisiana at Monroe. It was built in 1971 and is home to the Louisiana–Monroe Warhawks men's and women's basketball teams and women's volleyball team. The arena also hosts concerts and events.

Bartow Arena is an 8,508-seat multi-purpose arena in Birmingham, in the U.S. state of Alabama. It is home to the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Blazers men's and women's basketball teams as well as the women's volleyball team. The arena is named after Gene Bartow, the coach who built the school's men's basketball program from scratch over the last quarter of the 20th century. UAB initially played their games at the Birmingham–Jefferson Convention Complex Arena, now known as Legacy Arena, but moved its games to the on-campus facility beginning with the 1988–89 season.

The Broadview Center, formerly known as the SEFCU Arena, is a 4,538-seat multi-purpose arena in Guilderland, New York. It is home to the University at Albany men's and women's Great Danes basketball teams. It is most notable for hosting the 2006 America East Conference men's basketball tournament championship, in which the Great Danes defeated Vermont, to earn their first bid into the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship. The arena additionally hosted the 2009 America East men's basketball tournament, and is also a venue for the university's graduate commencement ceremonies. It can also can be formatted as a concert venue or to accommodate trade shows and conventions.

Binghamton University Events Center is the premier Division I Athletics and multipurpose facility at Binghamton University. The arena opened in 2004 and is adjacent to the Bearcat Sports Complex. It is home to the Binghamton Bearcats Division I Intercollegiate Athletic Program and can seat 5,142 patrons for home games, and over 8,000 for other large-scale events. It has hosted the 2005, 2006, and 2008 America East Conference men's basketball tournaments; the 2007 American East women's tournament as well as the first round and quarterfinal of the 2018 WBI tournament. The Events Center was host to the 2009 America East Conference Championship game when the Bearcats defeated UMBC to make March Madness. The facility has also hosted commencements and concerts such as Bob Dylan, Green Day, Incubus, Ludacris, Foo Fighters, Drake and Harry Connick Jr. The arena contains 53000 square feet of space.

UNF Arena is a multi-purpose arena located on the campus of the University of North Florida in Jacksonville, Florida. It is home to the North Florida Ospreys men's and women's basketball and women's volleyball teams. It is also used for other events, such as concerts and graduation ceremonies, and has served as the site of the Orlando Magic franchise's training camp. It opened in 1993 and has a capacity of up to 6,300.

Edmunds Center is a 5,000-seat multi-purpose arena at Stetson University in DeLand, Florida, that opened on December 5, 1974. It is home to the Stetson Hatters basketball team. The arena is named after J. Ollie Edmunds, fourth president of Stetson University (1948-1967).

The John W. Pope Jr. Convocation Center is a multi-purpose arena in Buies Creek, North Carolina. The arena, Gore Arena, is located on the campus of Campbell University and hosts the university's basketball, volleyball, and wrestling programs. It is named for Gilbert Craig Gore, the late son of a Campbell alum. The John W. Pope Jr. Convocation Center is a part of the expansion plan of Campbell's athletic facilities, which includes a new football stadium and renovations to existing Taylor Field of the baseball program. The John W. Pope Jr. Convocation Center replaced Carter Gymnasium, which was the second smallest gymnasium in Division I Basketball with just 947 seats, second only to Charleston Southern's Fieldhouse which holds 750. The John W. Pope Jr. Convocation Center also host events such as the universities commencement ceremonies and other university related events.

The Mercer Bears are the athletic teams of Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, United States. Mercer is the only private university in Georgia with an NCAA Division I athletic program and fields teams in eight men's and nine women's sports. The university competes in the Southern Conference for most sports. In 2013, the football team competed in the Pioneer Football League.

The Tony and Nancy Moye Football and Lacrosse Complex is a 10,200 seat football and lacrosse stadium on the campus of Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, United States. Construction began on November 12, 2011 and was completed in 2013; the AstroTurf 3D Extreme surface was completed in 2012, the football team conducted its first practice in the stadium on August 27, 2012. The university initially announced the complex would have 6,000 seats; the number was increased to 10,200 in 2012. The first football game at Moye Complex was on August 31, 2013; Mercer defeated Reinhardt University in front of an overflow crowd of 12,172 spectators.

The 2013–14 Mercer Bears men's basketball team represented Mercer University during the 2013–14 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bears, led by sixth year head coach Bob Hoffman, played their home games at Hawkins Arena on the university's Macon, Georgia campus and were members of the Atlantic Sun Conference. They finished the season 27–9, 14–4 in A-Sun play to win the regular season A-Sun championship, shared with Florida Gulf Coast. They defeated Florida Gulf Coast in the championship game of the A-Sun tournament to be A-Sun Tournament champions and earn the conferences automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. In the NCAA Tournament, they upset Duke in the second round before losing in the third round to Tennessee.

References

↑ "Arena Groundbreaking - Finally - Has Slonaker, Baldwin Smiling". Macon Telegraph. October 12, 2001. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
1 2 3 4 "Sports Business Journal".
↑ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–" . Retrieved May 28, 2023.
↑ "The den - A student-centered online resource center from Mercer University".
↑ http://www.macon.com/2012/04/23/2000592/mercer-basketball-facility-renamed.html%5B%5D
↑ "Mercer to Host 2010, 2011 Basketball Championships - Atlantic Sun Conference Official Site". Archived from the original on September 23, 2010. Retrieved December 8, 2010.
↑ "Men's Basketball - Championship - Official Site of the Atlantic Sun Conference". Archived from the original on October 11, 2011. Retrieved October 20, 2011.
↑ "Mercer Awarded 2012, 2013 Basketball Championships - Atlantic Sun Conference Official Site". Archived from the original on December 12, 2010. Retrieved December 8, 2010.

External links

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[1] "Arena Groundbreaking - Finally - Has Slonaker, Baldwin Smiling". Macon Telegraph. October 12, 2001. Retrieved January 21, 2012.

[SBJ-2] 1 2 3 4 "Sports Business Journal".

[inflation-US-3] 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–" . Retrieved May 28, 2023.

[4] "The den - A student-centered online resource center from Mercer University".

[5] ttp://www.macon.com/2012/04/23/2000592/mercer-basketball-facility-renamed.html%5B%5D

[6] "Mercer to Host 2010, 2011 Basketball Championships - Atlantic Sun Conference Official Site". Archived from the original on September 23, 2010. Retrieved December 8, 2010.

[7] "Men's Basketball - Championship - Official Site of the Atlantic Sun Conference". Archived from the original on October 11, 2011. Retrieved October 20, 2011.

[8] "Mercer Awarded 2012, 2013 Basketball Championships - Atlantic Sun Conference Official Site". Archived from the original on December 12, 2010. Retrieved December 8, 2010.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

v t e Mercer Bears men's basketball
Venues	Porter Gym (1937–??) Macon Coliseum (19??–20??) Hawkins Arena (2004–present)
People	Head coaches
Seasons	1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24

v t e Mercer Bears women's basketball
Venues	Porter Gym (1970–2004) Macon Coliseum (1970–2004) Hawkins Arena (2004–present)
Culture & lore	History
People	Head coaches
Seasons	1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23

v t e Mercer University
Academics	Engineering Law Medicine
Facilities	American Baptist Historical Society Claude Smith Field Cowles–Woodruff House Grand Opera House Hawkins Arena Macon Coliseum Monroe F. Swilley Jr. Library Moye Complex Tift College
Athletics	Baseball Basketball Men Women Football Lacrosse Men Soccer Men
Media	The Mercer Cluster Mercer University Press WMUM-FM WMUM-TV
Related	List of Mercer University people