The largest high school basketball gyms in the United States refers to gymnasiums primarily used by secondary schools for basketball purposes. 14 of the 16 largest high school gymnasiums are located in the state of Indiana.
In March 2019, The Indianapolis Star reported that the Indiana High School Basketball Historical Society had done research through actual on-site counts, conducting personal interviews, and reviewing architectural blueprints to confirm the accuracy of the list of the largest high school gyms in Indiana. This research confirmed a reordering of the top three sites was necessary, moving Seymour's Lloyd E. Scott Gymnasium to the top spot. [1] The previous #1, New Castle's Fieldhouse, was moved to third. However, when the Fieldhouse was renovated in 2020, its seating capacity was increased from 7,829 to 8,424, enabling New Castle to reclaim the #1 spot. [2]
The top 12 in total seating capacity are as follows:
State | City | Venue | Capacity | Year Built | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Indiana | New Castle | New Castle Fieldhouse | 8,424 [2] | 1959 |
2 | Indiana | Seymour | Lloyd E. Scott Gymnasium | 8,228 [1] | 1970 |
3 | Indiana | East Chicago | John A. Baratto Athletic Center | 8,054 [1] | 1988 |
4 | Indiana | Muncie | Muncie Fieldhouse | 7,635 [3] | 1928 |
5 | Indiana | Marion | Bill Green Athletic Arena | 7,560 [4] | 1970 |
6 | Texas | Dallas | Alfred J. Loos Fieldhouse | 7,500 [5] | 1965 |
7 | Indiana | Elkhart | North Side Gymnasium | 7,373 [5] | 1954 |
8 | Indiana | Michigan City | "The Wolves' Den" Gym | 7,304 [5] | 1971 |
9 | Illinois | Moline | Wharton Field House | 7,250 [5] | 1928 |
10 | Indiana | Gary | West Side High School Gym | 7,217 [5] | 1969 |
11 | Indiana | Lafayette | Jefferson High School Gym | 7,200 [4] | 1975 |
12 | Indiana | Southport | Southport High School Gym | 7,124 [4] | 1958 |
Hoosier hysteria is the state of excitement surrounding basketball in Indiana or, more specifically, the Indiana high school basketball tournament. The most famous example occurred in 1954, when Milan defeated Muncie Central to win the state title.
New Castle is a city in Henry County, Indiana, 44 miles (71 km) east-northeast of Indianapolis, on the Big Blue River. The city is the county seat of Henry County. New Castle is home to New Castle Fieldhouse, the largest high school gymnasium in the world. The city is surrounded by agricultural land. In the past, it was a manufacturing center for the production of sheet iron and steel, automobiles, caskets, clothing, scales, bridges, pianos, furniture, handles, shovels, lathes, bricks, and flour. Starting in the early 20th century, it was known as the Rose City, at one point having 100 florists and numerous growers.
Gainbridge Fieldhouse is an indoor arena located in downtown Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It opened in November 1999 to replace Market Square Arena. The arena is the home of the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association and the Indiana Fever of the Women's National Basketball Association. The fieldhouse also hosts college basketball games, indoor concerts, and ice hockey.
The Palestra, often called the Cathedral of College Basketball, is a historic arena and the home gym of the Penn Quakers men's and women's basketball teams, volleyball teams, wrestling team, and Philadelphia Big 5 basketball. Located at 235 South 33rd St. in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania, near Franklin Field in the University City section of Philadelphia, it opened on January 1, 1927. The Palestra has been called "the most important building in the history of college basketball" and "changed the entire history of the sport for which it was built".
Memorial Gymnasium is a multi-purpose facility located in Nashville, Tennessee. Usually called Memorial Gym or simply Memorial, the building is located on the western side of the Vanderbilt University campus. It was built in 1952 and currently has a seating capacity of 14,326. It serves as home court for the school's men's and women's basketball programs, and will also serve as the home of Vanderbilt's upcoming women's volleyball program, scheduled to begin play in 2025.
Welsh–Ryan Arena is a 7,039-seat multi-purpose arena in Evanston, Illinois, United States, near the campus of Northwestern University. It is home to four Northwestern Wildcats athletic teams: men's basketball, women's basketball, women's volleyball, and wrestling. It is located inside McGaw Memorial Hall, to the north of Ryan Field.
The Roy L. Patrick Gymnasium is a 3,228-seat multi-purpose arena in Burlington, Vermont. It was built in 1963 to replace the Old Gymnasium, a then-60-year-old facility now known as the Royall Tyler Theater. It is used mainly as the home arena of the Vermont Catamounts men's and women's basketball teams. It has been the site of the 2004, 2005, 2007, 2010, 2013, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2022 America East men's basketball tournament championship games, as the higher seed in the final hosts the game. The championship games were all televised on ESPN or ESPN2. Vermont has consistently been among the America East leaders in home attendance and in 2004–05, it became the only America East men's basketball program to sell out every game for an entire season.
University Arena is a multi-purpose arena on the campus of Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. Located in Read Fieldhouse, the arena opened in 1957 and is home to multiple Western Michigan Broncos athletic teams, including men's and women's basketball, women's gymnastics, women's indoor track and field, and women's volleyball. The facility seats 5,421 people. Read Fieldhouse was named for Buck Read, WMU head men's basketball coach from 1922 to 1949.
Rose Hill Gymnasium is a 3,200-seat multi-purpose arena on the Rose Hill campus of Fordham University in The Bronx, New York City, New York. The arena, which opened in 1925, is the oldest on-campus venue currently used primarily for an NCAA Division I basketball team and the second-oldest overall. volleyball team of Fordham University also uses the gym. The Rose Hill Gymnasium has a gothic facade in keeping with the rest of Fordham University's buildings. The interior design features two high-tech video boards, bleachers that surround all four sides of the court, and additional elevated seating along the court. ESPN named this gym one of the four “cathedrals” of college basketball. At the time it was built, it was one of the largest on-campus facilities in the country, earning it the nickname "The Prairie." The Rose Hill Gymnasium has been the site of many legendary college and high school basketball games, including the final high school game of Lew Alcindor, later known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. During World War II, it was also used as a barracks. New York City Mayor Ed Koch lived in these barracks for a time. As early as 1970, an effort headed by famed Fordham alumnus Vince Lombardi was made to build a new arena. This effort ended with Lombardi's death and the move of head basketball coach "Digger" Phelps to the University of Notre Dame.
North Side High School Gym was an indoor gymnasium in Fort Wayne, Indiana. It hosted the NBA's Fort Wayne Pistons from 1941 until they moved to the newly constructed 10,000-seat War Memorial Coliseum in 1952. The gymnasium held near 3,000 people and hosted games for North Side High School in Fort Wayne through 2004 when the school was renovated. The teams at North Side now play in a new gym, By Hey Arena, and the old facility was transformed into the school's library in the renovation.
Anderson High School Wigwam is an indoor arena in Anderson, Indiana. The current version hosted home games for the Anderson High School Indians and was home to the Indiana Alley Cats of the Continental Basketball Association and the Anderson Champions of the American Basketball Association. The previous arena hosted Anderson Packers, a founding member of the National Basketball Association.
Hinkle Fieldhouse is a basketball arena on the campus of Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana. Completed in early 1928, it was the largest basketball arena in the United States until 1950. The facility was renamed Hinkle Fieldhouse in 1966 in honor of Butler's longtime coach and athletic director, Paul D. "Tony" Hinkle. It is the sixth-oldest college basketball arena still in use. Added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983 and designated a U.S. National Historic Landmark in 1987, Hinkle Fieldhouse is sometimes referred to as "Indiana's Basketball Cathedral."
The North Side Gymnasium is a 7,373 seat multi-purpose arena opened in 1954 located in Elkhart, Indiana, United States on the campus of North Side Middle School. Elkhart High School, hosts their varsity boys' basketball games along with other varsity sports such as volleyball and wrestling. It was home to the Elkhart Express of the International Basketball League. At one point it was the largest high school gym in the country, seating 8,200 prior to renovation.
The Butler Bulldogs are the athletic teams that represent Butler University, located in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Bulldogs participate in 20 NCAA Division I intercollegiate sports. After leaving the Horizon League following the 2011–12 season, nearly all teams competed in the Atlantic 10 Conference. The football team is a founding member of the non-scholarship Football Championship Subdivision (FCS)-level Pioneer League. On March 20, 2013, the Butler administration announced that the school would join the Big East, and moved to the new league July 1, 2013.
East Chicago Central High School or commonly known as Central or ECCentral, is a public high school in the industrial City of East Chicago, located east of the Chicago metropolitan area.
Jasper High School (JHS) is a public high school located in Jasper, Indiana, that serves grades 9 through 12 and is one of five in the Greater Jasper Consolidated Schools' district. The principal is Geoff Mauck. The Vice Principal is Dr. Cassidy Nalley. JHS has an enrollment of approximately 1,050 students. The school's colors are black and gold. The school song is set to the tune "Indiana, Our Indiana", and the mascot is the wildcat.
The North Central Conference is an IHSAA-sanctioned athletic conference consisting of ten large high schools in Cass, Delaware, Grant, Howard, Madison, Marion, Tippecanoe, and Wayne Counties across Central and North Central Indiana. Most of these schools are in 35,000+ population towns like Anderson, Marion, Kokomo, Lafayette, Muncie, and Richmond. Several of the nation's largest gymnasiums belong to members of this conference.
Seymour High School is a public high school in Seymour, Indiana. It is one of two high schools in the Seymour Community Schools district, with the other high school for Seymour students is Trinity Lutheran High School.
The Drexel Dragons men's basketball program represents intercollegiate men's basketball at Drexel University. The team currently competes in the Colonial Athletic Association in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and plays home games at the Daskalakis Athletic Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Drexel last appeared in the NCAA tournament in 2021.
Anderson High School is a public high school located in Anderson, Indiana. The school's students are known as "The Anderson Indians." Both the school and the city of Anderson, Indiana are named after Chief William Anderson, the leader of the Unalatchgo Lenape people from 1806 to 1831.