Cam Henderson Center

Last updated
Cam Henderson Center
“The Cam”
Cam Henderson Center 2019.jpg
Inside of Cam Henderson Center in 2019.
Cam Henderson Center
LocationThird Ave (US Rte. 60)
Huntington, WV 25755
Coordinates 38°25′30″N82°25′36″W / 38.424908°N 82.426575°W / 38.424908; -82.426575
Owner Marshall University
Operator Marshall University
Capacity 9,048
Record attendance10,705
Opened1981
Tenants
Marshall University Athletics

The Cam Henderson Center is the primary indoor athletics complex at Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia, USA. [1] The basketball and volleyball [2] teams of the Marshall Thundering Herd use the venue for their home games. The first basketball game played in the facility was a varsity match between Marshall and Army on November 27, 1981. [3] The venue is named for Cam Henderson, who coached football and basketball at the school from 1935 to 1955. [4]

Contents

History

Design

The facility, as designed, was to be a "state of the art" arena seating 14,000. However, during construction, massive budget cuts were made and the finished product seated only 10,250. The basketball arena currently seats 9,048. [1]

The arena was designed with a retractable lower seating section, which permitted use of the floor area for indoor track and general use by the physical education department. However this seating never worked as designed, and eventually the school stopped retracting the seating for fear it would become stuck in that position. Also the poured concrete floor developed major cracks.[ citation needed ] The Henderson Center is 213,000 square feet (19,800 m2). [5]

Construction wrangles

Its construction was a part of a deal in the West Virginia Legislature to support construction of Mountaineer Field at West Virginia University. Legislators affiliated with Marshall had opposed building such a facility unless Marshall also received an athletic facility. At the time, Marshall's home court was the Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse, a 30-year-old county-owned facility located 6 blocks from campus and seating only 6,500. The Center was opened in 1981, despite construction of the facility not finishing until the next year. [1]

In 1996 the school, using settlement proceeds from a lawsuit against the seat manufacturer and a new state appropriation, replaced the lower section with a permanent seating section and repaired the floor, mostly ending the arena's use for anything except basketball and volleyball, with the exception of a small annual charity tennis tournament. This reduced the seating capacity to its current level. [1] With the decline in the men's basketball program, many years passed since the final reconfiguration of the facility without a capacity crowd seen in Henderson Center. On February 11, 2006, the Center was finally filled when the men's basketball team faced number 3-ranked University of Memphis. The women's basketball program has held "Jam The Cam" events resulting in attendance records for women's basketball in the Mid-American Conference (Marshall has since become a member of Conference USA and most recently the Sun Belt Conference and an occasional copycat event with one of the other lower-profile sports at Marshall, such as volleyball or swimming/diving.

The building was merged into the existing Gullickson Hall, and contains athletic department offices, and a competitive pool for swimming in addition to the arena. [4]

In 2011, the University proposed a deal with the local park board to take over and remove the Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse, which would be the site of a new soccer facility. The remaining basketball events at the fieldhouse, which are games of the city's two private high schools and regional rounds of the state basketball tournament, would move to the Henderson Center.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WVU Coliseum</span> Arena in Morgantown, West Virginia

The WVU Coliseum is a 14,000-seat multi-purpose arena located on the Evansdale campus of West Virginia University in Morgantown, West Virginia. The circular arena features a poured concrete roof. It was built with state funds and replaced the WVU Fieldhouse, which seated 6,000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse</span>

The Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse was an 8,500-seat multi-purpose arena in Huntington, West Virginia. It was built in 1950. Prior to the completion of the Huntington Civic Center in 1976, it was the only large arena in the city. It closed on February 10, 2012, and was demolished later that year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hinkle Fieldhouse</span> Historic indoor arena in Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.

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."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joan C. Edwards Stadium</span> College football stadium for Marshall University

Joan C. Edwards Stadium, formerly Marshall University Stadium, is a football stadium located on the campus of Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia, United States. It currently can hold 30,475 spectators and includes twenty deluxe, indoor suites, 300 wheelchair-accessible seating, a state-of-the-art press-box, 14 concession areas, and 16 separate restrooms. It also features 90,000 sq ft (8,000 m2) of artificial turf and 1,837 tons of structural steel. It also houses the Shewey Athletic Center, a fieldhouse and a training facility. The new stadium opened in 1991 and replaced Fairfield Stadium, a condemned off-campus facility built in 1927 in the Fairfield Park neighborhood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marshall Thundering Herd</span> Intercollegiate sports teams of Marshall University

The Marshall Thundering Herd is the intercollegiate athletic collection of teams that collectively represent the Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia. Thundering Herd athletic teams compete in the Sun Belt Conference, which are members of the NCAA Division I. The school's official colors are kelly green and white. The Marshall Thundering Herd have won 3 NCAA national championships and one NAIA national championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball</span> Basketball team

The Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team represents Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia. They compete in the NCAA Division I as a member of the Sun Belt Conference.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014–15 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 2014–15 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team represented Marshall University during the 2014–15 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Thundering Herd, led by first year head coach Dan D'Antoni, played their home games at the Cam Henderson Center and were members of Conference USA. They finished the season 11–21, 7–11 in C-USA play to finish in a tie for eleventh place. They lost in the first round of the C-USA tournament to WKU.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014–15 Marshall Thundering Herd women's basketball team</span> Intercollegiate basketball season

The 2014–15 Marshall Thundering Herd women's basketball team represents the Marshall University during the 2014–15 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Thundering Herd, led by third year head coach Matt Daniel, play their home games at the Cam Henderson Center and were members of Conference USA. They finished the season 17–15, 8–10 for in C-USA play to finish in ninth place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the C-USA women's tournament to Charlotte. They were invited to the Women's Basketball Invitational where defeated Northern Kentucky in the first round before losing to Mercer in the quarterfinals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015–16 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 2015–16 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team represented Marshall University during the 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Thundering Herd, led by second year head coach Dan D'Antoni, played their home games at the Cam Henderson Center and were members of Conference USA. They finished the season 17–16, 12–6 in C-USA play to finish in a three-way tie for third place. They defeated UTEP in the quarterfinals of the C-USA tournament to advance to the semifinals where they lost to Middle Tennessee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015–16 Marshall Thundering Herd women's basketball team</span> Intercollegiate basketball season

The 2015–16 Marshall Thundering Herd women's basketball team represents the Marshall University during the 2015–16 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Thundering Herd, led by third year head coach Matt Daniel, play their home games at the Cam Henderson Center and are members of Conference USA. They finished the season 17–15, 8–10 for in C-USA play to finish in a tie for sixth place. They advanced to the semifinals of the C-USA women's tournament where they lost to Middle Tennessee. They were invited to the Women's National Invitation Tournament where they lost in the first round to Ohio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016–17 Marshall Thundering Herd women's basketball team</span> Intercollegiate basketball season

The 2016–17 Marshall Thundering Herd women's basketball team represented the Marshall University during the 2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Thundering Herd, led by fourth year head coach Matt Daniel, played their home games at the Cam Henderson Center and were members of Conference USA. They finished the season 13–17, 5–13 for in C-USA play to finish in a tie for 11th place. They lost in the first round of the C-USA women's tournament to Charlotte.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016–17 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 2016–17 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team represented Marshall University during the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Thundering Herd, led by third-year head coach Dan D'Antoni, played their home games at the Cam Henderson Center and were members of Conference USA. They finished the season 20–15, 10–8 in C-USA play to finish in sixth place. They defeated Florida Atlantic, Old Dominion, and Louisiana Tech to advance to the championship game of the C-USA tournament. There they lost to top-seeded Middle Tennessee. Despite finishing with 20 wins, they did not participate in a postseason tournament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017–18 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 2017–18 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team represented the Marshall University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Thundering Herd, led by fourth-year head coach Dan D'Antoni, played their home games at the Cam Henderson Center as members of Conference USA. They finished the season 25–11, 12–6 in C-USA play to finish in fourth place. They defeated UTSA, Southern Miss, and Western Kentucky to become champions of the C-USA tournament. They received C-USA's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament where, as a No. 13 seed, they upset Wichita State in the first round before losing to West Virginia in the second round.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017–18 Marshall Thundering Herd women's basketball team</span> Intercollegiate basketball season

The 2017–18 Marshall Thundering Herd women's basketball team represents the Marshall University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Thundering Herd, led by first year head coach Tony Kemper, play their home games at the Cam Henderson Center and are members of Conference USA. They finished the season 9–20, 3–13 in C-USA play to finish in last place. They failed to qualify for the Conference USA women's tournament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018–19 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 2018–19 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team represented Marshall University during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Thundering Herd, led by fifth-year head coach Dan D'Antoni, played their home games at the Cam Henderson Center as members of Conference USA. They finished the season 23–14, 11–7 in C-USA play to finish in sixth place. They defeated Rice before losing to Southern Miss in the quarterfinals of the C-USA tournament. They were invited to the CollegeInsider.com Tournament where they defeated IUPUI, Presbyterian, Hampton and Green Bay to become CIT champions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018–19 Marshall Thundering Herd women's basketball team</span> Intercollegiate basketball season

The 2018–19 Marshall Thundering Herd women's basketball team represented the Marshall University during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Thundering Herd, led by second year head coach Tony Kemper, played their home games at the Cam Henderson Center and were members of Conference USA. They finished the season 17–15, 10–6 in C-USA play to finish in a tie for fifth place. They lost in the first round of the C-USA women's tournament to UTEP. They received an invitation to the WBI where they defeated Davidson in the first round before losing to Appalachian State in the quarterfinals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019–20 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 2019–20 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team represented Marshall University during the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Thundering Herd, led by sixth-year head coach Dan D'Antoni, played their home games at the Cam Henderson Center as members of Conference USA. They finished the season 17–15, 10–8 in C-USA play to finish in sixth place. They defeated UTEP and were scheduled to play Louisiana Tech in the quarterfinals of the C-USA tournament. However, the tournament canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mountain Health Arena</span> Arena and conference center in Huntington, West Virginia

The Mountain Health Arena, originally known as the Huntington Civic Center, later as the Huntington Civic Arena and later, for sponsorship reasons as the Big Sandy Superstore Arena, is a municipal complex located in the downtown area of Huntington, West Virginia, one block west of Pullman Square. The arena consists of a 9,000-seat multi-purpose arena and an attached conference center. It is home to numerous concerts and events, and was the home of the Huntington Hammer of the Ultimate Indoor Football League for 2011. Marshall University's graduation ceremonies are also held at the arena. It was renamed for sponsorship reason to its current name in 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2010–11 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 2010–11 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team represented Marshall University during the 2010–11 NCAA Division I men's basketball season as a member of Conference USA (C-USA). They played their home games at the Cam Henderson Center and were led by first year head coach Tom Herrion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020–21 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team</span> American college basketball season

The 2020–21 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team represented Marshall University during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Thundering Herd, led by seventh-year head coach Dan D'Antoni, played their home games at the Cam Henderson Center as members of the East Division of Conference USA. They finished the season 15–7, 9–5 in C-USA play to finish in third place in the East Division. They were defeated in the second round of the C-USA tournament by Rice.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Cam Henderson Center at herdzone.cstv.com, URL accessed November 18, 2009. Archived 11/18/09
  2. "The Marshall University Thundering Herd Official Athletic Site". www.herdzone.com. Archived from the original on 2008-07-24.
  3. First game in the Henderson Center (picture)
  4. 1 2 Cam Henderson Center and Gullickson Hall at marshall.edu, URL accessed November 18, 2009. Archived 11/18/09
  5. "MARSHALL OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE - Facilities". Archived from the original on 2009-08-27. Retrieved 2009-11-18.