College Park Center puts UTA in class by itself

ARLINGTON, Texas – SMU and TCU may have bigger athletic footprints in the Metroplex than the University of Texas at Arlington.

They don't have College Park Center.

Come to think of it, very few college basketball teams in the nation have anything like UTA's new basketball arena, which will make its debut Wednesday night with a basketball doubleheader against Texas-San Antonio.

The shiny, new 7,000-seat arena is just the kind of launching point UTA needs as it prepares for is transition into the Western Athletic Conference, which happens this fall. UTA will make the move with a first-class facility and instant credibility because of it.

"This (the arena) and the move to the WAC were two of hurdles we always faced in recruiting," said men's basketball coach Scott Cross. "Now this is a legit basketball program. It's got everything. It's got a good conference, great arena, great practice facilities, a team that's on the rise."

As good as things are going for the men's basketball team, which has won a school record 10-consecutive games, the arena is the new star of the school of more than 33,000 just south of downtown.

College Park Center can do things for UTA that athletic programs can't do. It's a recruiting tool that doesn't have to make a sales pitch. The state-of-the-art locker rooms, practice courts, classrooms, workout facilities and basketball court do that all by itself.

"This is a big deal for the university and our athletic program," said men's basketball player LaMarcus Reed, the team's leading scorer. "This will put us in the right direction, getting in better players to continue what we've started this season. It's raising the bar and setting high standards. This will help us a lot. This is a nice place. Anyone would want to play here."

The same can't be said for the current home of the basketball teams, Texas Hall. The arena on a stage is better suited for opera than basketball. Former men's basketball coach Bob "Snake" LeGrand joked that he tried to lock the place so no one could get inside.

But Texas Hall was no laughing matter as far as trying to get quality players to come to the school. It's hard to recruit when you play your games on a stage. It's hard to recruit when you have to practice at a half dozen different facilities and have no place your team can really call home.

All that's in the past now, thanks to the $78-million facility that will also host concerts, graduation ceremonies and other events.

"It (Texas Hall) has been a detriment to recruiting kids," said women's basketball coach Samantha Morrow, whose team christens the court with a 6 p.m. game Wednesday. "But when you bring, especially a young lady, into something like this, girls are all about pretty and frilly and all that. So when you bring them into this facility, that's why we're able to get a couple of the kids that are going to come next year was because of this."
    
The arena isn't just going to attract athletes. It also helped bring in new athletic director Jim Baker, whose first day on the job just happens to be Wednesday.

Baker was sold on taking the job after visiting College Park Center. He's convinced the arena helped pave the way for the school to get into the WAC, which is a step up from UTA's current home in the Southland Conference. The arena also will help with scheduling. There's no way a Big 12 team like Oklahoma would play at Texas Hall. The Sooners will play in at College Park Center during the 2012-13 season.

But Baker knows that just having the arena guarantees nothing. The school has to draw in its new digs. That shouldn't be a problem the rest of this season as tickets for the games at the arena will be free.

"You've just got to build on it," Baker said. "That's the main thing is, like I said earlier, we'll have four or five games in here in the month of February, and we need to sell it, and we need to get the people in here and just experience it, and then just build on that for the next eight months."

The arena has already raised the level of pride at UTA. There was talk of a new facility for nearly 20 years. Now it's a reality. Players are excited about trying to create a home-court advantage in the arena that's filled with blue seats. The cushioned courtside seats are a hot commodity. The Maverick Club Hospitality Suite figures to be the place to be during games.

That doesn't mean the move doesn't come without risks. While the UTA women have struggled this season, the men are in first place in the Southland Conference. As bad as Texas Hall is, the players are familiar with their surroundings. They know the backdrops, the floor and the rims.

But it's one thing to be comfortable in your surroundings. It's another thing to be playing in surroundings that have everyone else envious.

Starting Wednesday, UTA's College Park Center will be the place for that.