Crisler Center (formerly known as the University Events Building and Crisler Arena) is an indoor

arena An arena is a large enclosed venue, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, Music, musical performances or Sport, sporting events. It comprises a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for specta ...

located in

Ann Arbor, Michigan Ann Arbor is a city in Washtenaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851, making it the List of municipalities in Michigan, fifth-most populous cit ...

. It is the home arena for the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

's men's and

women's basketball Women's basketball is the team sport of basketball played by women. It was first played in 1892, one year after men's basketball, at Smith College in Massachusetts. It spread across the United States, in large parts via women's college compet ...

teams as well as its women's gymnastics team. Constructed in 1967, the arena seats 12,707 spectators. It is named for Herbert O. "Fritz" Crisler, head football coach at

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

from 1938 to 1947 and athletic director thereafter until his retirement in 1968. Crisler Center was designed by Dan Dworsky, a member of the 1948 Rose Bowl-winning Michigan football team. Among other structures that he has designed is the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, Los Angeles Branch. The arena is often called "The House that Cazzie Built", a reference to player Cazzie Russell, who starred on Michigan teams that won three consecutive

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Fa ...

titles from 1964 to 1966. Russell's popularity caused the team's fan base to outgrow Yost Fieldhouse (now

Yost Ice Arena Yost Ice Arena, formerly the Fielding H. Yost Field House, is an indoor ice hockey arena located on the campus of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. It is the home of the Michigan men's ice hockey team. Yost Field House opened in 1923 ...

) and prompted the construction of the current facility. At Michigan men's basketball games, the bleacher seats behind the benches are home to the Maize Rage student section.

Tenants

Crisler Center has been the home of Michigan Wolverines men's basketball since its opening in 1967. The women's basketball team has been at Crisler Center since 1974. It has also been the home of Michigan's wrestling, women's volleyball and men's gymnastics teams. The gymnastics team hosted events at Crisler Center from 1978 to 1989. The wrestling team called Crisler Center its home from 1967 to 1989. The women's gymnastics team competed at Crisler Center from 1978 to 1989 before moving to Cliff Keen Arena in 1990 before ultimately returning to Crisler Center as their primary home in 2004.

Other events

Bobby Seale at John Sinclair Freedom Rally

Despite being on a

campus, the facility hosted the 1980–1982

Mid-American Conference The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region (North America), Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Its members co ...

men's basketball tournament. It has also hosted Big Ten and

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

gymnastics championships, the 1999 Big Ten wrestling championship, and other events. Prior to the opening of Cliff Keen Arena, the arena was the full-time home to the men's and women's gymnastics teams and the wrestling team. The women's gymnastics team continues to hold significant meets in the arena. The arena has also hosted concerts, including the opening show of

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American Rock music, rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Nicknamed "the Boss", Springsteen has released 21 studio albums spanning six decades; most of his albums feature th ...

& The

E Street Band The E Street Band is an American rock band that has been the primary backing band for rock musician Bruce Springsteen since 1972. In 2014, the E Street Band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. For the bulk of Springsteen's recordin ...

's The River Tour. Elvis Presley performed at the arena on April 24, 1977. Crisler Center was also the site of the famous "ten-for-two" John Sinclair Freedom Rally, featuring

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...

Yoko Ono Yoko Ono (, usually spelled in katakana as ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking. Ono grew up in Tokyo and moved to New York ...

in 1971. The 2014 NCAA Men's Gymnastics championship was held at Crisler Center. Michigan's Men's Gymnastics team won their second consecutive national championship in that meet. The arena has also hosted graduations, including Michigan's Dearborn campus' winter commencements every year.

Renovation

The university completed a $52 million renovation to the Crisler Center in 2012. A new scoreboard was added along with the construction of an athletic facility in between the arena and

Michigan Stadium Michigan Stadium, nicknamed "the Big House," is the American football stadium for the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It is the largest stadium in the United States and the Western Hemisphere, the third-largest stadium in the wo ...

called the Junge Family Champions Center. Along with the Junge Center, the university added the Mortenson Family Plaza on the roof of the Junge Center. The outside walls were torn down and the concourse was expanded. A new grand entrance along with new boxes were expected to be ready by January 2013, but were completed just before the start of the 2012–13 Basketball season, much earlier than originally planned. The renovations also included renovations to the control room, updating the controllers for game stats and content for the

football stadium and the Crisler Center.Michigan unveils planned scoreboards Crisler Arena
/ref> Part of the Crisler renovation also included the construction of the William Davidson Player Development Center (WDPDC). The $23.2 million facility boasts 2 full courts with 10 baskets, weight room, sports medicine training room, and two identical wings for Men's and Women's basketball offices.

Gallery

Image:Wisconsin vs. Michigan women's basketball 2013 49 (Crisler Center exterior).jpg , The exterior of Crisler Center. Image:Crisler Center at Night, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan.JPG , The exterior of Crisler Center at night. Image:Wisconsin vs. Michigan women's basketball 2013 48 (Crisler Center interior).jpg , Indoor waterfall at Crisler Center. Image:Wisconsin vs. Michigan women's basketball 2013 46 (Crisler Center interior).jpg , Concourse inside Crisler Center. Image:Wisconsin vs. Michigan women's basketball 2013 45 (Crisler Center interior).jpg , HD Scoreboard. Image:Wisconsin vs. Michigan women's basketball 2013 44 (Crisler Center interior).jpg , Block M at center court. Image:Wisconsin vs. Michigan women's basketball 2013 03 (Michigan men's retired numbers).jpg , Banners of the retired jerseys. Image:Michigan State vs. Michigan men's basketball 2013 03 (Crisler Center interior).jpg , Championship banners. Image:Michigan State vs. Michigan men's basketball 2013 01 (Crisler Center interior).jpg , Before the

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the ...

vs.

men's basketball game on March 3, 2013. Michigan won 58–57.

References

External links