Kezar Pavilion, located adjacent to Kezar Stadium, 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 ...

in the southeast corner of

Golden Gate Park Golden Gate Park is an urban park between the Richmond District, San Francisco, Richmond and Sunset District, San Francisco, Sunset districts on the West Side (San Francisco), West Side of San Francisco, California, United States. It is the Lis ...

San Francisco, California San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

, United States (US). Built in 1924, the Pavilion seats 4,000 people and is owned and operated by the City of San Francisco. The venue is home to the Academy of Art Urban Knights (

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is the intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environment ...

) and the annual San Francisco Pro-Am tournament. It was previously home to the San Francisco Dons (

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest division of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athlet ...

), Santa Clara Broncos (

), San Francisco Pilots ( ABA), San Francisco Rumble ( ABA) and San Francisco City Cats ( ABA).

Sports

The

University of San Francisco The University of San Francisco (USF) is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit university in San Francisco, California, United States. Founded in 1855, it has nearly 9,000 students pursuing undergraduate and graduate degrees ...

basketball team used Kezar Pavilion before War Memorial Gymnasium was constructed. The Santa Clara Broncos also used the pavilion for home games from 1927 until World War II, due to alumni and fans being centrally located in San Francisco. The most regular tenant of Kezar Pavilion was the co-ed

roller derby Roller derby is a roller skating contact sport played on an oval track by two teams of five skaters. It is played by approximately 1,250 amateur leaguesA Roller Derby league is synonymous with an individual club or team in other team sports, as ...

team, the San Francisco Bay Bombers. The Bombers skated home games at the venue from 1961 to the end of the original Roller Derby league in 1973. Games played by the Bombers were videotaped and shown to a TV network of more than 100 stations. In 2007 the San Francisco Bay Bombers and roller derby returned to the pavilion. Kezar was not only used by the Bombers for home season games, but the team also held tryouts in the building. In 2011 the Bay Area Derby Girls hosted their first double-header at the pavilion. In 2006 Kezar Pavilion became the home of ChickFight female professional wrestling tournaments, and San Francisco Pro Wrestling company Fog City Wrestling secured the Kezar pavilion as their new home in 2008 due to an increase in demand. As of 2013, Kezar is also a venue for San Francisco high school basketball games. The arena has accommodated numerous different sports, ranging from middle school

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

to professional

boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...

. The versatility of the arena means that the differing requirements of various sports can be met, from professional basketball game to recreational

indoor soccer Indoor soccer or arena soccer is a form of five-a-side football, five-a-side or six-a-side version of minifootball. It is derived from association football and adapted to be played in walled hardcourt indoor arenas. It differs from the FIFA, FIFA ...

. Kezar was discussed as a possible

badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racket (sports equipment), racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net (device), net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per s ...

or table tennis venue, for the purpose of training or qualifying, for San Francisco's 2012 Summer Olympics bid.

San Francisco Summer League Pro-AM

Kezar Pavilion is home to the San Francisco Summer League Pro-Am. The San Francisco Pro-Am Summer League Pro-Am is for former and current male and female professional and/or college basketball players. High school players are also welcome to participate in the league. Men and women do not play against each other and are in separate leagues. The San Francisco Summer League Pro-Am originally started in 1979 and has continued each summer since then. The league is supported by the San Francisco Recreation & Parks Department summer programming. The idea behind the summer Pro-Am league is that it adds to the quality of life around the Bay Area and provide locals with an opportunity to see high level competition at no cost. At no cost, the league has become a place for those who cannot afford to attend local college or professional basketball games. There are no league tryouts for the San Francisco Pro-Am. There is an open-roster policy all season long if the head coach wants to add players. Coaches for each team hand select players for their teams. The season begins in June and ends in August. Games are played Monday-Thursday and are all played at 8:00PM. NBA players in the Pro-Am have included Steph Curry, Aaron Gordon, Jason Kidd, and Jason Richardson. WNBA players to play in the women's league have included Devanei Hampton, Christy Hedgpeth, and Jennifer Azzi. Azzi was the head coach of the women's basketball team at the University of San Francisco from 2010 to 2016. The Pro-Am is an opportunity for professional players to interact with fans and also to improve their game. Many professional players come to the Pro-Am to train and play in a different environment than they are used to. The San Francisco Summer League Pro-Am awards MVP's (Most Valuable Player) and has a playoff format at the end of the season. The championship series is a best of 3 series, with the league champion is the first to win two games. The games operate under most professional basketball guidelines, with a 24-second shot clock. The quarter length is 10 minutes, as opposed to 12 in the NBA or WNBA. Each team has 5 timeouts per game, with one allowed if the game goes into overtime. The team with the best record in their respective league wins the regular season. The playoffs are made up of 5 teams. The winner of the regular season has a first round bye. Many local college and high school players have participated in the San Francisco Pro-Am. Players include former Saint Ignatius players Kenny Hatch and Stephen Domingo, Archbishop Mitty High School's Aaron Gordon, and Serra High School's Henry Caruso. The San Francisco Pro-Am is highly popular among players trying to develop into better players and gain attention from NBA or international organization scouts. The 2017 summer season champions was team Bay Pride, led by head coaches Al Gordan and Frank Williams. Bay Pride beat Dream Team in the best of 3 series. Dream Team featured the 2017 San Francisco Pro-Am MVP, Juan Anderson. The 2017 men's regular season standings were: * Bay Pride: 6-1 * South Bay: 5-2 * Oakland Believers: 5-2 * Dream Team: 4-3 * East Bay: 3-4 * SF City: 2-5 * Bay City: 2-6 * Bay Raiders: 1-6

Entertainment

Concerts for artists such as Throbbing Gristle, The String Cheese Incident,

The Clash The Clash were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they are considered one of the most influential acts in the original wave of British punk rock, with their music fusing elements ...

Dead Kennedys Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band that formed in San Francisco, California, in 1978. The band was one of the defining punk bands during its initial eight-year run. Initially consisting of lead guitarist East Bay Ray, bassist Klaus Fl ...

and

Smashing Pumpkins The Smashing Pumpkins (also simply known as Smashing Pumpkins) are an American alternative rock band formed in Chicago in 1988 by frontman and guitarist Billy Corgan, guitarist James Iha, bassist D'arcy Wretzky and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin. ...

have been held at Kezar Pavilion. Kezar is popular as a music venue due to the intimate "high-school gymnasium" atmosphere that exists, in addition to its location in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood. Throbbing Gristle's Kezar show was the band's last live performance until their 2004 reunion.

References

External links

Official website
{{Golden Gate Park 1924 establishments in California Basketball venues in California College basketball venues in California Golden Gate Park Haight-Ashbury, San Francisco Music venues in the San Francisco Bay Area San Francisco Dons basketball venues Santa Clara Broncos basketball Sports venues completed in 1924 Sports venues in San Francisco Volleyball venues in California Wrestling venues in San Francisco

Sports

San Francisco Summer League Pro-AM

Entertainment

See also

References

External links