Lloyd Noble Center
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The Lloyd Noble Center is a 10,967-seat multi-purpose
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
Norman, Oklahoma Norman () is the List of municipalities in Oklahoma, 3rd most populous city in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, with a population of 128,026 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is the most populous city and the county seat of Clevel ...
, some south of downtown
Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...
. It opened in 1975 and is home to the
University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma, United States. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two territories became the ...
men's and women's
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
and women's
gymnastics Gymnastics is a group of sport that includes physical exercises requiring Balance (ability), balance, Strength training, strength, Flexibility (anatomy), flexibility, agility, Motor coordination, coordination, artistry and endurance. The movem ...
teams of the
Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central United States, South Central and Southeastern United States. Its 16 members in ...
. It also regularly hosts concerts, including city school orchestra concerts, and graduation ceremonies for colleges within the
University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma, United States. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two territories became the ...
as well as those for several high schools in the area.


History

Before the construction of the facility, the teams played in the much smaller OU Field House, now known as McCasland Field House, located on campus near Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. The success of Sooner basketball teams in the early 1970s including star forward Alvan Adams, motivated the building of a larger, state-of-the-art, arena, the Lloyd Noble Center (LNC), which was built in 1973-75 at a cost of $6 Million. The center is named after Samuel Lloyd Noble (1896–1950), a Houston oilman and philanthropist, and founder of the Noble Corporation and th
Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation
Noble is an OU alumnus and former member of the OU Board of Regents; his foundation provided OU's first ever $1 million gift to finance the center. The Sooners frequently sold out the arena during the Coach Billy Tubbs era, with All-American forward Wayman Tisdale leading the high-scoring team to several
Big Eight Conference The Big Eight Conference was a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)-affiliated Division I-A college athletic association that sponsored American football, football. It was formed in January 1907 as the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate ...
titles and NCAA Tournament appearances. This led to the popular colloquialism around Norman that Lloyd Noble Center is "the house that Alvan built and Wayman filled." Other notable basketball stars who played at the LNC include Mookie Blaylock, Stacey King, Blake Griffin, Buddy Hield and Trae Young, all of whom also played in the NBA, as well as Stacey Dales, Courtney Paris and Danielle Robinson, who went on to play in the WNBA. The LNC has hosted NIT men's basketball games 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. ...
Women's Basketball Tournament Opening Round games, NCAA Women's Gymnastics Regional and National Semifinal competitions, an NCAA Wrestling Championship, as well as one NBA game. In January 2006, the NBA and the New Orleans Hornets decided to move two games from the Pete Maravich Assembly Center in
Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...
to
Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...
due to the devastation of
Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...
and the subsequent low attendance it caused. The Ford Center in Oklahoma City was unavailable for one of the games against the
Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Confere ...
, so it was played in the Lloyd Noble Center. OU and OU Athletics donors have made several investments in the arena over the years to update it, including a $17.1 M renovation in 2001, the addition of the $7 M 18,000 sq f
Griffin Family Performance Center
in 2018, and extensive expansion and modernization of the men's and women's basketball locker rooms, offices and meeting facilities, updated video and sound systems, and renovated concourse amenities in 2023 ($9.5 M).


Facilities Description

For sports the LNC can seat 11,700, but with standing room tickets the attendance has sometimes swelled to 12,000. As a concert venue, the Lloyd Noble Center can hold between 2,848 and 4,516 in a theater set-up, 6,165 for end-stage concerts, and 11,238 for center-stage concerts. The arena contains of arena floor space as well as of concourse space, allowing for trade shows to be held at the arena. The arena stands only tall since the majority of the structure is under ground (including the entire lower arena level), and contains a portable stage and a state-of-the-art scoreboard and video systems that were updated in 2023. There are 12 concession stands on the concourse.


Concerts

Numerous concerts have been held in the Lloyd Noble Center, and the arena was particularly popular for that in its first ten years. Then, with increased competition from Oklahoma City venues, such as the Myriad/Cox Arena, Ford/Chesapeake/Paycom Center, Jim Norick Arena, Zoo Amphitheater, and Gaming Casinos statewide, the number of musical acts has diminished to just a few per year. Some of the notable musicians and bands that have performed at the LNC include
Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...
performing two back-to-back concerts at the center on March 25 & 26 1977,
The Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock band formed in Palo Alto, California, in 1965. Known for their eclectic style that fused elements of rock, blues, jazz, folk, country, bluegrass, rock and roll, gospel, reggae, and world music with psyc ...
on October 11, 1977, U2 on June 10, 1983, and Journey Frontiers Tour for three dates in July, 1983, returning in 1998. Amy Grant recorded half of her live albums, '' In Concert'' and '' In Concert Volume Two'', at the LNC.Concert Archives History of Concerts at the Lloyd Noble Center
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See also

* List of NCAA Division I basketball arenas


References


External links


Lloyd Noble Center Official site
{{Authority control College gymnastics venues in the United States Convention centers in Oklahoma Oklahoma Sooners basketball venues University of Oklahoma campus 1975 establishments in Oklahoma Sports venues completed in 1975