March 1, 2002
Newman Arena (Capacity: 4,473)
Ithaca, NY
Cornell Big Red vs Princeton Tigers
Final Score: 57 – 61
* The arena was revisited for a game on March 5, 2016
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My first ever stadium trip riding solo was to Ithaca, NY and the drive started great with a beautiful sunset and Dave Matthews Band in the background of my car CD player. A late season Ivy League game between Cornell and Princeton in Newman Arena would make for stadium visit #7. The prestigious and private Cornell University focuses on research and this school of nearly 20,000 students features a huge campus in the city of Ithaca. City is a generous word as Ithaca really is more of a big college town with a population of 30,000. It is located within the Finger Lakes region of New York State, one of the country’s most scenic areas. When it comes to basketball, Cornell was often a footnote to a league dominated by Princeton and Penn. The only Ivy championship prior to my visit was in 1988. Later in the 2000s, the league became more competitive and Cornell had a remarkable three year run from 2008 – 2010 that culminated with a pair of NCAA Tournament wins and a Sweet 16 appearance. When I returned for a game in 2016, the Big Red settled back into mediocrity, finishing no better than 5th place in the Ivy after that glorious run. Newman Arena was completed in 1990 and the basic arena is typical for an Ivy League gym.
Prestige Ranking: 1.5 out of 5
Location
The area is absolutely beautiful to visit, though the warm season is the best time as the outdoors are the main attraction. Wineries, waterfalls and gorges make this a destination for many. Ithaca is on the southern end of Cayuga Lake and the downtown is worth strolling thru as there are plenty of hangouts to stop at. Expansive Cornell is on the east side of town and attractions on campus include the McGraw Tower, Fall Creek and plenty of historical buildings..
Location Ranking: 7 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
The closest interstate (I-81) is over 20 miles away, so country roads are needed to reach the area. Either exit 8 or exit 12 off of I-81 is the best place to start the venture to Cornell. I used Exit 12, which started me near Cortland before meandering my way to Ithaca. This certainly could be a dicey venture at night in the winter as dodging snow showers is a distinct possibility. Meanwhile, from the NY State Thruway (I-90) it takes almost 45 minutes of two-lane country roads to reach Ithaca. Once on Cornell’s hilly campus, the small roads and busy pedestrian traffic can make things a little confusing for visitors, but thankfully the athletic section is not far from the campus entrance. A parking deck near the arena is open for basketball games.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 5.5 out of 8
Exterior
Bartels Hall is the building in which Newman Arena is contained and this complex features a myriad of athletic facilities, offices and training centers. From the outside, small circular light towers on the sidewalk illuminate the facility nicely and the main entrance has a glass triangular atrium in the front. Light gray brick is mostly used for the simply designed outside and the rectangular building has a modern look. Bartels Hall is lettered out at the end of the building.
Exterior Ranking: 3 out of 10
Concourse
A small vestibule contains a few ticket windows before fans pass into the main portion of Bartels Hall. This congregation area acts as a main center to access the building’s many other sections. It is roomy enough, but amenities are limited as only one spot offers concessions, while the bathrooms are small. To the right, is a corridor that leads to the basketball arena with access both from the floor and at the top of the seating bowl.
Concourse Ranking: 2 out of 5
Food
Food offerings include more than the standard fare with items like Chili, Chicken Caesar Wraps and various burger/chicken baskets. New England is represented with Lobster Rolls and Clam Chowder, along with separate Dunkin Donuts kiosks. Unfortunately, some of the more unique food carts (like Irish Pot Pies) were closed. Beer choices are national brands.
Food Ranking: 6 out of 8
Interior
Newman Arena is much more high school gym than college basketball arena. Seating is in the form of pull-out, wooden bleachers along the sidelines, with just one section in the middle sideline that features red chairs. A walkway separates the bleachers about two-thirds of the way up. At the ends, are a few rows of bleacher seating tucked in between the wall and the basket. The only resemblance to an arena is the glass enclosed alumni areas above each end. Otherwise, the gray-brick walled facility does little to impress.
Interior Ranking: 4 out of 14
Scoreboard
A small red scoreboard sits above center court with only the most basic information on it. There is not even a place to see how many timeouts a team has left. At the top, is a label saying “Presented by Class of 1960”.
Scoreboard Ranking: 0.5 out of 4
Displays
School spirit in the concourses of Bartels Hall makes the arena scream Cornell, as does the splashes of red in the gym. Wonderful murals in the concourse depict athletes in every sport that Cornell competes in. Plus, the walls feature displays noting memorable events in Big Red history. Inside Newman Arena banners hanging from the rafters display league championships in the sports competing on the floor below.
Displays Ranking: 4 out of 6
Cost
A Cornell game is very affordable with free parking, cheap concessions and tickets at a low price. The first time I went in 2002, a ticket was $5 and that only went up to $8 in 2016.
Cost Ranking: 8 out of 8
Fan Support
Hockey is the big winter sport at Cornell and basketball takes a backseat to games in the arena next door as annual average basketball attendance tops out around 1,000. This is good to rank in the middle of the pack for the Ivy League. The school and city showed nice support during the team’s three-year glory run as Newman Arena was packed on many occasions. Outside of that anomaly, crowds filling a quarter to a third of the arena are the norm. On both nights I attended, that was the case.
Fan Support Ranking: 2.5 out of 8
Atmosphere
It’s mostly a family atmosphere at basketball games. There is at least some spark in the fans as there were a couple times during the game I attended where they responded to the play with decent cheering. Pep band interaction is limited.
Atmosphere Ranking: 5 out of 14
Other Stuff
Cornell spent over 70 years in Barton Hall before moving to Newman. The old field house was actually an armory and it served many functions for the area……Newman Arena was named after Floyd R. Newman, who contributed financially to the University……One of the cooler features inside the multi-purpose hall is the Lindseth Climbing Wall. This is the largest indoor rock climbing wall in North America, though unfortunately to use it, you need to be affiliated with Cornell……John Thompson’s son, John Thompson III, was the coach for the visiting Princeton Tigers on the first night I visited.
Game (Initial Visit)
Princeton hung on for a hard fought four-point win against a game Cornell squad. The Big Red led at the half by five and Princeton stayed cold to start the second half. Eventually, Princeton recovered and made their free throws at the end as the Tigers hung on for the win, which clinched at least a share of the Ivy League title.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
