May 25, 2013
Mohegan Sun Arena (Capacity: 9,323)
Uncasville, CT
Connecticut Sun vs New York Liberty
Final Score: 81 – 69
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This visit featured a couple of firsts for me: a WNBA game and a casino arena. On a Memorial Day weekend trip to see the attractions in Mystic, CT, we took in the season opener for the Connecticut Sun. The Sun are unique in that they are one of only a few teams not partnered or in the same city as an NBA team. They moved to the Nutmeg State from Orlando in 2003 and were lured there thanks to the great popularity of the Huskies women’s team. After two early conference titles in ’04 and ’05, along with subsequent playoff appearances, the franchise is still looking for its first WNBA championship. Games are played in Uncasville, a small village in the southeast part of the state between Norwich and New London along the Thames River. The area is highlighted by the Mohegan Sun Casino, built in the mid 90s when the Federal Government recognized the tribe and their land. In 2001, a near 10,000 seat arena was added inside and was furnished similarly to the casino. With a perfect location and a great atmosphere, Mohegan Sun Arena is an excellent place to watch a game.
Prestige Ranking: 4 out of 5
Location
An arena inside of a casino has the luxury to offer the fan an array of entertainment just a few minutes from their seat. It was so unique for me to walk out of the arena and still be indoors. The artwork and other interior designs throughout the casino are impressive. Gambling in the form of slots and tables is of course plentiful, but there are also a ton of restaurants to choose from. Four places for fine dining to go along with nearly a dozen casual restaurants make for some tough decisions. We ate at Michael Jordan’s 23.sportcafe and it was really good. It’s also feasible to just grab an ice cream and stroll through the main court, admiring the wonderful décor throughout. While this casino and Foxwoods Casino are the focal point of the area, there is a great museum on the Mashantucket Pequot tribe about 20 minutes away. Also a similar distance is the scenic village of Mystic, where the Seaport (along with the separate Aquarium) is the highlight.
Location Ranking: 10 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
Mohegan Sun is on Route 2A, just off of I-395 which runs North-South thru the eastern part of Connecticut. This interstate also connects with I-95. The huge casino has four parking garages, meaning space is not a problem. The Riverview Garage is best for the arena and if that happens to be full or blocked off, be prepared for a hike thru the casino as the arena can be a good 10-15 minute walk from the other garages. Signs to reach and find the arena are plentiful. Because most people leisurely leave after games, traffic wasn’t a problem.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 7 out of 8
Exterior
This is a tough one because…there is no exterior! With the arena built inside the building, the only outside walls are that of the parking garage. What fans will see driving up is the casino’s distinctive towering glass hotel. I felt bad giving a ranking of 0 for a building not designed for an outside look, so I went with a default 5, partly also on the hotel look. Inside, there are two entrances, one of them includes the box office. Above the arena doors is a “Mohegan Sun Arena” sign.
Exterior Ranking: 5 out of 10
Concourse
After an initial gathering area that leads to the ticket-takers, the concourse past the opening doors is probably decorated the nicest out of any that I have seen thus far. The decorative casino theme continues in the arena, which is furnished throughout in Mohegan tribal motif. The color scheme is stunning, as is the bronze-orange, terrazzo floor. Even the bathrooms looked good. Walls are outlined in a gray brick, with a blue base above. All the more pleasing was the fact that this concourse (which circles the whole arena) did not get too crowded at halftime. Only after the game was there a jam as just having two exits slowed the departure.
Concourse Ranking: 4.5 out of 5
Food
Food stands were plentiful, but the majority of them offered the same thing which was the standard stadium food, snacks and beverages (meatball grinders may be the lone exception). Not that I expected much given the plethora of food elsewhere in the casino. There were a few specialty offerings around including a chicken parm sandwich and a couple surprising hors d’oeurves (one with veggies, the other with pepperoni, cheese and crackers). Beer was similar in that you can find a lot of Bud, Coors and Miller.
Food Ranking: 5 out of 8
Interior
The octagon shape to the arena makes it suited perfectly for basketball and the intimacy of the place helps to accentuate that. Two levels of seating are featured with the dark orange seats in the lower level slightly outnumbering the blue ones in the upper bowl. Seats are a little tight I must say with the skinny arm rest almost making it feel like you are infringing on the person next to you. Much of the lower level is on metal dividers, which cheapens the feel a bit, but was done to allow multiple seating configurations. There is no level of suites at Mohegan Sun Arena, just a lounge-like space built into the back wall above each side of the upper seating. This allows for even better upper deck sightlines. The black wall extends all the way around and starts immediately behind the last row of seats. I’m surprised they didn’t build more suites into this wall as it would be a good spot for them. Overall, I walked away quite impressed with a truly solid basketball arena.
Interior Ranking: 11 out of 14
Scoreboard
I’m not a fan of missing center scoreboards, but if the end ones are good, then I’m OK with it. That is not the case at Mohegan Sun Arena as some fixes are badly needed. Up on each center end wall is a display bookended by a graphic board for player stats that was quite dated. At the center was a video of poor quality that eventually turned off for the second half. To compliment the video, were two corner screens, but the quality was so hazy that it was not even worth looking at. The scoreboard department definitely does not match the rest of the arena.
Scoreboard Ranking: 1 out of 4
Displays
While dedications to the Mohegan Tribe can be seen throughout the concourse from the décor, there is a specific tribute to one man (Jimmy Fox) in the form of an artist’s portrait. Elsewhere in the concourse is the Connecticut Boxing Wall of Fame, complete with a looping video and many plaques to members. It takes up a good chunk of a wall and is well worth a look. With concerts constantly taking place at the arena, the floor near the box office features a layout of star performers, Hollywood Walk of Fame style. As for the Sun, they are treated appropriately with perfectly sized white banners hanging from the rafters of one sideline. The two Eastern Conference Championships are displayed next to a banner for retired numbers, which features an eight-box grid. Two of those boxes are filled with 12 (Margo Dydek) and 42 (Nykesha Sales). A team history section in the concourse is a missing piece.
Displays Ranking: 4 out of 6
Cost
Casino parking was free, a nice perk, while ticket costs varied. With the exception of the very expensive courtside seats, tickets ranged from $14 to $56. Most of the sideline seats were $26 – $36. Unfortunately the team goes through TicketMaster, which means exorbitant fees. If at all possible, try to go with the box office. Some of the food prices were a tad high, which I figured they would be given where we were. Hot Dogs went for $4.50, a Soft Pretzel at $3.50 and Bottled Water for $3.00.
Cost Ranking: 6.5 out of 8
Fan Support
Surprisingly, the announced attendance number was honest at our game as it looked very much like 7,672 were actual people in seats (a rarity for sports). I was impressed with the turnout for the season opener and it comes in a region that has by far the lowest MSA population in the league at #150. Despite a ranking in the lower half of WNBA attendance (which is grossly skewed for tickets distributed) I believe the Sun have a great and very supportive fan base. The crowd featured an older demographic to go along with families and there was about a 50/50 split between men and women.
Fan Support Ranking: 6.5 out of 8
Atmosphere
The majority of the crowd was fully into the game and it made for a very nice atmosphere as each basket was met with rousing applause. Many in the lower bowl stood after significant runs by the home squad and you could tell this was a basketball savvy crowd. They also knew exactly who the Husky graduates were.
Atmosphere Ranking: 10.5 out of 14
Other Stuff
Instead of a team store, an open area of the concourse can be seen with tables and a wall of merchandise….There is actually another Mohegan Sun Arena. That one is officially Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza, which is in Wilkes-Barre, PA. It was renamed in 2010 when the tribe took over a nearby casino and naming rights to the arena…..I’m new to the WNBA and I was displeased by the jersey (something I always look closely at). A distinct European style can be seen as not only are there sponsors on the shirt, but the player name on the back is under the number. Not a fan…..My ticket stub said that cameras were prohibited, however no problems arose with me getting the camera in and taking about 50 pictures…..Around the same time the arena opened, the Mohegan Wolves, an AF2 team began play. They folded after two short seasons…..Along with the main tenant Sun, big-name concerts are quite plentiful at the arena…..Kudos to Sun ownership as they donated some ticket sales for the game we attended to the relief fund for the recent Oklahoma tornadoes.
Game
The season opener for both teams went back and forth during the first half, despite poor shooting by the Sun. In the third quarter, Connecticut took control with a 9-0 run and they never looked back as they locked down New York defensively. The Sun went on to win 81-69 and Tina Charles finished with 19 points and 13 rebounds. It was also a refreshingly efficient game that only took a mere 1 hour and 40 minutes.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
