November 23, 2004
Alumni Arena (Capacity: 6,100)
Amherst, NY
Buffalo Bulls vs Fairleigh Dickinson Knights
Final Score: 87 – 84 (OT)
* The arena was revisited for a game on November 28, 2015
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The University at Buffalo is the largest school in the State University of New York (SUNY) system and they make it abundantly (and annoyingly) clear that they are the flagship school in the state. UB has become known for its pharmaceutical program and the school’s high amount of overall academic research. The core portion of the university is in North Campus, which is located in Amherst, a large suburb of 120,000 people on the northeast side of Buffalo. Athletically, the Bulls moved to Division I in 1991 before settling into the MAC in 1999. My first visit was when UB finally became a contender on the conference scene as Turner Battle entered his senior year. A decade of close championship calls followed until in 2015, they finally captured the conference crown in Cleveland. That would be the start of an impressive run including a pair of NCAA Tournament First Round wins. I made my return later in 2015, when a young Nate Oats was in just his 6th game as coach of the team. Alumni Arena was built in 1982 and it’s an odd place for basketball that has the feel of a basement.
Prestige Ranking: 2.5 out of 5
Location
The campus design is rather dull as all the brick academic buildings are clustered in the middle, with parking lots on the outskirts. Alumni Arena sits on the eastern edge of campus, in between the football stadium and the remainder of campus. Amherst is a perfectly fine town to live in, it just won’t have anything that you’ll desire to visit before the game since this is a suburb. About 20 minutes away is downtown Buffalo and 30 minutes away is the more interesting Niagara Falls.
Location Ranking: 4 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
Getting to the area is fairly easy as I-290 circles the outer Buffalo suburbs and also connects with the New York State Thruway (I-90). Exit 5 onto the Millersburg Highway goes around UB with various entrances to campus. A small parking lot is on the right side of the road across from Alumni Arena and it was enough to suffice for the crowd on hand. Additional parking can be found southwest of the arena. While it is not completely clear that the lots are open to fans attending athletic events, following the crowd makes that more apparent. I didn’t have any issue finding parking or leaving after the game, however, I could see how traffic could get backed up. To sneak out unnoticed, it is best to park on the northeast side of the arena and then exit thru the Webster Entrance.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 7 out of 8
Exterior
This is one ugly arena. You’re looking at just a boring brick building with a shape that is mainly rectangular. One side features a tiny little stamped on sign saying ‘Alumni Arena’
Exterior Ranking: 2 out of 10
Concourse
There are a pair of entrances and the main one is on the west-side of the building. Here, you’ll find a lobby with bright lights so close that you may fear zapping your head on them. The multi-purpose facility diverges into several different areas. The lower level has signage, team displays and concession stands. Upstairs, there are these bridge-like walkways that lead to doors for the arena’s interior. The first time I was here, many of the doors were locked. Despite the odd layout, crowding wasn’t really an issue.
Concourse Ranking: 2.5 out of 5
Food
Concession stand offerings weren’t all that exciting as they were mostly snacks and smaller choices like bland hot dogs or pizza. There was a separate cart selling Italian Sausage and Red Osier Roast Beef Sandwiches. That last item is a local favorite and your best bet for something to munch on.
Food Ranking: 3 out of 8
Interior
Three out of the four sides have seating in the form of a large, pull-out sections. Blue individual chairs are along the sidelines and bleachers are behind the baskets (“BULLS” is spelled into the bleachers). There are some significant gaps between the sections and the wasted space that formerly was filled with Kids Play areas was left empty during my return visit. Main seating on the other sideline is configured into three levels. The first level is regular seating like the other side, while the next two sections go upward and outward, as they partially fill the corners, making for odd corner seats that are a good distance from the court. It’s not a great design, and the expansiveness is a turn-off because of the significant empty space in between the four sides and the distance from the upper side levels. My biggest pet-peeve were the railings around the 200 and 300 side seats that got in the way of the court view for many. A walkway about halfway up on the arena connects all the different sections. Inside walls give Alumni Arena a cold feel as they are a dreary gray brick, making it look like a bunker or basement. There’s also strange blue pipes that come out of these walls and run through the ceiling. On the positive side, where there are individual chairs, they are comfortable and rows are wide.
Interior Ranking: 5.5 out of 14
Scoreboard
The scoreboard is above center is pretty solid as it features four clear video screens and a ribbon board underneath displaying time/score in a bold fashion. My favorite part is the metallic “Buffalo” wordmark around the top. Video is nice and clear, though the operator loved the backboard camera a little too much. On each end wall is a dot-matrix display for player stats.
Scoreboard Ranking: 3.5 out of 4
Displays
There are multiple displays in the lower concourse, with the most visible one being an athletics Hall of Fame. Trophy cases are scattered around as are some other interesting finds, including a statue of a charging bull. Inside, there are several blue banners around that are in recognition of championships from Bulls’ teams that play inside the arena. The walls also feature banners for each MAC team. Lastly, three retired numbers hang from the rafters: Jim Horne, Harold Kuhn & Curtis Blackmore.
Displays Ranking: 4 out of 6
Cost
Prices were pretty good for a game in the MAC. Parking was free and my upper-level ticket was $12. Tickets for the lower seats were a little bit more, but not too bad.
Cost Ranking: 8 out of 8
Fan Support
Attendance was listed at 2,783 for the first game I went to and around that number has been standard through the years leading up to my return. That puts Buffalo 3rd or 4th in league attendance standings. About half of the student section was filled, though many kids headed home as Thanksgiving Break started. There was also a pep band that stayed rather quiet through the game. MAC First Round Tournament games have been a decent draw and having a large alumni base helps. Especially since Buffalo is much more of a pro sports kind of town.
Fan Support Ranking: 4.5 out of 8
Atmosphere
UB’s atmosphere was average for a mid-major team. The crowd responded at times, but never seemed completely interested in the event. Typifying that was the lack of a huge reaction after a remarkably dramatic finish to the end of regulation. As the Bulls tied the game at the buzzer, I found myself being the only one on my feet. Disappointing, as that play (and preceding comeback) should have had everyone up and going nuts. For the second game I went to, the atmosphere was a little better, but several aspects remained as the crowd did nothing more than applaud after baskets and “oooo” after a couple big plays. This one had another fantastic finish and the roar inside was a lot more notable when the Bulls scored the winning basket with 4 seconds left. Maybe a quarter of the crowd got on their feet. Of course, I missed the students (Thanksgiving break) for this one and in the last few years they have created a decent presence behind the basket.
Atmosphere Ranking: 6.5 out of 14
Other Stuff
Alumni Arena is also home to UB Volleyball and Wrestling. There are also many other uses for the building as it houses offices, locker rooms and other training facilities…..In December of 1999, the Bulls had the rare treat for a mid-major team as they hosted a national power. North Carolina came to Alumni Arena, where a sold-out crowd watched UB fall 91-67.
Game (Initial Visit)
This was one of the craziest finishes that I’ve ever seen live. After a poor first half, Buffalo continued to struggle while Fairleigh Dickinson found its game. The Knights went up by seven with 45 seconds left. Then, two UB baskets and two missed FDU free throws cut the lead to 3 with :13 left. FDU missed two free throws again and UB’s Daniel Gilbert went up for a three, but got fouled with 1.7 seconds left. He missed the first, made the second and missed the third, but FDU lost the rebound out of bounds. With 1.3 seconds on the clock, Turner Battle threw an alley-oop dunk over the backboard to Mark Bortz to tie the game and send it to OT. Unbelievable! In the extra session, UB jumped out to the lead and hung on as FDU missed a pair of three-pointers in an attempt to try and tie it at the end of the game. Battle nearly had a triple-double with 17 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists. Bortz finished with 24.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
