February 11, 2024
Mullins Center (Capacity: 9,493)
Amherst, MA
Massachusetts Minutemen vs Rhode Island Rams
Final Score: 81 – 79
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Up in the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts is the quaint city of Amherst, which has a population of 40,000. This place is the true definition of a college town because there is not one, not two, but three schools of higher learning within the city. The biggest is the University of Massachusetts and it is quite large in both enrollment (27,000) and land use (1460 acres). It is known as “The Flagship”, a rather elitist moniker as it refers to being the head of the state’s university system. Somewhat of a forgotten school in the college basketball landscape, UMass has a deep history. Back in the 60s and 70s, they won many Yankee Conference titles and were led by Julius Erving, Al Skinner and Rick Pitino. There was only 1 berth in the NCAAs, but the NIT was just as popular and they were a frequent invite. The team moved to the Atlantic Ten Conference in 1982 and then the 1990s was the John Calipari era. With big man Marcus Camby in the middle, the Minutemen were a powerhouse. They were ranked #1 in the country for much of the ’95-’96 season and they made it to the Final Four that season. After Calipari left, the team was fine under Bruiser Flint, however the 21st century has been a struggle. They’ve made the NCAA Tournament just once (2014) and they’ve had a winning conference record only 8 times out of 23 seasons. The Mullins Center opened in 1993 and it’s a simple building that I liked overall.
Prestige Ranking: 3 out of 5
Location
Amherst Center is small and it offers a walkable downtown that has an older look to it. A common space in the middle makes the core areas of business set-up in the shape of a “T” when viewing from above. A lot of the food and drink available caters to the college crowd, plus there’s a good amount of diversity on the restaurant scene. There was even a Tibetan place. Amherst has a few museums, one dedicated to Emily Dickinson and another on city history (limited hours though). Perhaps the most interesting is the Beneski Museum of Natural History on the campus of Amherst College. The private school is one of the country’s elite and this highly selective and highly rated college is right downtown. UMass is in the northeast part of the city, not quite within walking distance from the center of Amherst. Campus is large and the best place to get a look at the school is near the Campus Pond. That is relatively close to the Mullins Center on the west side of campus.
Location Ranking: 6 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
The lone highway running through Western Massachusetts is I-91. Travelers coming from Boston or Albany can meet up with this interstate near Springfield as that is where the Mass Pike (I-90) intersects. Amherst is 10-15 minutes from Exit 25 on I-91 and the arrival is simple enough (Route 9 to Route 116). If you decide to head downtown, it can be congested, especially during the evenings. The Mullins Center is along the speed bump filled Commonwealth Ave and there is a good amount of parking in the adjacent lots to the arena, some with overhead solar panels. With that lot, you have to be strategic when exiting. Don’t get out in the back to the stoplight at Holdsworth Way as the wait and traffic can be awful. Instead, park near Commonwealth Ave and there are outlets on that side of the parking lot back to the main road. A garage in the middle of campus is also available in case any of the parking near the arena is completely full.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 7 out of 8
Exterior
The Mullins Center seems to have taken a page out of the Ballparks built in the era of the 1990s. Brick and green is the overall visual as the sloped roof has a distinctive color and design. The lower two-thirds are made up of brick with a good amount of windows that look out from the concourse. The main entrance is actually at the end of the building and this has slightly more pizzazz and it almost had a large factory/warehouse feel to it.
Exterior Ranking: 6 out of 10
Concourse
The single concourse is at ground level and it goes around the length of the building with corner space just a bit more open than the sides. A sellout would certainly lead to congestion and jam-ups, but with a half-house, traffic wasn’t overly terrible. Roped off areas for concession lines can narrow the space on the sides. In terms of the look, it’s older between the tiled floor and the brick walls. The triangular ceiling and wall displays do improve the visuals. Note that there is no space to watch the game from here and no easy spot to congregate before the game or at the half. It is a stark separation between arena and concourse as closed doors through section openings divide the two and there is no walkway inside the seating bowl.
Concourse Ranking: 2.5 out of 5
Food
It is weird to see campus dining services promoted so much at an athletic event. Despite that, UMass Dining delivered as they brought variety and quality. I was most interested in the BBQ and the platter featured a lot of food, too much for me to finish. The Pulled Pork/Mac & Cheese/Cornbread was a solid choice. Each game features a highlighted Specialty Pizza and an item from the “Chef’s Table” (it was a chicken/rice bowl when I attended). Concession stands don’t have a lot of options per stand, so I’d advise walking around the arena or seeking a map. Don’t sleep on the Ice Cream options as the local creamery has some fantastic flavors as evidenced by the long lines. The Pancake Sundae sounded amazing too. Lastly, Amherst Brewing is the beer of choice and they include a drink made for the University (strange to say that), generically called “Massachusetts Lager”.
Food Ranking: 6 out of 8
Interior
This is a simple arena as the seating bowl goes around in the shape of a rounded rectangle. Maroon seating adds character and the chairs themselves vary in comfort. On one side, they are a bit narrow and hard to sit on. In Sections C thru L, there is padding and offer a much better feel. Definitely go with a seat on this side of the arena. Sightlines are fine, but because it is an arena that has to also fit for hockey, seats are pushed further from the court, especially at the ends. It is a one level seating bowl and I didn’t like the middle concourse openings because it meant that some sections go from floor to roof and some are broken up. Near these wide entranceways, the connecting stairs and railings were obstructions to the court. In fact, I tried an aisle seat 4 rows up and still had the railing in my line of sight with the court. Wall material inside is either concrete or gray siding, which contrasts with the brick found in the concourse and exterior. The only luxury seating are impersonal Loge Seating, which is a row of fancy chairs and a table between the lower and upper seating.
Interior Ranking: 7.5 out of 14
Scoreboard
Above center is a really nice widescreen display that fits the arena perfectly. What’s odd is that they don’t put the score and time on the screen. Instead, there is a dot-matrix on the façade of the middle concourse opening (see picture below). You really have to train your eyes. A large Mullins Center wordprint is at the top and the ends feature a UMass logo as video is only pointed to the sidelines. To address this, each end of the arena has another large scoreboard and these ones have a full compliment of stats and information.
Scoreboard Ranking: 3.5 out of 4
Displays
On the outside, there are four statues around a circle before reaching the building and these honor the program’s greatest when it comes to basketball: Jack Leaman, Julius Erving, Marcus Camby and John Calipari. They’re a little small, but very well done. Inside, a plaque for the building’s namesake and various pictures adorn the concourse. When watching the game, one end of the arena is reserved for basketball honors that include retired numbers, A-10 Championships, NCAA Appearances and Mid-1990s achievements in the Tourney. There is nothing that goes into detail on the program history.
Displays Ranking: 3.5 out of 6
Cost
It was much cheaper than I expected as I pulled into the parking lot surprised to see that it was free. I held off buying tickets in advance and saved a few on fees by getting them at the box office upon arrival. The range was $15, $22 and $26…not a bad deal and on the lower end of the A-10 scale. Crowds aren’t big at the Mullins Center, so getting a $15 seat in Section E is your best bet. You also probably won’t have an issue moving to a better section later in the first half. The more expensive concession items ($9 – $15) at least are worth it given the amount of food (a whole pizza pie or other platters). Ice Cream was $6, Cookies/Brownies/Soda were just $2 or $3. However, local beer was super expensive at $12.
Cost Ranking: 7.5 out of 8
Fan Support
Two things hurt attendance for this 2 PM Sunday start: 1) it was on the same day as the Super Bowl and 2) There was a hockey game the night before that drew a decent crowd. The announced attendance of 3,553 was at least 1,000 more than who actually showed up. There are ebbs and flows to the popularity of the winter programs at UMass and winning is definitely a key driver, even moreso than many other places where long standing tradition or success defines somewhere as “A (hockey or basketball) school”. The last time the Minutemen made the NCAA Tournament, they had an average paid number of 6,544. That has been cut in half taking an average of the last six non-covid impacted seasons (3,044). UMass is squarely in the middle of A-10 attendance rankings and that is a fair assertion if you were to also rank teams by the arbitrary feel and look of Fan Support as well. Student turnout was very poor for this game and even when they do come on out to games, it generally pales in comparison to what hockey brings.
Fan Support Ranking: 4.5 out of 8
Atmosphere
At first, it seemed like there wasn’t going to be much energy as attendance vs arena size mainly gave me that impression. The multi-purpose nature of the arena and distanced seating doesn’t help. However, the crowd was better than expected as their cheering was decent and there was a crescendo at key moments. Multiple times, fans responded well to team runs or big defensive stops and I saw several get on their feet. The atmosphere was decent overall despite the arena never getting all that loud. A pep band helped with energy and I really love that fight song. It was a pleasant surprise as I didn’t know about it going in and the middle section is real catchy. It’s too bad the student turnout was so poor as that meant there were times when it was quiet inside.
Atmosphere Ranking: 8 out of 14
Other Stuff
The nickname “Minutemen” is derived from the New England colonists of the same name that were instrumental during the Revolutionary War…..UMass brands itself as the “Flagship”, because it is the primary campus in the University of Massachusetts system. I hate this elitist moniker and it probably bothers me more than it should. I also find the gigantic state outline at center court to be obnoxious…..The full name of the arena is the William D. Mullins Memorial Center, named after a state representative who pushed for the idea of the arena. Some locals nickname it “The Bill”……I like how at the beginning of each row, there are very clear labels on the side of the seat denoting the Row and Seat Numbers…..UMass has a real catchy fight song (0:30) that I did not know about going in to the visit. The middle part is fun to join in to……While they’ve certainly had more heated rivalries in the past, the team that UMass has played the most is Rhode Island as they have gone head to head in basketball every year since 1950…..Adjacent to the arena is a separate building that contains a community ice rink……After the announcement that there is one minute left in the half, the crowd responds with “Thank You” and the P.A. will answer back a quick reply. It may be “Your Welcome” or “No Problem” or “Anytime” or “Denada”. Nice little touch.
Game
This was a wacky game as each team had a sizable lead. It looked over in the second half as the Minutemen built their advantage to 14 points with 5 minutes to play. It was 3:40 PM and I was whistling dixie as I’d get home in time for the Super Bowl. Then Jaden House went off for the Rams. He went on a solo 10-0 run and that kept the game in the “foul and replay review” territory as the UMass lead was in the 3-8 point range with less than a minute to play. Remarkably, UMass went just 1 for 5 at the free throw line towards the end of the game and if it wasn’t for a couple hustle plays by Matt Cross to retain possession, this game would’ve turned to Rhode Island quicker. A miraculous three with 6 seconds left cut the lead to two and another missed free throw gave URI a shot. They missed it at the buzzer and the Minutemen survived 81-79. The final 5 minutes of game play took an agonizing 32 minutes of real time, especially since I didn’t get back to Jersey until 7:50 PM on Super Bowl Sunday. Rasul Diggins went 6 for 11 from behind the arc for UMass.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
