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The crew here at “Cincy on the Prowl” decided to have a discussion on which renovation we would like to occur in the future. We all know Nippert is under construction as we speak and now the school has turned their sights on hooking up the basketball arena, but the question is which arena? Will they fix Fifth Third Arena which is right smack in the middle of campus? Or will think fix US Bank arena which is a block away from the “The Banks”?
Jesse Smith– @TeezyT
There are more pros than cons to either renovation. I’m personally attached to Fifth Third Arena because as a Bearcat that’s all I know. I’ve been lucky enough to shoot some hoops in that arena and watch countless games there; it’s almost a part of me. If the plan of taking a few seats out and making it more like the Cintas Center is really in play, I would be all for it and it would also keep it on campus.
Moving it to US Bank after doing a facelift to the arena would be nice too because of selling points and possibly getting more old money to come to the games. It would be able to package “The Banks”, Great American Ballpark and/or Paul Brown Stadium with UC basketball, but I think the current students may miss out on a valuable experience that would stick with them forever. To piggyback off of what Ben said, Clifton by campus has been totally revamped and has a lot of places for fans older and younger to spend their money.
I personally wouldn’t be mad at either, but I want UC to renovate Fifth Third Arena. Having a renovated Nippert Stadium and Fifth Third Arena back to back on campus would be pretty sweet and great for everyone on and off campus.
Ben Levin- @LevinMachine
I am in favor of keeping Bearcat basketball on campus at a renovated Fifth-Third Arena. It would be undeniably cool for much of the fan base to be able to go to games downtown at a renovated US Bank Arena, given the development that continues to happen at The Banks. The restaurants and bars that have gone in downtown are awesome. In the short term, the nightlife aspect surrounding downtown makes playing at The Banks an attractive option, and would probably even help UC sell a few more tickets.
That being said, Clifton these days isn’t your father’s Clifton. Hell, it isn’t even my Clifton anymore. It’s about ten times cooler. If you are a regular reader of CincyOnTheProwl, chances are that you are serious fan, so chances are that you’ve also been down to Clifton within the past year to attend at least a couple football and basketball games. Let’s face it – Clifton is now AWESOME. I’d seriously consider going back to get a Masters’ degree just so I could live in Clifton for a couple of years these days. All of that construction and “future development” that my generation of students trudged through on our way to class in the 2000s has now yielded one of the coolest college campuses out there. I know I’m biased, but how can you not love today’s Clifton? Clifton isn’t The Banks, but I think it can rival it.
Now I’m going to use a dirty word in Cincinnati politics – STREETCAR! Whether you like it or not, it looks like it’s happening. (Disclaimer: For the record, I don’t like it. It’s a waste of tax dollars.) But when it’s done, you’ll be able to take said streetcar from Clifton/Fifth-Third Arena/Nippert Stadium down the hill to the OTR strip, The Banks, the casino, and anything else you’d ever want to do downtown. So if we’re planning for the future – the Streetcar Era of Cincinnati, if you will – I like keeping the ‘Cats on campus with regards to the nightlife aspect.
But you know what? To hell with the nightlife aspect. My most important reason for keeping Bearcat basketball on campus is simple: HOME COURT ADVANTAGE. We know how tough Fifth-Third Arena is on visiting teams when the place is rocking, and the reason it rocks is the STUDENT SECTION. If you move basketball downtown, student attendance will plummet. Absolutely tank. Many college basketball games are played on weeknights, and it seems that the AAC’s current TV deal calls for a lot of Saturday and Sunday afternoon games, to boot.
It’s going to be a lot easier for students to walk a couple of blocks from their apartment to pack the Five-Three on campus for a 7:00 tip on a Wednesday night or an early afternoon tip on a Saturday/Sunday. I recall a UC-Notre Dame game played downtown at US Bank some time around 2009-2010. Myself and two roommates, students at the time, were among maybe 300 students who attended that mid-week ESPN televised game. That team was scratching for a tournament birth against a traditional powerhouse, and only 300 students showed up downtown.
Keep Bearcat basketball where it belongs: ON CAMPUS!
Chris Bains- @cinbinbains
Despite indications that UC is leaning closer and closer towards keeping Bearcats basketball on campus, I’m still very much in favor of moving the program downtown. I just feel like, if done properly, US Bank Arena can provide UC a bigger venue for a cheaper cost and be renovated much faster than Fifth Third Arena. Unfortunately there are multiple parties who are slowing down that process but if they were a non factor, downtown would be my choice. I just think it’s the better longterm decision for the growth of the basketball program to be situated in the heart of Cincinnati.
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Now that we have offered our opinion feel free to share your opinion in our comment section.