Sacramento State has unveiled the Hornet Pavilion, a new basketball arena that triples the seating capacity of The Nest, accommodating 3,000 fans in a tight environment.The men’s and women’s basketball programs will now play in Hornet Pavilion, replacing The Nest, which was built in the 1950s and had a capacity of just over 1,000 fans. The new arena features LED screens and a new sound system.Mike Bibby, former NBA star and Sacramento State head coach, expressed his hopes for the new venue.”Hopefully, try to get it kind of rocking like Duke University, you know how they have their little Cameron crazies and stuff like that to where it’s like it gives the advantage at the free throw line, you can’t hear nothing, you can’t hear the coach cause fans are going crazy, we kind of need that atmosphere,” Bibby said.Athletic Director Mike Orr shared his vision for the arena’s atmosphere.”College basketball is supposed to be fans close to the court, students close to the court, standing up and cheering, we want it to be loud,” Orr said. “I do think this is going to be one of the best atmospheres in college basketball.”With a capacity of 3,000 fans, the arena is not large by any stretch, but the goal is to make other teams feel claustrophobic. To fill the stands, students and fans have to buy in after the university made significant investments to build up a program with a losing record last season.Sacramento State Athletics hired Bibby and brought NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal in to be the team’s general manager after his son Shaqir O’Neal transferred into the program.”We win, we take care of business on the floor. I look forward to filling this thing up,” said women’s head coach Aaron Kallhoff.The women’s team will be the first to break in the new floor on Monday at 6:30 p.m. against Stanton University.The men’s squad will play its first home game at 7 p.m. on Tuesday against Dominican. Bibby, who is leading the men’s team, shared his anticipation for the season.”Anxious to get started, you know it’s been a long time coming,” he said. “Preparing these guys for a long time, so it’ll be good to get out and make it officially count tomorrow.”Sacramento State Athletics said the price was roughly $10 million, with funding coming from fundraisers, donors, and the biggest chunk, $5.2 million from Union Well Incorporated, which oversees the student union and rec center.The bleachers of Hornet Pavilion also push back to allow the space to be used for student intramurals, events, concerts, and possibly even graduations, according to university staff.See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel

SACRAMENTO, Calif. —

Sacramento State has unveiled the Hornet Pavilion, a new basketball arena that triples the seating capacity of The Nest, accommodating 3,000 fans in a tight environment.

The men’s and women’s basketball programs will now play in Hornet Pavilion, replacing The Nest, which was built in the 1950s and had a capacity of just over 1,000 fans. The new arena features LED screens and a new sound system.

Mike Bibby, former NBA star and Sacramento State head coach, expressed his hopes for the new venue.

“Hopefully, try to get it kind of rocking like Duke University, you know how they have their little Cameron crazies and stuff like that to where it’s like it gives the advantage at the free throw line, you can’t hear nothing, you can’t hear the coach cause fans are going crazy, we kind of need that atmosphere,” Bibby said.

Athletic Director Mike Orr shared his vision for the arena’s atmosphere.

“College basketball is supposed to be fans close to the court, students close to the court, standing up and cheering, we want it to be loud,” Orr said. “I do think this is going to be one of the best atmospheres in college basketball.”

With a capacity of 3,000 fans, the arena is not large by any stretch, but the goal is to make other teams feel claustrophobic.

To fill the stands, students and fans have to buy in after the university made significant investments to build up a program with a losing record last season.

Sacramento State Athletics hired Bibby and brought NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal in to be the team’s general manager after his son Shaqir O’Neal transferred into the program.

“We win, we take care of business on the floor. I look forward to filling this thing up,” said women’s head coach Aaron Kallhoff.

The women’s team will be the first to break in the new floor on Monday at 6:30 p.m. against Stanton University.

The men’s squad will play its first home game at 7 p.m. on Tuesday against Dominican.

Bibby, who is leading the men’s team, shared his anticipation for the season.

“Anxious to get started, you know it’s been a long time coming,” he said. “Preparing these guys for a long time, so it’ll be good to get out and make it officially count tomorrow.”

Sacramento State Athletics said the price was roughly $10 million, with funding coming from fundraisers, donors, and the biggest chunk, $5.2 million from Union Well Incorporated, which oversees the student union and rec center.

The bleachers of Hornet Pavilion also push back to allow the space to be used for student intramurals, events, concerts, and possibly even graduations, according to university staff.

See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel