LEXINGTON – The Lexington Center today announced its plans to sell the Rupp Arenabasketball floor that has been in use since the building opened in 1976. Partial proceeds willgo to the UK Basketball Museum and the Kentucky High School Athletic Association.
Basketball in Kentucky is something you cant understand until you experience it, saidBill Owen, President and CEO of the Lexington Center Corporation. The original Rupp floorrepresents 25 years of rich tradition of both UK Wildcat basketball and Kentucky High SchoolSweet 16. Were excited about making it available to basketball fans everywhere.
In 25 years, the Rupp Arena basketball floor has been used for 364 regular-seasonKentucky basketball games, including 328 Wildcat victories. The floor was first used for theKHSAA Boys Sweet 16 in 1979 when Lafayette won the state title. This weeks Sweet 16 willmark the 18th time the event will be played on the floor.
We are excited to be involved and feel like the players and coaches who have played onthe floor will be excited about the project, said Julian Tackett, Assistant Commissioner of theKHSAA. We think this is a grass-roots project and we believe this is more of a grass-rootsaudience.
The Rupp Arena floor has been used for some historic NCAA championship action aswell. Villanova shocked Georgetown in the 1985 Final Four to win the national championshipand Texas completed a 34-0 season by defeating Southern Cal in the 1986 womensnational championship game. Other postseason play held on the floor of Rupp Arena include:Six NCAA Mens Regionals; Two NCAA First- and Second-Rounds; Three SoutheasternConference Tournaments; Two Ohio Valley Conference Tournaments.
This floor has been very significant to the history of UK basketball, said Van Florence,Director of the UK Basketball Museum. It has given us a lot of victories. The Museum wouldlike to thank the Lexington Center Corporation for allowing us to share in the proceeds. Wehope the new floor is as good to the University of Kentucky as the old floor was.
The floor will be available through the marketing efforts of Host Communications and isavailable through a 24-hour toll free number 1-877-861-6039 or by mail at Rupp ArenaFloor, 546 E. Main St., Lexington, KY 40508 or register online @ www.rupparena.com. Three items ranging from $35.00 to $125.00 are available. A select number of dominantpieces like the Wildcat logos and the free throw lanes will be sold intact.
