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Lawlor Events Center

Lawlor Events Center - Home of Wolf Pack Basketball

Location: 15th and North Virginia Streets, Reno, Nev.
Seating: 11,536-person theater seating area in an oval configuration.
Dimensions: Facility covers 201,400 square feet.
Main floor area measures 74'x184' with a 62-foot-high ceiling.
Concourse provides 24,300 square feet of space for crowd movement and exhibits.

Completed: October 1983
Cost: $26 million.
Phone: (775) 784-4659
Fax: (775) 784-4428
Website: http://www.unr.edu/lawlor

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Completed in 1983, Lawlor Events Center, located on the University of Nevada campus, has been home to Wolf Pack men's basketball since its inception and to women's basketball since the 1994-95 season.

Nevada has always had one of the premier facilities in its conference, whether it was the Big Sky, Big West or the Western Athletic Conference, which the Wolf Pack joined in the fall of 2000. The arena seats 11,536 in an oval configuration with every spectator enjoying a center-court line of sight. The seating capacity includes 60 seats mounted on the main floor, bringing fans nearly courtside on all four sides.

Named after Nevada's legendary coach and athletic director Glenn "Jake" Lawlor, Lawlor Events Center was made possible by a grant approved by the Nevada State Legislature in 1979. Ground was originally broken in October 1981, and the construction project was completed on schedule for the grand opening on Nov. 4, 1983.

Originally built at a cost of $26 million, Lawlor Events Center has undergone periodic modifications and improvements. During the 1998-99 season, Lawlor Events Center unveiled a state-of-the-art electronic imaging scoreboard that allows fans to see highlights before each game, player pictures and stats, and includes two statistics boards at each end of the floor. At the start of the 1999-2000 season, in a never-ending effort to consistently modify the facility, the teams played on a new floor.

The arena's capacity and the efforts taken to improve the facility made Lawlor the home of the Big West Conference men's and women's basketball tournaments from 1996-2000. It didn't take the WAC long to tab Nevada for yet another championship tournament coming to Reno in 2005 and 2006. The WAC Tournaments return to Lawlor Events Center in 2009 and 2010.

The NBA has also chosen Lawlor to host exhibition games. So far, the Sacramento Kings, Utah Jazz, Golden State Warriors, Seattle Supersonics and the New Orleans Hornets have all played at Lawlor. In addition to the NBA, the Harlem Globetrotters have also played in the Pack's den.

Lawlor Events Center, however, is far from just a basketball arena.

The facility has served as host to concerts and events throughout its history. Lawlor has been host to such sporting events as the Professional Bull Riding Association's Bull-Nanza and concerts such as Fleetwood Mac, Cher, Bette Midler, Metallica, Prince, Yellowcard and Hilary Duff.

As a concert facility, Lawlor is capable of seating 12,000 spectators, and the arena can be changed in configuration or reduced in size to accommodate smaller acts or to provide a more intimate theater setting.

Also utilized extensively for conventions and meetings, Lawlor's main floor provides accommodations for large convention exhibits and can be used for large group gatherings.

The arena's meeting and convention complex, which was upgraded in July of 2002, includes a large foyer for receptions and registration for meetings and conventions. Eight meeting/ banquet rooms provide nearly 10,000 square feet of space, which can be easily divided into smaller rooms with fully-movable partitions and service access to all areas.

Each of Nevada's basketball teams have locker rooms in the facility with two more opponent locker rooms and two smaller dressing rooms. Additional rooms are utilized for press conferences, educational/social functions, performer rehearsals, personnel briefings, storage for performers, and auxiliary dining, as well as housing for the facility's executive offices.

Men's Basketball Record at Lawlor Events Center
  Home Record  Overall Record
Year W  L Pct. W L Pct.
1983-84 11 6 .647 17 14 .548
1984-85 13 1 .929 21 10 .677
1985-86 10 6 .625 13 15 .500
1986-87 11 4 .733 15 15 .500
1988-89 12 3 .800 16 12 .571
1989-90 10 4 .714 15 13 .536
1990-91 11 3 .786 17 14 .586
1991-92 14 2 .875 19 10 .655
1992-93 6 8 .429 9 17 .346
1993-94 10 4 .714 11 17 .393
1994-95 11 2 .846 18 11 .621
1995-96 9 4 .692 16 13 .552
1996-97 14 3 .824 21 10 .677
1997-98 11 4 .733 16 12 .571
1998-99 6 8 .429 8 18 .308
1999-00 6 7 .462 9 20 .310
2000-01 9 5 .643 10 18 .357
2001-02 10 4 .714 17 13 .567
2002-03 11 3 .786 18 14 .563
2003-04 15 0 1.000 25 9 .735
2004-05 13 4 .765 25 7 .781
2005-06 17 1 .944 27 6 .818
2006-07 15 1 .938 29 5 .853
2007-08 13 3 .813 21 12 .636
2008-09 13 8 .619 21 13 .618
2009-10 15 2 .882 21 13 .618
2010-11 9 5 .643 13 19 .406
2011-12 16 2 .889 28 7 .800
2012-13 10 7 .588 12 19 .387
2013-14 7 8 .467 15 17 .469
2014-15 7 8 467 9 22 .290
2015-16 16 3 .842 24 14 .632
2016-17 13 1 .929 28 7 .800
2017-18 14 1     .933 29 8 .784
2018-19 15 0 1.000 29 5 .853
2019-20 12 3 .800 19 12 .613
Totals 424 145 .745 676 474 .588
Women's Basketball Record at Lawlor Events Center
  Home Record  Overall Record
Year W  L Pct. W L Pct.
1994-95 6 7 .462 10 18 .357
1995-96 5 9 .357 9 17 .346
1996-97 9 6 .600 13 13 .500
1997-98 12 7 .632 19 9 .679
1998-99 9 5 .643 9 19 .321
1999-00 13 3 .813 19 10 .655
2000-01 12 2 .857 16 13 .552
2001-02 7 7 .500 9 19 .321
2002-03 6 8 .429 10 19 .345
2003-04 3 11 .214 3 26 .103
2004-05 6 7 .462 8 22 .267
2005-06 9 5 .643 13 17 .433
2006-07 10 4 .714 17 15 .531
2007-08 12 3 .800 18 12 .600
2008-09 12 4 .750 18 14 .562
2009-10 13 4 .764 17 16 .515
2010-11 11 5 .687 22 11 .667
2011-12 5 10 .333 7 23 .233
2012-13 4 10 .285 8 23 .258
2013-14 11 5 .687 18 13 .580
2014-15 7 7 .500 9 21 .300
2015-16 4 11 .267 5 25 .167
2016-17 8 9 .471 11 19 .367
2017-18 12 5 .705 19 17 .528
2018-19 7 9 .437 12 19 .387
2019-20 10 5 .667 15 16 .484
Totals 223 168 .570 334 446 .428
Top 15 Crowds in Lawlor Events Center
No. Attendance Date Result
1. 11,841 2/8/2017 Nevada 104, UNLV 77
2. 11,784 1/29/2005 Fresno State 66, Nevada 63
3. 11,662 3/4/2017 Nevada 85, Colorado St. 72
4. 11,485 1/28/2006 Nevada 73, Hawai'i 55
5. 11,462 3/3/2007 Nevada 69, New Mexico State 65
6.  11,368 12/9/2006 UNLV 58, Nevada 49
7. 11,341 1/23/2016 Nevada 65, UNLV 63
8. 11,285 2/6/18 UNLV 86, Nevada 78
9.  11,275 3/18/1997 (NIT) Nebraska 78, Nevada 68
10.  11,200 12/30/1987 North Carolina 115, Nevada 91
11.  11,166 3/8/2003 Tulsa 79, Nevada 73
12. 11.164 1/20/18 Nevada 74, Boise State 68
13. 11,125 11/23/1984 Nevada 97, UNLV 89
14. 11,105 2/5/1994 Nevada 93, UNLV 88
15. 11,090 12/8/1990 UNLV 131, Nevada 81