It's the last week of the regular season in college basketball, so I'm trying to check off a few more venues before the long wait until November. The closest stadium that I had yet to see was Alumni Gymnasium on the campus of Rider University and their last home game was on Wednesday night. I convinced my buddy Eddie to join me, so he picked me up outside my office in New Jersey and we made the drive in good time, arriving at the gym at 6:00.
There is a large free parking lot just behind the gym that was surprisingly full, just not with cars belonging to fans, but to students still hanging out after classes. This is where you can see the backside of the gym with the Go Broncs sign.
Walk around to the main entrance, inside of which is a very small lobby with the ticket windows, restrooms, and a statue of a bronc.
A close-up of the statue, which seems to be telling me to stay back. As bucking broncs do.
The Rider Athletics Hall of Fame can be found in the atrium that joins the gymnasium with the Student Recreation Center next door.
There are two recognizable names: Jason Thompson, who was the 12th overall pick in the 2008 NBA draft and enjoyed a decent career with the Sacramento Kings, and Digger Phelps, who played here before beginning his impressive coaching and broadcasting careers.
The atrium also houses the concessions, which include a small stand with Jersey Mike's subs as well as the other usual fare, and a Starbucks. They are open to all, and we saw one of the Rider cheerleaders in line while we wandered about. This also means that you can bring your own food in should you desire. There is also a giant chair here that makes for a good photo opportunity; I usually travel alone so don't take advantage of these opportunities to look like an idiot.
The gym itself is very small, with a capacity of just 1,650. There are some chairback seats that go for $15, some other seats that are $12, and general admission that cost $10. If you sit in the last row, you get a chairback and save the five bucks too.
You can see the chairback seats in the photo below. The side that faces the Bronc on the floor is mostly general admission, though the seats in the leftmost section are for students, who were out in force on this senior night.
As you can see at the top of that section, this place is known as the Broncs' Zoo. They even added the possessive apostrophe, even though it is not necessary when used for sports teams.
There is a video board above the main entrance. Note that there are two doors; the one on the right as you enter (left in the photo below) leads to the chairbacks, the one on the left is for the GA seats.
At the other end is an alcove that hides the band. I think that this area is closed to regular fans, though I can't imagine it being enjoyable to be that far from the court and dealing with the acoustics.
There are two retired numbers: the aforementioned Jason Thompson and Darrick Suber, who made a game-winning shot to send Rider to their first tournament appearance in 1993. They were a 16 seed and lost to Kentucky 96-52.
I really enjoyed Alumni Gymnasium for its simplicity and small size. The crowd was into the game from the beginning and they were rewarded. Not with a particularly good game, but with a win at least.
The Game
The Manhattan Jaspers were the visitors, coming in at 8-10 in MAAC play, while Rider was 11-8 after their win at Fairfield on Sunday. The Broncs were also 10-1 at home, not surprising given how intimate this place is. The Jaspers green uniforms were the highlight of their game. Rider stormed to a 14-4 lead and went up 23-12 with six minutes remaining, but Manhattan sank three straight treys as part of a 16-6 run to end the first half. It was a messy period, with 22 fouls, 13 against the Jaspers. Only Rider's poor shooting from the line (7-17) kept Manhattan in the game.
Down just a point, the Jaspers had a chance to take the lead on the first play of the second half, but an offensive foul just 7 seconds in ended that dream. That was the first of 25 fouls in the half, with 14 being whistled against Manhattan. Most were properly called as the Jaspers simply played too aggressively on defense. Again, the Broncs struggled at the line which allowed the Jaspers to entertain ideas of a win, until a 25-6 Rider run put paid to that.
Whistle after whistle continued down the stretch, but the outcome was not in doubt for the last 10 minutes, although Manhattan did chip away at the lead during garbage time. The final was 71-59 in a game that was really ugly and painful to watch, but the home fans minded not a whit.
Notice the "bout" counts; Rider has a wrestling program that competes here too. Sometimes it seemed like Manhattan thought it was a wrestling match. Rider finished 17-36 from the stripe which is the only reason that the Jaspers were that close.
Notes
This completes all nine Division I venues in New Jersey for me. There are eight schools, but Seton Hall uses two arenas. Wyoming (1) and Maine (1) are the other states that I have completed.
Best,
Sean
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