Construction moves EKU’s basketball teams out of Richmond for several home games this year
Eastern Kentucky’s men’s and women’s basketball teams will be playing in a home away from home for part of the upcoming season.
Ongoing renovations to Baptist Health Arena at Alumni Coliseum in Richmond mean both teams won’t be able to play inside their normal home venue until January, when ASUN Conference play begins for both programs.
So this fall, EKU is using two different venues for home games while Baptist Health Arena is out of action.
EKU’s men’s team — which won a regular season conference title last season for the first time in more than 40 years — will play four nonconference home games 20 minutes south of Richmond at the Seabury Center on the campus of Berea College in Berea. Those games will be against Alice Lloyd College (Nov. 4), Campbellsville-Harrodsburg (Dec. 6), Eastern Illinois (Dec. 14) and Jacksonville State (Dec. 21).
EKU’s women’s team — which won 22 games last season and played in the postseason Women’s Basketball Invitational Tournament — will play three nonconference home games at the Seabury Center, which can seat 2,000 fans. The Colonels are hosting Tennessee State (Nov. 8), Southeast Missouri (Nov. 17) and Maryville College (Nov. 27).
Additionally, EKU’s women’s team is playing two home games at the Clive M. Beck Center on the campus of Transylvania University near downtown Lexington. EKU is hosting Indiana State (Dec. 16) and Northern Illinois (Dec. 17) on back-to-back days in the 1,200-seat venue. These games are part of a multi-team event with the Sycamores and Huskies.
“As grateful as we are to have Baptist Health Arena renovated, as a basketball coach when your first home game is January 11, you know it’s a tough task,” EKU women’s basketball coach Greg Todd said.
Todd — who has compiled a 33-11 home record over three seasons as the EKU women’s basketball coach — expressed gratitude to both Berea and Transylvania for helping accommodate the Colonels during the nonconference season. But, he was also blunt about the challenges that not having a true home gym will pose for his team during the first months of the season.
“Every time we line up — whether it’s at Berea, Transy or on the road — we’re having to get into vans, buses to play those games,” Todd said. “That will be probably one of the toughest obstacles that we will have. But we have a resilient group and I’m looking forward to those challenges.”
EKU men’s basketball coach A.W. Hamilton said when he was meeting with recruits and potential transfer portal additions this offseason, he wasn’t able to show them the Colonels’ home gym, because of the construction.
“We’re going to have one of the toughest schedules in the country. Twenty-two out of 31 of our games are going to be outside of our arena,” Hamilton said.
EKU’s men’s team has been able to practice inside the Seabury Center at Berea, thanks in part to an EKU connection at that school. Austin Newton, who is about to begin his third season as the Berea men’s basketball head coach, played collegiately at EKU and was part of Eastern Kentucky’s 2005 NCAA Tournament team.
“Our team has got a great plan to make that a great fan experience over there at Berea College,” Hamilton said. “It’ll be fun playing over there.”
An effect of EKU’s inability to host true home games this fall comes with the Colonels’ men’s and women’s basketball schedules.
EKU’s men’s team is playing three straight road games against East Tennessee State, Clemson and Chicago State in November following its home opener, before then playing in the Gulf Coast Showcase, a Thanksgiving week tournament in Florida.
The nonconference schedule for EKU’s women’s team includes road dates at Southern Illinois, Radford and Hampton in November. EKU is also playing at Hawai’i Hilo, an NCAA Division II team, in December.
Eastern Kentucky’s basketball programs aren’t the only sports at the school affected by the construction at Baptist Health Arena. EKU’s volleyball team — which boasts a 16-7 record — is playing all of its home matches this season inside the Rick Erdmann Olympic Sports Training Center on EKU’s campus.
Baptist Health Arena renovations will be completed in 2025
Baptist Health Arena closed in March to begin the ongoing renovation project. According to EKU, the construction project will be finished next fall.
The venue will reopen in January for conference play for EKU’s men’s and women’s basketball teams, as well as EKU’s spring graduation ceremonies.
The construction project began under former EKU athletics director Matt Roan and is continuing under EKU’s new AD, Kyle Moats.
Among the features that the new-look Baptist Health Arena will boast are a 300-person concourse club, a courtside club, new restrooms, enhanced concessions and a fan shop.
This story was originally published October 28, 2024 at 1:48 PM with the headline "Construction moves EKU’s basketball teams out of Richmond for several home games this year."
