I love the Assembly Hall in Champaign, but its days are winding down without renovation. From the numbers I’ve seen, it doesn’t make sense to renovate the old building instead of building a new house of hoops.

The Big Ten has a storied tradition, and each stadium has its own aura. If the University of Illinois is going to build a new building, this is what I hope they learn from their conference neighbors.

Indiana’s Assembly Hall – While Indiana is home to the lesser of the two Assembly Halls, the Hoosier arena does have charm and grace. You can’t deny the awesome feeling of playing in an arena that has uber-history; the five National Championship banners are a good start to building a new arena, but it seems highly unlikely at this juncture. But what I think we can steal is the style of their court. The wood grain and mid-court symbol are awesome. I think our court right now is improved, but change that Indiana outline to an Illinois one and we’re in business.

Iowa’s Carver Hawkeye Arena – Carver Hawkeye Arena is very strange if you have never been there before. When you enter the stadium you are actually on the top row and the entire arena is built underground, kind of. It’s an interesting place to play, although I’ve heard it’s hardly intimidating, and that’s not what I’m going for. Intimidation is key, so what I am taking from Iowa is its proximity to the court. The seat rows go right up to the court surface, that not only makes the viewing experience better but it’s hard to be an opposing team.

Michigan’s Chrysler Arena – Chrysler Arena is set up like a mini, less personal Champaign Assembly Hall. It doesn’t have many legs up to its older brother, but what it does have is school colored seats in maize and blue. Illinois should ditch the lonely gray color and go with orange in the new arena.

Michigan State’s Breslin Center – The Breslin Center housed the longest national win streak for a long time and it wasn’t a fluke. It is a very hard place to go play, and it’s because the alumni have accepted that, for atmosphere’s benefit, there should be more students on the court. The Alumni were still given excellent seating in East Lansing, but have moved over for an entire courtside of Izzone. The sacrifice is commendable and I would imagine Illini alumni would feel similarly.

Minnesota’s Barn – The Barn is the coolest arena in the Big Ten. It has so many unique features that its charm is undeniable. I have also heard that it’s capable of becoming the loudest. I would like to borrow the field-house feel from the Barn. While the newer more NBA-looking stadiums are sweet, I love that old-school campus field-house feel.

Northwestern’s Welsh Ryan – One of the best atmospheres from last season’s magical run was at Northwestern, believe it or not. In Ann Arbor, Michigan gives its fans nice padded seats and they sit the entire game. In Evanston the fans have rock hard benches so they stand. I think in some of the reserved Alumni area they should have seats, but in the entire student area it should be bench only. Students should not be sitting at games, and with benches you can pack many more people in, 12 inches a person is all we need.

Ohio State’s Schottenstein Center – The prince of amenities in the Big Ten Conference. The Schott is the brainchild of a school that has too much athletic budget to spend, it’s really incredible that this monstrosity was constructed. Barring knapsacks full of cash, the facilities at Ohio State were the bait to nab the Thad Five. What Illinois would need in its new stadium is luxury boxes like Ohio State’s. This would also help to bring the big-time Alumni off the court and also give them the first class service they deserve. Not only that, but Illinois should go into the project with the Buckeye mindset – if you’re going to do it, do it BIG.

Penn State’s Bryce Jordan Arena – Bryce Jordan Arena hasn’t had many big games played there yet, but it does have the capability to entertain the crowd nonetheless. Penn State has great video screens at Bryce Jordan, and its athletic department does a comparable job to Illinois’ in compiling highlights. I want that board. I need that board.

Purdue’s Mackey – Mackey Arena doesn’t do much well anymore; it’s outdated and hasn’t been able to sell out since Illinois helped. What Purdue does do well is highlight its fans. The former Gene Pool, and the current Paint Crew, is placed well and given the opportunity to help their team. I don’t want our students in the same locale, but I want them to be highlighted in the new arena.

Wisconsin’s Kohl Center – The Kohl Center is a really cool arena so I’m taking two things. First is their sound system, they kidnapped the man from Bose and made him put in the craziest bass in the solar system. That place rocks and they use it, the band is great there but isn’t the only noise the building generates. The new Champaign building needs loud speakers. Second, the student section goes up and up and up to the top so that the example set at the court behind the basket continues to the ceiling. But let’s do them one better and put students behind both ends of the court, Ohio State has the best behind the basket arrangement, but Wisconsin carries the energy to the top.

I think these are some great ideas!

Ian Gold is a senior in Communications. He can be reached at [email protected].