EagleBank Arena (originally the Patriot Center ) is a 10,000-seat arena in the eastern United States , on the campus of George Mason University in Fairfax , Virginia , a suburb southwest of Washington, D.C.
19-582: Opened 39 years ago in 1985, it is the home of Patriot men's & women's basketball , and is a venue for concerts and family shows, with 17,000 square feet (1,600 m) of space. EagleBank Arena has attracted 9.6 million people to over 2,958 events to GMU, which has over 30,000 students. In 2010, the EagleBank Arena was ranked seventh nationwide and twelfth worldwide according to ticket sales for venues with capacities between 10,001 and 15,000 by trade publication Venues Today . Also in 2010,
38-532: A CAA player of year three consecutive seasons. He shares the CAA record with NBA legend David Robinson for winning the award three straight times. Other Patriot standouts include Andre Gaddy , Carlos Yates , Kenny Sanders , Curtis McCants , Nate Langley , Robert Dykes , Robert Rose , Jason Miskiri , Jai Lewis , Lamar Butler , Tony Skinn , Gabe Norwood , Folarin Campbell , and Will Thomas . Men's soccer
57-567: A highly ranked Wichita State team, before losing to eventual National Champion Florida in the Final Four. The programʼs largest rivals include conference foes George Washington and Virginia Commonwealth . New rivalries are forming via George Masonʼs admission to the A-10. The best-known player in Patriots history is George Evans , a Gulf War veteran who played from 1997 to 2001 and was
76-650: A partnership led by Ted Leonsis as part of a $ 200 million deal that also saw Leonsis purchase the Washington Capitals hockey team. Leonsis' group increased their ownership of Washington Sports to 44% when they bought out minority owner Arnold Heft in January 2000. Following Pollin's death in 2009, Leonsis purchased the rest of WSE from Pollin's heirs in 2010, and consolidated Washington Sports & Entertainment with his own Lincoln Holdings company to form Monumental Sports & Entertainment . Management of
95-784: A row from 1980 to 1993, and they have finished a season nationally ranked nine times (1981, '82, '84, '85, '87, '88, '90, '92 and '96) in the last 24 years. At George Mason Stadium , the team's 5,000-seat home field which opened for the 1982 season, the Patriots have a record of 140-61-26 (.674 winning percentage). The men's team has reached the NCAA Men's Division I Soccer Championship eight times (1985, '86, '87, '89, '90, '96, 2006 and 2008 ). Notable former players include Joe Addo , Denis Hamlett , Ritchie Kotschau , Bob Lilley , Tamir Linhart , Anthony Noreiga , John O'Hara , Mark Pulisic , Conor Shanosky , John Borrajo , Irad Young , Taylor Washington , and Brent Brockman . George Mason won
114-521: A varsity club football team since 1993 that competes intercollegiately. Their opponents range from other club teams to NCAA Division I FCS programs. GMU was a founding member of the CAA but joined the Atlantic 10 in 2013. While many of the schoolʼs athletic programs have had historical seasons, the men's basketball program remains the flagship sport at the university. The menʼs basketball team has played at
133-647: The NCAA Division I ranks with men's basketball in the 1978–1979 season. According to the History of George Mason basketball , both the men's and women's basketball program have been fixtures of campus life. Within a few years, all other sports also were elevated to Division I status. George Mason reached its current level of 20 varsity sports with the addition of women's lacrosse (1993–1994), women's rowing (1997–1998) and men's and women's swimming & diving (1999–2000). In addition, George Mason has fielded
152-753: The Patriot Center since 1985 after playing prior seasons in the PE Building on the west side of the Fairfax Campus. The menʼs basketball team has made the NCAA tournament six times ( 1989 , 1999 , 2001 , 2006 , 2008 , and 2011 ) and the NIT tournament four times (1986, 2002, 2004 and 2009). The Patriot basketball team is most famous for its 2006 NCAA run to the Final Four. GMU beat perennial powers UNC , Connecticut , and Michigan State , as well as
171-463: The A-10 conference championship their first year in the league (2013). Women's soccer has been perhaps the most successful program at George Mason University. The Patriots have reached the NCAA Division 1 Women's Soccer Championship twelve times and the College Cup four times (1983, '85, '86, '93), in 1983 they reached the final but would lose 4–0 to North Carolina . Under Coach Hank Leung,
190-610: The Patriot Center against CAA opponents. During the 2010–11 season, GMU amassed a perfect 13–0 home record, which was the second time that occurred in three seasons. The arena underwent a $ 10 million renovation, completed in 2009 , that added new concession stands, hospitality area, locker rooms and bathrooms, and an improved main concourse. From its opening, the Patriot Center was managed by Abe Pollin 's Washington Sports, later renamed to Washington Sports & Entertainment. In May 1999, Pollin sold 40% of Washington Sports to
209-533: The Patriot Center passed to this successor company. On February 4, 2012 , GMU men's basketball debuted a new center court scoreboard and set an attendance record against Old Dominion University on homecoming, which then was reached again against James Madison University ; both games were won by double digits. The Patriot Center is the graduation venue for many students of nearby Northern Virginia high schools in addition to hosting Commencement for Northern Virginia Community College . The Patriot Center hosted
SECTION 10
#1732782940063228-473: The Patriot Center was ranked No. 8 nationwide and No. 18 worldwide according to top grossing venues with a capacity between 10,001 and 15,000 by Billboard magazine. In July 2015, it was renamed the EagleBank Arena. The arena is the owned and operated by Monumental Sports & Entertainment . Financing for the construction of the Patriot Center was part of GMU's revenue bond package approved by
247-593: The Patriots would again reach the final in the 1985 tournament , on Nov. 24, in front of a record-crowd of 4,500 people at George Mason Stadium and millions on national television on an ESPN broadcast, No. 3 George Mason would beat No. 2 North Carolina 2–0 to win the school's first ever National Championship in their history. GMU players Pam Baughman and Betsy Drambour won the Most Outstanding Player and Most Outstanding Defensive Player awards respectively while another GMU player, Lisa Gmitter , being
266-659: The Virginia General Assembly in 1982. It replaced a 3,000-seat gymnasium. The first use of the Patriot Center was GMU's graduation ceremonies in May 1985. The official opening of the arena was five months later on October 4, when the Washington Bullets hosted the New York Knicks in an NBA pre-season game, which was the professional debut of future hall of fame center Patrick Ewing ,
285-438: The first overall selection of the 1985 NBA draft out of nearby Georgetown University . The NCAA men's volleyball tournament was held at the Patriot Center in May 1990 . It hosted its first Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) men's basketball tournament in 1986 and its first women's tournament in 2005. The Patriots have amassed an overall record of 220–92 (.705) at the Patriot Center and are also 85–10 (.895) in
304-559: The sold-out UFC Fight Night: Maynard vs. Diaz on January 11, 2010. That was the first time that the UFC had staged an event in the state of Virginia. The arena also hosted a couple of games for the 2018 JBA season , despite not having a team representing the state of Virginia. Due to renovations at Capital One Arena the Washington Mystics played Game 3 of the 2018 WNBA Finals at EagleBank Arena. The Seattle Storm won and it
323-820: The tournament's top scorer with 3 goals. In addition to its NCAA Division I sports, George Mason fields club teams in the following sports: The Patriots have won 2 NCAA team championships, 23 George Mason student-athletes have claimed 35 individual national championships, and 13 George Mason teams have made more than 117 NCAA postseason appearances since the school opened. Men's Women's Men's Women's Mason athletes have captured 280 individual CAA championships, with 47 team CAA titles. Men's [*These titles are shared with American University] Women's Mason has captured 15 team A-10 championships. Men's Swimming and Diving (1) 2020 Women's Northern Virginia Community College Too Many Requests If you report this error to
342-456: Was one of the first varsity sports to be offered when the then George Mason College began its athletic program in the late 1960s. Since then, it has become one of the most successful programs among the 22 NCAA Division I sports currently offered. In the 39-year history of George Mason soccer, the program has a record of 377-264-76 for a winning percentage of .579. The Patriots have posted at least 10 victories in 23 of those seasons, including 14 in
361-718: Was the final game of the 2018 WNBA season . George Mason Patriots The George Mason Patriots are the intercollegiate athletic teams representing George Mason University (GMU), located in Fairfax, Virginia . The Patriots compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as members of the Atlantic 10 Conference for most sports. The Patriots began to move from NAIA and NCAA Division II status into
#62937