The Gersten Pavilion is a 3,900-seat multi-purpose

arena An arena is a large enclosed platform, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators ...

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. It is the home of the Loyola Marymount University Lions. It was built in 1981 and has been used for home games by the university's men's basketball,

women's basketball Women's basketball is the team sport of basketball played by women. It began being played in 1892, one year after men's basketball, at Smith College in Massachusetts. It spread across the United States, in large part via women's college compet ...

, and volleyball teams since January 1982. It was also the part-time practice home for the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

. It was the site for the

weightlifting Weightlifting generally refers to activities in which people lift Weight training#Equipment, weights, often in the form of dumbbells or barbells. People lift various kinds of weights for a variety of different reasons. These may include various t ...

competition for the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the secon ...

. On March 4, 1990, LMU star

Hank Gathers Eric Wilson "Hank" Gathers Jr. (February 11, 1967 – March 4, 1990) was an American college basketball player for the Loyola Marymount Lions in the West Coast Conference (WCC). As a junior in 1989, he became the second player in NCAA Division I ...

died during a

West Coast Conference The West Coast Conference (WCC) — known as the California Basketball Association from 1952 to 1956 and then as the West Coast Athletic Conference until 1989 — is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with NCAA Division I consisting of ...

men's basketball tournament game from

cardiomyopathy Cardiomyopathy is a group of diseases that affect the heart muscle. Early on there may be few or no symptoms. As the disease worsens, shortness of breath, feeling tired, and swelling of the legs may occur, due to the onset of heart failure. A ...

. The tourney was promptly suspended and LMU was awarded the NCAA bid based on their regular season title. The facility also hosted the WCC tournament in 1997. The arena is known among LMU alumni as "Hank's House" in honor of Gathers and the phrase "This is Hank's House" is recited before the start of every men's basketball game.

References

External links

LMU Gersten Pavilion page
{{commonscat, Gersten Pavilion College basketball venues in the United States Loyola Marymount Lions men's basketball Loyola Marymount Lions women's basketball Loyola Marymount Lions men's volleyball Loyola Marymount Lions women's volleyball Basketball venues in Los Angeles Venues of the 1984 Summer Olympics Olympic weightlifting venues Westchester, Los Angeles College volleyball venues in the United States Volleyball venues in Los Angeles 1981 establishments in California Sports venues completed in 1981

See also

References

External links