The William D. Mullins Memorial Center, also known as the Mullins Center, is a 9,493-seat multi-purpose arena (10,500 for 360 concerts), located on the campus of the

University of Massachusetts The University of Massachusetts is the five-campus public university system and the only public research system in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university system includes five campuses (Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, Lowell, and a medical ...

, in

Amherst, Massachusetts Amherst () is a town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Connecticut River valley. As of the 2020 census, the population was 39,263, making it the highest populated municipality in Hampshire County (although the county seat ...

. The Mullins Center is the home of

UMass Minutemen The UMass Minutemen are the athletic teams that represent the University of Massachusetts Amherst; strictly speaking, the ''Minutemen'' nickname applies to men's teams and athletes only — women's teams and athletes are known as ...

men's basketball, women's basketball, and men's ice hockey. In addition, the venue hosts numerous concerts, family shows, theater shows, and commencements annually. Located adjacent to the Mullins Center is the Mullins Community Ice Rink, which is open for public skating and racquetball, while also serving as the home rink for the UMass women's ice hockey team. In 1985, William D. Mullins, a state representative from

Ludlow Ludlow () is a market town in Shropshire, England. The town is significant in the history of the Welsh Marches and in relation to Wales. It is located south of Shrewsbury and north of Hereford, on the A49 road which bypasses the town. The ...

, suggested that the university needed a multipurpose arena and convocation center to help expand the athletic program and assist in the university's growth. He died in 1986, but the state went ahead with the building of the complex, naming it for him. It replaced the

Curry Hicks Cage The Curry Hicks Physical Education Building, better known as the Curry Hicks Cage, is an athletic facility on the campus of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in Amherst, Massachusetts, Amherst. It was built in 1931 as the Physical Educatio ...

, the 1930s-era basketball gymnasium, as home of the Minutemen basketball teams. In addition, it allowed the hockey team, which had been downgraded to club status since the late 1970s, to be elevated to Division I status. Mullins Center 2014

The Mullins Center is managed by Spectra, which manages over 70 different event arenas throughout the United States.

Concerts and events

The Mullins Center has hosted many performances over the years, including:

Musical

Family events

Entertainers, miscellaneous events

Sports

References

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External links

Mullins Center website

University of Massachusetts Amherst Athletics

Global Spectrum

University of Massachusetts Amherst Amherst

Comcast Spectacor
{{Massachusetts NCAA Division I college basketball venue navbox College basketball venues in the United States College ice hockey venues in the United States Basketball venues in Massachusetts Indoor ice hockey venues in Massachusetts UMass Minutemen and Minutewomen basketball University of Massachusetts Amherst buildings 1993 establishments in Massachusetts Sports venues completed in 1993