Favorite WPIAL gymnasiums?

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

Where is that?

That's gym from Hoosiers, in Knightstown, IN. I just walked in one afternoon and looked around, saw like a sign in book (interesting names like Tom Brady), and the hallways, went into the gym, there were some balls and I asked some older guy "can I shoot around?" and he said "go ahead".

Went into the locker rooms, really cool.

 

[epittm]

A while back, there was a thread on the football board discussing favorite stadiums around the WPIAL. What are some of your favorite basketball gymnasiums from around the WPIAL?

Also, how did you come to that decision? Is it a newer, nicer facility like Montour or a historic gymnasium like Wash High? Is it a smaller, more intimate facility or is it a much larger gymnasium like Bethel Park? Does it even have a special, unique floor like Gateway?

What say you?

I have been in some of the gyms mentioned so this is my opinion of each.
Midland- other than the great players , there was nothing special about the actual gym. Looked like a hundred other cookie cutter type gyms.

Farrell- nice setting where I didn’t feel like I was in just another high school gym. Went there to see a Ambridge-Farrell in a game that was supposed to be a test for the great Bridger team of 1967. Ambridge destroyed Farrell by about 20 some points that night. Driving back to New Brighton after the game, we put the radio on and heard the devastating news that 3 astronauts were killed in a fire in their capsule. Obviously, one doesn’t forget a night like that. All of a sudden the game was forgotten.

New Castle- huge but again cookie cutter.

Aliquippa- looked really old when I walked inside but I found myself really enjoying the feel of it. Typical set up but the old type feel made me enjoy it a lot.

Beaver Falls- right across the river from my hometown of New Brighton so I have been there quite a few times. I even saw Geneva College games there because that is where Geneva College played games until Matheny Fieldhouse was built on campus. Great gym. Fans walked in at street level and then down a hall to the court. You actually entered the gym at the top level of the seating area and looked down immediately at the court. Seating was in a horseshoe shape with permanent wooden bleachers. Other than my hometown Dawes Gym, it is my second favorite high school gym where I have seen games.

 

[Panther Holla]

Shout out to the biggest "gym" of them all -- the Igloo. Former home of the WPIAL playoffs. The floor was awful -- cracks and dead spots. You could feel a chill off the ice (covered) from the benches. And the old gondola scoreboard clock made a tick tock sound as it counted down. Man, to a teenager that place looked so huge.... Our Turtle Creek team went 1-2 there over two seasons, losing twice to Midland (semis 1975, finals 1976) and beating South Park (semis, 1976).

 

[SoufOaklin4Life]

The old Wampum gym

liked mohawk’s gym , too

 

[IRoar4Pitt]

Loved St. Mary Lyceum. Played there in a holiday tournament. The balcony that wrapped around the entire court with the pennants of all the schools hanging over the railing. They also had big brackets of the tournament on the wall for everyone to see. Not high school i know

Loved playing in that place! Certainly something about it.

 

[Cap pitt]

I have been in some of the gyms mentioned so this is my opinion of each.
Midland- other than the great players , there was nothing special about the actual gym. Looked like a hundred other cookie cutter type gyms.

Farrell- nice setting where I didn’t feel like I was in just another high school gym. Went there to see a Ambridge-Farrell in a game that was supposed to be a test for the great Bridger team of 1967. Ambridge destroyed Farrell by about 20 some points that night. Driving back to New Brighton after the game, we put the radio on and heard the devastating news that 3 astronauts were killed in a fire in their capsule. Obviously, one doesn’t forget a night like that. All of a sudden the game was forgotten.

New Castle- huge but again cookie cutter.

Aliquippa- looked really old when I walked inside but I found myself really enjoying the feel of it. Typical set up but the old type feel made me enjoy it a lot.

Beaver Falls- right across the river from my hometown of New Brighton so I have been there quite a few times. I even saw Geneva College games there because that is where Geneva College played games until Matheny Fieldhouse was built on campus. Great gym. Fans walked in at street level and then down a hall to the court. You actually entered the gym at the top level of the seating area and looked down immediately at the court. Seating was in a horseshoe shape with permanent wooden bleachers. Other than my hometown Dawes Gym, it is my second favorite high school gym where I have seen games.

New Castle, cookie cutter? And you think New Brighton and Beaver Falls are better facilities. Not even close to new castle gym, a lot of great players played at NC gym. But this thread is about the actual building, I was in the new castle gym over 50 years ago, now totally redone. Ambridge might be the best in the beaver valley

 

[epittm]

New Castle, cookie cutter? And you think New Brighton and Beaver Falls are better facilities. Not even close to new castle gym, a lot of great players played at NC gym. But this thread is about the actual building, I was in the new castle gym over 50 years ago, now totally redone. Ambridge might be the best in the beaver valley

Nothing unique about either new castle or ambridge. Depends what you expect from a high school basketball gym. The gym new Brighton has now falls into the cookie cutter mold. If you look at my post about the original gym in new Brighton, you will see that I was talking about the old gym. Were you ever in Dawes gym. If you were you would have to agree it was unique and memorable. As for beaver falls, were you ever in their gym? Again, unique in its design and atmosphere. I never said new castle or ambridge weren’t good facilities, just not memorable at all. Maybe you and I just came from the op from a different viewpoint.