Bud Walton Arena
| Basketball Palace of Mid-America | |
 |
|
| Location | 1270 West Leroy Pond Drive Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701-5570 |
|---|---|
| Owner | University of Arkansas |
| Operator | University of Arkansas |
| Capacity | 19,368 (2009-present) 19,200 (1993–2009) |
| Record attendance | 20,320 (January 26, 1997 vs. Kentucky) |
| Surface | Hardwood Floor |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | March 28, 1992 |
| Opened | November 29, 1993 |
| Construction cost | $30 Million ($49.7 million in 2016 dollars) |
| Architect |
Rosser International Mott Mobley McGowan & Griffin |
| General contractor | Huber, Hunt & Nichiols |
| Tenants | |
| Arkansas Razorbacks men's and women's basketball teams (1993-present) | |
Bud Walton Arena (also known as the Basketball Palace of Mid-America) is the home to the men's and women's basketball teams of the University of Arkansas, known as the Razorbacks. It is located on the campus of the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, Arkansas and has a seating capacity of 19,368, which is the fifth largest for an on-campus arena in the United States.
The arena features Bud Walton Arena Razorback Sports Museum on the ground level about the history of Razorback basketball, track and field, baseball, tennis and golf.
The arena is named after James "Bud" Walton, co-founder of Walmart, who donated a large portion of the funds needed to build the arena. Walton purportedly gave 15 million, or around half of the construction cost. Construction of the arena took only 18 months, a short time considering the size of the undertaking.
When it was built, it was touted as a larger version of Barnhill Arena, the team's former home. In hopes of recreating the formidable home-court advantage the Razorbacks enjoyed at Barnhill, architect Rosser International built an arena that, as it put it, had "more seats in less space than in any other facility of the same type anywhere in the world."
The arena has been the home to the Razorbacks since November 1993; the men's team won the national championship in the arena's first season of operation. The basketball team's former home, Barnhill Arena was renovated into a volleyball-specific facility and now houses the Razorback women volleyball team.
In its early years, Nolan Richardson's teams frequently attracted standing-room-only crowds of over 20,000.
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