The Last Game in Freedom Hall….
Posted by frankpos on February 14, 2010
(Ed. note: As the Cards fight for an NCAA spot in the gloaming of the regular season, an epoch ending game looms, with a top 10 Syracuse club as the last opponent for U of L in fabled Freedom Hall.
Ever since the season began–and I wrote down the thoughts below– I have been slightly bummed out, ticking off the count-down to what feels like the end of many of the brightest memories of my life.
I know in my heart that there is an end to everything… and that an end often serves as a launching point for an even greater future.
But, for me … it going to really take something truly mind-blowing to eclipse Freedom Hall…)
The basketball schedule for U of L for this season was released the other day.
There it was… in black and white…. Saturday, March 6… the last game to be played in Freedom Hall, and the opponent will be Syracuse.
No fan fare, no mention of anything special.
Just THE END spelled differently.
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The young– ok, almost everyone–sees the Hall as a big, worn out barn.
I …see the glistening
Palace of the South, as the Hall was known for yrs in the North…
A place so far ahead of its time that it was actually vehemently fought against locally as a white elephant so huge it would never be filled!
A place so unimaginably big, that my 10 yr old mouth hung open in amazement the first time I saw the interior –and the sight of Wes Unseld up close
It was THE national championship game summit ground almost yearly during the 60′s for basketball gods like Lew Alcindor (Kareem), Elvin Hayes, et al
In the 70′s, it was one of the key sites for the wildest and perhaps greatest basketball I ever saw –the ABA and a most amazing young Dr J, and was the site of the championship game for our own beloved KY Colonels in ’75 for our only nat’l pro BBall title
It was also the frenzied race track of the 70′s and 80′s for Denny’s run of 6 nat’l champs leading to 2 nat’l titles
Frankly, some of my absolute best personal memories and emotions are in that building.
I love Freedom Hall…I hope some things will be done there in the future.
And…I hope it gets some rightful send-off during this season….
Linda said
Hey Frank, I wanted to stop by and tell you that we feel your pain/pride and nostalgia today when the Cards will play their last game in the Hall. Like you, we have so many wonderful (and agonizing) memories of our “house”. If we could pull out another victory over the Cuse today, the house would be rockin….no matter what happens, we’ll always have the Hall in our hearts. Go CARDS – bring it today and let’s rock our house one more time for old times sake.