UWGB's new home figures to be a cool placeBy Rob Demovsky
rdemovsk@greenbaypressgazette.com
The temperature outside was in the mid-80s, and by Ryan Tillema's estimation, it had to be at least 10 degrees warmer inside the gym at the Phoenix Sports Center.
But there was Tillema and the rest of his University of Wisconsin-Green Bay men's basketball teammates, playing a pick-up game in the heat of the afternoon last week. There were industrial-strength fans positioned in front of the open doors, but it hardly made a difference.
At one point, Tillema took a short break from a shooting drill. He glanced in the direction of what soon will be the new home for Phoenix athletics: the $32.8 million Kress Events Center.
"I guess we should start enjoying these times in this sweaty gym," Tillema said, using his saturated T-shirt to wipe the perspiration from his brow. "When it's like this outside, when it's in the upper-80s, it's like a sauna in here. We've got these fans going and the doors open, but it doesn't really help that much."
Tillema will be happy to know the new gym — and everything else in the Kress Events Center — will be well-ventilated.
"The entire new portion of the facility is all updated with air circulation and ventilation," UWGB assistant athletics director Jeanne Stangel said.
Though the basketball courts — the men's and women's teams will have separate practice facilities — won't be ready until October, at the earliest, the rest of the building is taking shape earlier than expected. Next week, coaches and administrators will be cleaning out their temporary offices across campus at Rose Hall and getting ready to move into their new digs.
"It was a little inconvenient sometimes to have to walk all the way over to Rose Hall to talk to the coaches, so it'll be nice having them right here," said Tillema, who recently completed his sophomore year. "They'll only be a couple of feet away from us, so it'll be nice."
Athletics department employees will move into their new offices at the Kress on July 2 — a few weeks earlier than scheduled. Their offices will be across the hall from the 4,000-seat arena where the women's team will practice and play games. The men's basketball practice facility is adjacent to the arena. Many of the offices will have views of the courts.
"We're all very excited about moving in," UWGB men's basketball coach Tod Kowalczyk said. "I think the players are very excited about it, too. I don't think you can underestimate the mental well-being of a team. Going to a nice facility, it's no different than an employee who has a nice office and a nice place to work, it helps you be more productive."
Kowalczyk and new women's basketball coach Matt Bollant said it will have an immediate impact on recruiting.
"I meet with all of my recruits in my office," Bollant said. "So, to have that meeting in a place that's visually impressive, that will be nice."
A grand-opening date for the facility has not been set, but Stangel said several activities are in the works.
"We're trying to coordinate a few different things," Stangel said. "We're going to have a ribbon-cutting (ceremony) for the facility itself, the home opener for women's basketball and the students are looking to secure a date for a concert or a comedian."
The first basketball game will be a women's exhibition on Nov. 3 against Northern Michigan. After road games to open the season at Drake, Illinois State and Missouri State, Bollant's team will play its regular-season home opener on Nov. 28 against Northern Illinois.
Not only will the Phoenix players be able to escape the heat of their current practice gyms, but the floor will be much easier on their bodies.
Men's basketball assistant coach Dale Race often recalls what former UWGB star Tony Bennett told him shortly after Race was hired at the school. The first thing Bennett told Race was: "Be careful about practicing for too long on that surface," because the hardwood floor rests directly on top of concrete, offering little or no cushion.
"You take a beating on your legs, for sure," Tillema said. "They brought in a couple of samples of what our floor is going to be, and you can tell there's going to be some cushion on it. It's going to be a lot better than having that hard concrete under our feet."
When the Kress Events Center is completed, Kowalczyk said it will be one of the best facilities — "if not the best," he said — in the Horizon League.
"When you show people an unbelievable facility like we're going to have," Kowalczyk said, "it shows that we are committed to winning."
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