Lisa Y.

Great times at the HAAS Quad Meet #2 Cal, ASU, Stanford, SJSU. All the gymnasts rocked it bringing inspiration to young athletes! Such an honor to watch all these skilled professionals compete with passion, dedication and such camaraderie. My 9 year old gymnast daughter is absolutely amazed by their talent and skill. What an incredible meet!

Daniel B.

We had a blast at the Cal vs USC women's basketball game on Sunday, February 19, 2023. I noticed a Cal women's basketball poster in my nine-year-old niece's bedroom last year and my sister said the girls (my nieces, the other is seven) have been going to Cal games and have become fans. I thought that was cute and also awesome since I'm a big college basketball fan myself. As one of my friends said to me, their fandom for Cal women's basketball is organic. I love it and was excited for the opportunity to attend a Cal game with them. Also, I like visiting stadiums and arenas and had never been to Haas Pavilion before, so I was looking forward to checking it out. A few quick thoughts and takeaways from the Haas: - It was warm/hot inside. Did they not run the AC? If so, was it broken? - It's showing its age, but I think many college basketball arenas are. - Steep views, even when you're sitting close to the court. - $14 per adult ticket and $12 per senior/youth ticket, general admission is a great value for power conference women's basketball in the Bay Area. For perspective, I've attended college basketball games regularly since the late 90s. First, Wake Forest (season tickets). Then, Georgia Tech (student section then season tickets; just completed my 18th year as a season ticket holder). I've also attended my fair share of road games. For example, this season (2022-23), I watched Tech play at the Dean E Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina (UNC), PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina (NC State), and the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem, North Carolina (Wake). All ACC schools. So, I had several examples in which to compare the Haas facilities, atmosphere, and overall gameday experience. This is only the second Pac-12 basketball venue I've been to (the first was UCLA's Pauley Pavilion). To elaborate upon the above, I was kind of surprised at how warm it was inside the arena, especially since this is a Power Five conference arena (higher expectations). We sat in Section 15, Row J, so we were in the upper (hotter) level. Then again, this is California and the Bay Area and I guess it's not uncommon to not run AC, especially in the winter, and to conserve energy. Haas felt a bit dated, but I've also felt that with some of the aforementioned arenas. College basketball attendance is past its prime, I think. Also, I'm admittedly "spoiled" by Georgia Tech's home arena, McCamish Pavilion in Atlanta, which is relatively modern (renovated in 2012). Haas was last renovated in 1999. A lot of college basketball arenas have modernized over the last two decades in terms of things like extra big screens and various amenities. Some have more of an NBA feel. Of course, there's nothing wrong with playing in a historic venue (e.g., Duke's Cameron Indoor Stadium) and Haas has a bit of that historic and very collegiate feel. I was thoroughly entertained by the flag wavers who ran out onto either side of the court during timeouts. They wore rugby polo shirts in Berkeley Blue and California Gold. Unless you're sitting courtside, you're elevated and separated from the floor. Georgia Tech's old Alexander Memorial Coliseum used to be like that too, kind of (not all the way around). Same with PNC Arena. It's not my preference because I feel higher up and further away from the action. Haas has a seating capacity of 11,858, which is more than I expected. The arena had somewhat of an intimate feel to it, which I think is great for college basketball. Haas is currently in the middle of the Pac-12 when it comes to seating capacity. It's the sixth biggest out of 12 arenas. When we first checked out the upper level, we ran right into Cal's mascot, Oski the Bear. Having never seen Oski before, I thought he was an usher or someone cosplaying as the Cal Golden Bear. Oops. We got food and drink from the "Bear Cave" concession stand on the upper level. All-beef hot dogs, soft pretzels, and nachos with cheese were $7 each. Popcorn, served in Cal-themed boxes, was $5 per box. Fountain drinks, including lemonade (which my oldest niece got), were $8 in a souvenir cup (we got a couple of those) and $5 in a regular cup. Dasani bottled water, $5. Everything was par for the course. Standard fare, nothing special. We ended up throwing away a pretzel because it was so plain and bland (not salted). The pretzel is the only thing I don't recommend. The hot dogs were A-OK. Just like other sporting venues, you dress the dogs yourself. I pumped ketchup, mustard, and relish on mine. The court at Haas Pavilion is named Pete Newell Court after the coach who led Cal to the 1959 NCAA championship. Two of the retired numbers on the men's side who I'm familiar with are NBA All-Stars Kevin Johnson (1983-87) and Jason Kidd (1992-94). Both played for the Phoenix Suns and Kidd eventually won an NBA championship with the Dallas Mavericks in 2011. Steph Curry recently attended the Cal vs Stanford women's game on January 8, 2023.

Juan V.

A great place to check out an indoor game. It is a fun atmosphere for a sporting event. I got to see the BAR Tournament featuring College Women's basketball. Cal has a great facility.

G. S.

Great venue for a graduation ceremony. Had the honor of attending the 2019 Winter Commencement at the Haas Pavilion and listening to the keynote address from Robert D. Haas. What an inspiring man. If all businesses could be run with the same ethical practices, this world could be much more hopeful, positive, and impactful. Congratulations! To the Class of 2019 and to Kobe Damaso! "When the world zigs, zag."

Gerald R.

BEAR TERRITORY - I PREFER HARMON GYM I attended the UCLA game last Thursday night and noticed the change of atmosphere in the basketball crowd at the once mighty, intimidating Harmon Gym. Growing up as fan of the Cal Golden Bears Men's Basketball team I always loved watching on TV the team play its home games at Harmon Gym. It had the intimate feel of a high school gymnasium but on a bigger scale. Before the Warriors crowd at "Roracle" I believe the best basketball crowd in the Bay Area was at Harmon Gym. It was shaped like a shoebox and smelled like funk inside - I loved it because it provided a true home field advantage. The capacity of Harmon Gym was between 6,000 and 6,500. Because the rows of seats were vertical the crowd felt it was on top of the basketball court similar to the intimate feel of AT&T Park in San Francisco. The noise inside Harmon Gym wasn't loud but jet loud. Former NBA great and UCLA basketball player Reggie Miller hated playing at Harmon Gym. He said the crowd was rude and loud. When Cal beat UCLA, who at that time was ranked No. 1 in the country with Reggie Miller, the crowd rushed the court. I described the crowd at Harmon Gym as the "Cameron Crazies of the West", a reference of Cameron Indoor Stadium at Duke University. I was a student at Cal during the time Harmon Gym was renovated and expanded into Haas Pavillion. I agreed with renovating the arena but not expanding the seats to about 12,000 to make it more look like an NBA arena. Trying to compete with the Warriors I believe was a mistake. What made Harmon Gym special was due to its small capacity as getting tickets to Cal basketball games were near impossible to get despite if the team was good or not. There were significant moments I attended at Haas Pavilion. I was there at Cal's first Pac-10 home game when Haas Pavillion was completed against the No. 1 in the country Arizona Wildcats. Cal was leading by about 10 points at halftime. Even though Cal lost the game the noise inside Haas Pavilion was the loudest basketball game I ever attended including any NBA games. (The only other loudest sporting event I ever attended was in 2007 when the Tennessee Volunteers played Cal Golden Bears at California Memorial Stadium.) I was there at Haas Pavillion when Cal beat Arizona State to become the regular season Pac-10 Champions - the first conference championship since 1960. As I expected the overall expansion of seats has hurt the exuberance atmosphere crowd watching basketball games at Haas Pavillion. During seasons when the Cal Basketball team wasn't doing well the attendance was half the capacity. Even now with success of Cal basketball this year the attendance isn't full to capacity due to the Golden State Warriors' success. In addition the student section isn't along the baseline and sideline when Haas Pavillion first opened but now the student section appears to be only the baseline as the sideline is only for the press. The noise that was generated throughout the arena during Harmon Gym and when Haas Pavillion first opened is now limited to the baseline. Overall I loved Harmon Gym better than Haas Pavilion.

Joy A.

Gooooo Bears!!!! We watched the Berkeley women's basketball team play hard vs UCLA. Prices: Adult tickets = $10 Youth tickets = $1* *Special "Cal Kid's Day" pricing on select days. It comes with: *admission *Cal Berkeley silly bands (first 500 kids) *poster making *face painting *jumpy, bouncy fun *kids' basketball booth *free team poster & special autograph signing Next "Cal Kid's Day" event will be on: *2/12- vs Washington State @7:30pm (adults wear pink & get in for $3) *2/26- vs Oregon State @7:30pm Gooooo Bears!

Lucky S.

Pretty building to see a college game at. Security is pretty tight around the it, but you can definitely feel the team spirit. We even got to see the Bear Mascot walking around. :)

Rick H.

I was fortunate enough to attend Cal during the glorious basketball era that saw J. Kidd on the team, an appearance in the Sweet 16, and old skool ballin' at Harmon Gym. We were all excited when old Harmon magically reopened as Haas Pavilion - instantly doubling the capacity of the place from 6,000 to 12,000. It was ultramodern, and just as exhilarating and awe-inspiring. We should be proud that our house is widely recognized as one of the loudest, most intimidating venues in all of college basketball. I LOVE this place! Go Bears!!!