(08-09-2017 12:20 AM)Clarity Wrote: Cal Baptist isn't for profit or have the Collangelos working with them. They also don't have a very popular local former NBA player coaching them. They don't have a near unlimited amount of resources that the online portion of GCU allows them. GCU is dumping all of their money made through profit into their athletics that much is obvious. Not every private christian university is GCU. Look at Liberty, quite a bit of money yet no basketball results. They play in an 8,000 capacity arena by the way. Also another massive factor is that Riverside is not one of the biggest cities in America, Phoenix. Thinking it's the exact same scenario as GCU is very ignorant.
We are still talking about attendance, right? I'm not sure what tax status or Jerry Colangelo has to do with butts in seats. Cal Baptist has a very successful D2 basketball program, led by a strong coach with D1 roots. Riverside is a smaller market, but that also means Cal Baptist has less competition for entertainment dollars.
I'm not sure who said "it's the exact same scenario as GCU", but there are similarities that lead me to believe Cal Baptist can muster the campus, alumni, and community support to have their new building more than half full within a season or two. Here is what we know about what happened when GCU opened the arena:
GCU averaged 1175 their final season in Antelope Gym (2010-11).
Attendance for the first season in GCU Arena jumped to 2278.
There was a slight bump (to 2396) for Y1 to Y2 in the Arena, which would be the last D2 season.
The jump to D1 in 2013-14 also meant a 2000/game jump in average attendance, to 4373.
GCU has only gone up from there.
Cal Baptist had above average attendance for D2 last season, but was still short of drawing what GCU had before moving into the new digs. How about we see how Cal Baptist does in attendance this first season in their new building before we go throwing the word "ignorant" around?