The Marriott Center is a multi-purpose arena in the western United States, located on the campus of Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. It is home to the BYU Cougars men's and women's basketball teams. The seating capacity for basketball games at the Marriott Center is officially 18,987.The largest basketball arena in the West Coast Conference (in which BYU competes for most sports, except football), it is among the largest on-campus basketball arenas in the nation. In addition to basketball, the Marriott Center is used for weekly devotionals and forums.The elevation of the court is approximately above sea level.HistoryThe Marriott Center was named in honor of benefactor and hotel tycoon J. Willard Marriott, founder of the Marriott Corporation. When the arena opened in 1971, it passed the University of Minnesota's Williams Arena as the largest college basketball arena in the nation. It was also the largest venue in the nation built for basketball, larger than any NBA (or ABA) arena at that time. It lost both distinctions when the University of Kentucky opened Rupp Arena in 1976, but remained as the largest basketball-specific facility on a U.S. college campus until 1987, when the University of Tennessee opened Thompson–Boling Arena.
