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The Dunkin' Donuts Center


Home of Friar Basketball

Dedicated: November, 1972
Capacity:
12,993
First PC Game: December 11, 1972 -- PC 93 - Fairfield 57
First PC Loss: December 30, 1974 -- St. John's 91 - PC 79
100th Game: February 11, 1978 -- PC 61 - North Carolina 59
200th Game: December 13, 1983 -- PC 65 - Long Island 72
300th Game: February 7, 1989 -- PC 88 - Pittsburgh 78
400th Game: January 21, 1995 -- PC 59 - Syracuse 60
100th Victory: November 29, 1979 -- PC 68 - Assumption 66
200th Victory: March 5, 1988 -- PC 90 - St. John's 81
300th Victory: December 28, 1995 -- PC 83 - Colgate 77

The Dunkin' Donuts Center, home of the basketball Friars, became a reality on November 3, 1972 when the Rhode Island Reds played Tidewater in an American Hockey League contest. Since that time, millions of sports, music and trade fans have walked through the turnstiles in what many consider to be one of the finest civic centers in the country. Indeed, over three million people have played witness to Providence College basketball in this building.

In the spring of 2001, the building gained a corporate sponsor. The facility, previously known as the Providence Civic Center, was renamed the Dunkin' Donuts Center.

The tremendous success of the Friars in the early 1970's mandated a change from Alumni Hall to a downtown facility that would service the demand for tickets to Friar basketball games. Since that time, The Dunkin' Donuts Center has helped Providence College play host to some of the nation's top basketball teams, including each of the 12 BIG EAST opponents.

The Friars have had great success in The Dunkin' Donuts Center, running up a 369-146 record. When the Friars first moved downtown, they ran off 41-consecutive wins before St. John's ruined the streak in the Ocean State Classic in 1974.

The Friars have "shared" the building with the nation's top collegiate and professional basketball teams. UCLA, North Carolina, Marquette, Brigham Young, Duke (then ranked #1) and Michigan (also ranked #1) have all played here. Of course, the BIG EAST roster includes, Georgetown, St. John's, Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Connecticut, Boston College, Villanova, Miami, Seton Hall, West Virginia, Rutgers and Notre Dame. The Boston Celtics have played a number of NBA teams in the building as well. The Friars have hosted ECAC Basketball Championships, NCAA First and Second Round games (1976, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1989, 1996), NIT games, the first-ever BIG EAST Championship tournament and the 1978 and 1985 NCAA Eastern Regionals. In 1995 and 2000, the building hosted the NCAA Hockey Championships.

The Dunkin' Donuts Center has seen the world's top entertainment acts visit Providence: The Boston Pops, Lawrence Welk, Ice Capades, Barnum and Bailey Circus, Moscow Circus, Ringling Brothers Circus, ABC Wide World of Sports, World Heavyweight Boxing, Harlem Globetrotters, Disney on Ice, Elvis Presley, Billy Joel, Frank Sinatra, Julio Iglesias, Elton John, Whitney Houston, Gloria Estefan, Bobby Brown, Kenny Rogers, Van Halen, Aerosmith, The Bee Gees, Lionel Richie, Neil Diamond, Fleetwood Mac, Diana Ross and Bruce Springsteen to name a few of the hundreds of entertainers and acts that have played The Dunkin' Donuts Center.

It now serves as the home of the Providence Bruins, the AHL affiliate of the Boston Bruins.

No other New England college basketball team has enjoyed the success that the Friars have seen. That is especially true given the attendance figures given for the first 30 years of the facility.

Providence College In The Dunkin' Donuts Center

YearAll GamesHome GamesTotalAverage
1972-7316-014-0144,87810,348
1973-7418-016-0139,6168,726
1974-7514-313-2103,3906,893
1975-7615-314-2142,8708,929
1976-7717-115-1149,8569,366
1977-7818-416-2165,0489,169
1978-798-88-6102,2467,303
1979-8010-1010-7134,3057,900
1980-818-98-8121,6757,605
1981-8210-79-797,5376,096
1982-838-76-796,0237,386
1983-8413-512-5128,7667,574
1984-856-105-10107,6827,179
1985-8614-714-7 *159,4947,595
1986-8714-313-3156,6739,792
1987-8811-711-6170,00710,000
1988-8913-412-4172,04710,755
1989-9013-513-4169.3329,960
1990-9117-317-3 *211,49810,525
1991-9210-610-6172,97610,780
1992-9315-415-4 *203,48410,710
1993-9413-113-1151,50410,822
1994-9513-513-5 *187,68410,427
1995-9612-511-5 *168,55410,535
1996-9712-312-3165,44711,030
1997-98 8-78-6142,77810,198
1998-9910-710-5150,02210,001
1999-008-97-9132,0498,253
2000-0113-313-3151,0379,440
2001-0212-511-5
30 years369-146 (.714)347-135 (.719)

Providence vs. Opponents in The Dunkin' Donuts Center
(Includes "away" and neutral games)

 
 
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