University of Oregon will open its new Matthew Knight Arena in time for Pac 10 conference play next January.
Last week the Ducks unveiled the arena’s basketball court–Kilkenny Court–that’s more artistic than a typical hardwood court.
“We wanted to design the most iconic television presence possible for the University of Oregon by conjuring up a highly unique and visible basketball floor design,” according to Tinker Hatfield, vice president for design and special projects for Nike. “It’s inspired by our beautiful tree-covered region and the UO 1939 NCAA Championship basketball team nicknamed the ‘Tall Firs.'”
The floor is made from 6,944 square feet of Northern Hard Maple from an FSC Certified Forest in Michigan. Wood used for the floor was donated by Gonyea Family/Timber Products Co., of Eugene/Springfield.
The new arena, designed by TVA Architects of Portland and Ellerbe Becket of Kansas City, is named for chief donor Phil Knight’s son, who died at the age of 34 in a scuba diving accident.
