Mitch Barnhart opens the door on what the ‘new Memorial Coliseum’ will be like

Fast-break points from the D.J. Burns admiration society:

21. Mitch Barnhart. After the news conference that introduced Kenny Brooks as the new Kentucky Wildcats women’s basketball coach last Thursday, the UK athletics director shared some information about what the “new Memorial Coliseum” will look like when it opens for the 2024-25 school year.

20. It will be smaller. After the $80 million-plus renovations are completed, Barnhart says the seating capacity of the new Coliseum will be “about 6,500, 6,700” seats. That is a reduction from the 8,500 seating capacity Memorial Coliseum has featured in recent years.

19. Acknowledging past players. The UK AD says his ambition is that the new Coliseum “honors all the people who ever played in it. That’s my first hope.”

18. Honoring Kentucky’s fallen war heroes. Barnhart said, “We will put a new display out front that is going to honor every (Kentucky) veteran who has died serving our country — we think we are doing it by county. ... I am extremely excited about that.”

17. “Really special environment.” In the new Coliseum, “the scoreboard (will be) coming down from the top. New sound system,” Barnhart says. “Having the fans close to the court. It’s going to be a really special environment.”

16. An “Auburn-like” environment. If Kenny Brooks can duplicate at Kentucky the success he had coaching at Virginia Tech, the “new Memorial Coliseum” could become a home-court advantage similar to what the Auburn men’s basketball team enjoys in the 9,121-seat Neville Arena.

15. The Kenny Brooks breakdown. Looking inside the numbers from the coach’s tenure (2016 through 2024) at Virginia Tech, the new UK women’s hoops head man stacks up mostly well.

14. Brooks vs. the SEC. At Virginia Tech, Brooks went 8-4 in games against SEC foes.

13. Brooks vs. Louisville. Virginia Tech lost its first seven meetings with U of L under Brooks, but the coach comes to Lexington having beaten Jeff Walz’s Cardinals three in a row.

12. Brooks vs. Tennessee. Virginia Tech beat the Lady Vols in three of four meetings under Brooks.

11. Brooks vs. the big rival. Virginia Tech went 7-7 against Virginia under Brooks. The Hokies lost their first five meetings against the Cavaliers with Brooks on the bench, then won seven of the last nine games.

10. Brooks in the NCAA Tournament. Brooks has a 7-10 record in NCAA tourney contests and has only advanced past the round of 32 once — Virginia Tech’s 2023 Final Four run. Brooks went 1-6 in six NCAA Tournament trips as James Madison head coach (2002 through 2016), and 6-4 in four tourney trips at Virginia Tech.

9. Debbie Yow. The former Kentucky women’s basketball coach (1976-80) who went on to successful runs as the athletics director at both Maryland and North Carolina State grades UK’s hiring of Kenny Brooks as “an A+.”

8. A builder. In an email exchange, Yow wrote of Brooks, “He built, from the ground up, a highly successful women’s basketball program at Virginia Tech, winning the ACC Tournament in 2023 and recruiting a high schooler (Elizabeth Kitley) who eventually became the three-time ACC (Player of the Year). It is obvious that his athletes respect him and play at a high level. ... What a bright future lies ahead for the (UK) women’s program.”

7. A banner March Madness for Yow. Though she retired as N.C. State AD in 2019, Yow is having a banner 2024 March Madness. She hired head coaches Wes Moore (2013) and Kevin Keatts (2017), who have led the Wolfpack women’s basketball and men’s basketball teams, respectively, to this year’s Final Fours.

6. The Rick Pitino coaching tree. North Carolina State head man Kevin Keatts was an assistant under Pitino at Louisville from 2011 through 2014. He is the fourth former Pitino aide to lead a team to the men’s NCAA Tournament Final Four.

5. Can you name the other three? The three other former Rick Pitino assistants who have coached teams to the Final Four are Tubby Smith (1998), Billy Donovan (2000, 2006, 2007, 2014) and Mick Cronin (2021).

4. Lyon County’s state title. When Lyon County won the 2024 Kentucky Boys Basketball State Tournament championship last month, it was a triumph for a school with a high school enrollment around 300.

3. Keeps the dream alive. To keep Kentucky’s “one state, one championship” postseason model viable, you need enough small-school state champs to keep the hope alive.

2. Shelby Valley. The boys state hoops title won by 2024 Kentucky Mr. Basketball Travis Perry and Lyon County was the first for a Class A-sized school since Shelby Valley claimed the championship in 2010.

1. Jason Booher. Now the Mercer County Schools superintendent, Booher coached Elisha Justice and Shelby Valley to the 2010 state title. Of Lyon County, Booher says, “It was not only a Class A school (winning the state title), it was a county school system, so much like Shelby Valley is in Pike County. It was really neat to see. That’s what makes the Sweet 16 special.”

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