Sobrato Center

Sobrato Center
Location	2335 Golden Gate Avenue, San Francisco, California 94118
Coordinates	37°46′37″N 122°26′58″W / 37.77694°N 122.44944°W
Owner	University of San Francisco
Operator	University of San Francisco
Capacity	3,005
Opened	1958
Tenants
	San Francisco Dons (NCAA) (1958–present)

The Sobrato Center in San Francisco, California, is an athletic venue on the University of San Francisco (USF) campus. It contains War Memorial Gymnasium and serves as home for the San Francisco men's and women's basketball teams as well as the women's volleyball team. It also houses athletic department offices and training facilities for the university's other athletic teams. It is currently the oldest basketball venue in the West Coast Conference. It is popularly known as "The Hilltop" because of USF's position on the summit of Lone Mountain. On some occasions, St. Ignatius College Preparatory hosts their basketball games here as well.^[1]

Prior to 1958, the USF basketball team had no permanent home. During the 1955 and 1956 NCAA championship seasons, Phil Woolpert's teams had to practice and play home games at either nearby Kezar Pavilion in Golden Gate Park or the gym at neighboring St. Ignatius High School. The aftermath of USF's back-to-back national championships spurred a fund-raising effort that ultimately made building an on-campus venue possible and in 1958, War Memorial Gym opened its doors.

Originally serving all of USF's athletic needs, War Memorial Gym also hosted occasional games for the San Francisco Warriors from 1962 to 1967. Upon the arrival of women's sports on campus, War Memorial Gym also became the home of the women's basketball and volleyball teams. Though the gym missed the Russell and Jones era by three years, it was the home of the great Dons teams of the late 1970s led by Bill Cartwright, Phil Smith and Quintin Dailey (though some high-profile matches were held at the Cow Palace or the Oakland Arena). In 1989, with the construction of the Koret Health and Recreation Center, War Memorial became exclusively an athletic venue, though most student-athlete training facilities continue to be housed in the Moran Center beneath the gym.

Dedicated to the USF alumni killed in action in war, the War Memorial Gym currently seats 3,005 spectators. Above the court can be seen banners commemorating USF's national and conference championships in basketball, including titles won by the women's basketball team in their old conference, the Northern California Athletic Conference. Players' retired numbers can also be found, including banners for Pete Newell and Phil Woolpert. The gym's foyer houses a mini-hall of fame, displaying trophies and memorabilia from USF's athletic history.

The 1998 episode of Teletubbies entitled, "Basketball", was filmed at the Sobrato Center where Phil Mathews and his son, Jordan were featured in a segment playing basketball.

In 2008 and 2009, USF made upgrades to the gym. The old floor, which was the original installation, was replaced, along with the bleacher seating in the upper level. The old baskets were replaced with stand-alone versions, and new banners were installed.

In 2015, it was announced that over a span of three to four years, another series of renovations would be made once again to the gym, mostly taking place during the basketball teams' offseason periods. This $15 million project is funded by Silicon Valley businesspersons John and Susan Sobrato, thus bearing the namesake for the gym and its practice facilities. A club level was introduced with seating near the University Center, restrooms were remodeled, and an elevator was installed while improving the seismic integrity of the building. A museum of USF's athletic history tied with its Jesuit Catholic values will be added with the project.^[2] Renovations over the summer of 2019 included the installation of four Daktronics video boards in each corner of the facility.^[3] On November 9, 2019, the USF Dons defeated the Princeton Tigers 82–72 in the first college basketball game ever played at the Chase Center.^[4]

War Memorial Gym was also the site of CBS's first national college basketball broadcast, a 1982 match-up between USF and the University of Georgia. It hosted the 1987, 1989, and 1993 West Coast Conference men's basketball tournaments.

References

^ Stephens, Mitch (2023-01-10). "Sacred Heart Cathedral-St. Ignatius expected to draw 3,000 to War Memorial". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2023-03-01.
^ "Sobrato Center Construction Update". University of San Francisco. 29 June 2016.
^ "Construction Begins on Sobrato Center Renovations".
^ "USF Dons pull away late to beat Princeton at Chase Center". 10 November 2019.

[1] Stephens, Mitch (2023-01-10). "Sacred Heart Cathedral-St. Ignatius expected to draw 3,000 to War Memorial". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2023-03-01.

[2] "Sobrato Center Construction Update". University of San Francisco. 29 June 2016.

[3] "Construction Begins on Sobrato Center Renovations".

[4] "USF Dons pull away late to beat Princeton at Chase Center". 10 November 2019.

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v t e Golden State Warriors
Founded in 1946 Played in Philadelphia (1946–1962) and Oakland (1971–2019) Based in San Francisco, California
Franchise	History All-time roster Draft history Head coaches Seasons Current season
Arenas	Philadelphia Arena Philadelphia Convention Hall Cow Palace San Francisco Civic Auditorium USF War Memorial Gymnasium San Diego Sports Arena San Jose Arena Oracle Arena Chase Center
Personnel	Owner(s) Joe Lacob (majority) Peter Guber President Brandon Schneider General manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. Head coach Steve Kerr
G League affiliate	Santa Cruz Warriors
Retired numbers	6 13 14 16 17 24 42
NBA championships	1947 1956 1975 2015 2017 2018 2022
Rivalries	Cleveland Cavaliers Los Angeles Lakers Sacramento Kings
Culture and lore	73–9 Dance Cam Mom Death Lineup "Good Feeling" Hangin' with Mr. Cooper Inside Moves Nate the Great Nellie Ball Run TMC Splash Brothers The Block The Sleepy Floyd game Warrior Girls Wilt the Stilt 100-point game

v t e University of San Francisco
Located in: San Francisco, California
Academics	School of Law School of Nursing St. Ignatius Institute Fromm Institute for Lifelong Learning Swig Judaic studies program International Business Plan Competition
Campus	Saint Ignatius Church Residence Halls Lone Mountain College
Athletics	Men's basketball Women's basketball Men's soccer Football War Memorial Gymnasium Negoesco Stadium Dante Benedetti Diamond at Max Ulrich Field
Student life	San Francisco Foghorn KUSF
People	Alumni Faculty Presidents Anthony Maraschi

v t e San Francisco Dons men's basketball
Venues	Kezar Pavilion (1924–1958) St. Ignatius Gym (1924–1958) Sobrato Center (1958–present) Chase Center (alternate; 2019–present)
Culture & lore	The Don KTCT
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
NCAA national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearance in italics

v t e San Francisco Dons women's basketball
Venues	War Memorial Gymnasium (1976–present) Chase Center (alternate; 2019–present)
Culture & lore	History The Don
People	Head coaches
Seasons	1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24

See also

References