The Calvin men’s basketball team is headed to the house that Michael Jordan helped make famous - Chicago’s United Center. Home of the NBA’s Chicago Bulls, the United Center will host a doubleheader of basketball on Friday, December 15 that will begin with the Calvin men’s basketball team playing Trinity Christian College (IL) at 3:00 p.m. (CST). The Bulls will then face the Milwaukee Bucks at 7:30 p.m. (CST) in the second game of the doubleheader.
The Calvin/Trinity Christian game was originally scheduled to be played on December 16 at Trinity Christian’s gymnasium in Palos Heights, Illinois, but when Trinity Christian College officials approached Calvin about the opportunity to play a day earlier at the United Center in conjunction with an offer from the Chicago Bulls, the two schools were able to come to an agreement.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity for both schools and we are very grateful to the Chicago Bulls and to the administrations of both institutions for helping this game become a reality,” said Calvin men’s basketball coach Kevin Vande Streek. “I know our players are very excited to be able to play a game in an NBA arena. I am also very excited that our fans, particularly our alumni in the Chicago area, will have an opportunity to watch us play in a facility like the United Center.”
The Trinity Christian College men’s basketball team is led by head coach Tim Walker who served as Calvin’s junior varsity coach from 2000-2002. Walker’s top assistant coach is former Calvin men’s basketball player Nick Ploegstra. A year ago, the two teams met at Calvin with the Knights pulling out a thrilling 75-74 victory behind a spirited comeback effort capped off by a game-winning free throw by senior guard Kyle Trewhella with one second left to play.
Tickets for the December 15 doubleheader will be offered for a special price of either $30 or $45 a ticket (that’s $15 less than the usual ticket price for the same seats).
For the Calvin-Trinity game, fans can sit in the 110-113 section of the United Center, near the floor. Each ticket will have a different seat number on it for the Bulls-Bucks game, depending on what section they’ve selected (they will be in the 300 level).
In-between games, Calvin fans may watch the Bulls warm-up period from 5-6 p.m. The Alumni Association is securing a Hospitality Room at the United Center for meeting friends and light refreshments from 5-7 p.m. At 6 p.m., Calvin men’s basketball coach Kevin Vande Streek will share some thoughts on the young season and Bulls great and NBA Hall of Famer Bob Love will stop by to meet and greet basketball fans.
Tickets for this one-of-a-kind basketball double-header are only available at the Calvin College Box Office, via phone (616-526-6282), email (tickets@calvin.edu) or online at www.calvin.edu/boxoffice/ticket_ordering.htm -- and must be ordered by Friday, October 6 to ensure the discounted price.
Jeff Febus
Sports Information Director
Calvin College
(616) 526-6169 Office
(616) 526-8551 Fax
Received on Thu Sep 14 17:25:41 2006
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