History and Use
The arena first opened on November 22, 2002 with the season opener of the South Carolina women's basketball team. A sell-out crowd of 17,712 fans saw the 72–58 Gamecocks victory over in-state rival Clemson, with a one-dollar admission charge, commonly used by the women's basketball team to promote major games. The official grand opening took place December 2, 2002. The men's basketball team defeated Temple 66–47. On January 26, 2010 South Carolina defeated #1 ranked and undefeated Kentucky 68-62 in the arena, one of the biggest wins in South Carolina history.
Aside from Gamecock basketball, the Colonial Life Arena also hosts the South Carolina High School Basketball Championships each year. The facility is built to also host ice hockey games, but because of legal issues with the funding for the facility, has yet to host one.
The Colonial Life Arena was ranked 22nd in the world in ticket sales in 2003. It was also ranked the #1 arena in the Carolinas and was the #2 rated university arena in the world in 2005, based on ticket sales for touring shows.
It is managed by Comcast's Global Spectrum, whose Philadelphia 76ers played an exhibition game in the venue in October 2005.
Ticketing is provided by New Era Tickets, and tickets can be purchased through the Arena's web site.
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