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There’s no doubt that Knoxville is a sports town. Though the city doesn’t have any professional sports teams, the retina-burning prevalence of orange around town and the parades of tailgaters on fall Saturdays ought to be more than enough to convince any skeptics that University of Tennessee football is a kind of a big deal here.

Sometimes overlooked in the excitement over football is the University of Tennessee women’s basketball team. In case you hadn’t heard, the Lady Vols have something of a dynasty going, what with eight national championships as of the 2007-2008 season (including a repeat and a three-peat) and the leadership of Pat Summitt, the all-time winningest coach in NCAA basketball history.

That’s the context for Knoxville’s Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame. Opened in June of 1999, the 32,000 square foot Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame is dedicated to all levels of women’s basketball. The museum is located downtown just off the Downtown Loop of James White Parkway. The complex is situated at 700 Hall of Fame Drive across from James White’s Fort.

The Hall of Fame’s hours vary seasonably. The museum is closed on Sundays all year and on Mondays from Labor Day to April 30. It is also closed on Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, the day after Christmas, New Year’s Eve, New Year’s Day, Easter and Memorial Day. The facility offers free parking. The Hall of Fame is handicap accessible.

Adults pay $7.95 for admission. Seniors and children age 6-15 pay $5.95. Children under five are admitted at no charge. Group rates and memberships are also available. For more information call 865-633-9000 or visit www.wbhof.com.

The Hall of Fame is an inviting state-of-the-art facility. Outside the Hall of Fame you’ll find two huge basketballs, one a brick courtyard shaped like a basketball, the other the Baden Ball, the world’s largest basketball, which measures 30-feet tall and weighs in at 10 tons, perched atop what appears to be a massive basketball goal.

Inside the building you’ll be greeted by a 17-foot bronze sculpture crafted by California artist Elizabeth McQueen. On the self-guided tour you’ll experience hundreds of pieces of basketball memorabilia, including photographs, trophies, Olympic medals and jerseys (including the one worn by Georgeann Wells when she became the first female player to dunk in a college basketball game).

You’ll witness multimedia presentations like a 15-minute video of the history of the game. The Modern Locker Room Exhibit lets you sit in on a halftime pep talk given by successful coaches like Brenda Frese (Maryland) or Tennessee’s own Pat Summitt. Downstairs you’ll find three basketball courts on which you can test your skills. Try the timed dribbling course or the vertical leap challenge. The museum concludes in the “Hall of Honor,” which acknowledges the women who have been inducted in the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame.

© 2009, Knoxville News Sentinel
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