Louisville to Host NBA Game
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe KFC YUM! Center in Louisville has been selected to host an NBA preseason game in October between the Miami Heat and the New Orleans Pelicans. The city hasn't had a major professional basketball presence since the ABA's Kentucky Colonels folded in the mid-1970s. During the last few years, thousands of supporters have joined social media campaigns aimed at attracting an NBA team to Louisville. April 10, 2014
News Release
LOUISVILLE, Ken. – The KFC YUM! Center will host an NBA game for the first time on Saturday, Oct. 4 when the 2013 NBA Champion Miami Heat face off against the New Orleans Pelicans in a preseason contest. Tickets for the game go on sale on Saturday, April 19 at 10:00 a.m. at the KFC Yum! Center box office, all Ticketmaster outlets, Ticketmaster.com and by phone at 1-800-745-3000.
The Miami Heat, who will seek their third-straight championship during the 2014 playoffs, are led by NBA All-Stars LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. The Pelicans are led by former No. 1 pick and 2014 NBA All-Star Anthony Davis. Davis and Pelicans guard Darius Miller were both members of the University of Kentucky squad that won the 2012 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship.
“It's a well-known fact that Kentucky is basketball country, yet many area fans have never been able to experience a professional game in person,” said KFC Yum! Center General Manager Dennis Petrullo. “This event is a great opportunity for people to put aside their college basketball allegiances and cheer on some of the best players in the sport.”
For more information, visit kfcyumcenter.com and follow the event-specific Twitter handle @NBAatYum.
About the KFC Yum! Center
The KFC Yum! Center is Louisville's newest multi-purpose arena that boasts a total of 721,762 square feet while offering an arena bowl exceeding 22,000 seats and four meeting rooms spanning approximately 34,000 square feet all within walking distance of more than 4,200 hotel rooms in downtown Louisville. It is home to the University of Louisville men's and women’s basketball programs and is ideal for concerts, conventions, corporate events, family shows, ice shows, wrestling and more. The KFC Yum! Center is a state of the art facility with advance technology capabilities that is owned by the Louisville Arena Authority and managed by AEG Worldwide. For more information, visit www.kfcyumcenter.com.
About AEG Facilities
AEG, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Anschutz Company, is the leading sports, entertainment and venue operator in the world. AEG Facilities, a stand-alone affiliate of AEG, owns, operates or consults with more than 100 of the industry’s preeminent venues worldwide, across five continents, providing complete venue management, as well as specialized programs in operations, guest services, ticketing, booking, sales and marketing. AEG Facilities also provides resources and access to other AEG-affiliated entities, including live event producer, AEG Live, AEG Global Partnerships, AEG Development, AEG 1Earth, AEG Encore and AEG Crea tive to support the success of AEG venues across the globe. The Los Angeles-based organization owns, operates or provides services to the world’s most elite venues, including KFC Yum! Center (Louisville, Ky.), STAPLES Center (Los Angeles, Calif.), StubHub Center (Carson, Calif.), Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE (Los Angeles, Calif.), Sprint Center (Kansas City, Mo.), AmericanAirlines Arena (Miami, Fla.), Prudential Center (Newa rk, N.J.), Target Center (Minneapolis, Minn.), BBVA Compass Stadium (Houston, Texas), Oracle Arena and O.co Coliseum (Oakland, Calif.), CONSOL Energy Center (Pittsburgh, Penn.), Rabobank Arena (Bakersfield, Calif.), Mercedes-Benz Arena (Shanghai, China), MasterCa rd Center (Beijing, China), The O2 Arena (London, England), O2 World (Berlin, Germany), O2 World Hamburg (Hamburg, Germany), Ahoy Arena (Rotterdam, Netherlands), Itaipava Arena Pernambuco (Recife, Brazil), Allianz Parque (Sao Paulo, Brazil), Allphones Arena (Sydney, Australia), ?lk er Sports Arena (Istanbul, Turkey), Ericsson Globe A rena (Stockholm, Sweden) and the Oman Convention and Exhibition Center (Muscat, Oman). For more information, please visit aegworldwide.com.
Source: The National Basketball Association