The Portland Power was a women's professional basketball team in the American Basketball League (ABL) based in Portland, Oregon . The Power began play in 1996, and disbanded when the ABL folded at the end of 1998. The Power hosted home games at Veterans Memorial Coliseum , which had a capacity of 10,934.
33-921: The Veterans Memorial Coliseum (originally known as the Memorial Coliseum ) is an indoor arena located in the oldest part of the Rose Quarter area in Portland, Oregon . The arena is the home of the Portland Winterhawks , a major junior ice hockey team, and was the original home of the Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association . It has been included on the National Register of Historic Places in recognition of its architectural significance. From 1960 to 1974
66-602: A location, often with the specific intent of comparing an idea to a sporting event. Such examples of these would be terms such as "the arena of war", "the arena of love" or "the political arena". Portland Power (basketball) The Power held their pre-season training camp at Western Oregon University in Monmouth, Oregon . A scrimmage was held in Monmouth on October 6, 1996, against the Seattle Reign . Portland's first head coach
99-476: Is also the sport of indoor American football (one variant of which is explicitly known as arena football), a variant of the outdoor game that is designed for the usual smaller playing surface of most arenas; variants of other traditionally outdoor sports, including box lacrosse as well as futsal and indoor soccer , also exist. The term "arena" is also used loosely to refer to any event or type of event which either literally or metaphorically takes place in such
132-429: Is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators, and may be covered by a roof. The key feature of an arena is that the event space is the lowest point, allowing maximum visibility. Arenas are usually designed to accommodate a multitude of spectators. The word derives from Latin harena , a particularly fine-grained sand that covered the floor of ancient arenas such as
165-538: Is the only city that has qualified to host the tour in every year since its inception. From November 30 through December 2, 2007, the Memorial Coliseum hosted the 2007 Davis Cup Tennis final between the USA and Russia . Financed by an $ 8 million bond approved by voters in 1954, construction was completed by Hoffman Construction in 1960 and dedicated on January 8, 1961, to the "advancement of cultural opportunities for
198-619: The Colosseum in Rome , Italy, to absorb blood. The term arena is sometimes used as a synonym for a very large venue such as Pasadena's Rose Bowl , but such a facility is typically called a stadium . The use of one term over the other has mostly to do with the type of event. Football (be it association , rugby , gridiron , Australian rules , or Gaelic ) is typically played in a stadium, while basketball , volleyball , handball , and ice hockey are typically played in an arena, although many of
231-538: The Portland Art Museum , as part of the APEX series curated by Grace Kook-Anderson . It was proposed that Memorial Coliseum be demolished to make room for a 9,000-seat new ballpark for Merritt Paulson 's Portland Beavers baseball team, since the team was moving from PGE Park to make room for the new Portland Timbers Major League Soccer franchise, also a Paulson-owned team. There had been talk about using two of
264-799: The 2019–2020 season at the Memorial Coliseum on October 8, against the Denver Nuggets as a tribute to the stadium that the Trail Blazers called home for 25 years. The building is currently the home arena of the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League , which used to split its schedule with the Moda Center prior to 2021. In August 2007, the City of Portland and the Portland Winterhawks reached an agreement to have replay screens installed in
297-538: The 2024 game crescendo. The Memorial Coliseum was designed with large doors at both ends to accommodate the floats of the Portland Rose Festival 's Grand Floral Parade. The 4.2-mile-long (6.8 km) parade begins at the Memorial Coliseum, where paying guests watch the parade cross the Coliseum's floor from reserved seats inside and from bleachers outside. The Rose Festival Queen's coronation has also been held in
330-658: The Blazers played a pre-season game at Memorial Coliseum on October 14, 2009, against the Phoenix Suns . Team founder Harry Glickman , former players Jerome Kersey , Terry Porter , and Bob Gross , as well as broadcaster Bill Schonely attended the game. The Suns defeated the Blazers, 110–104, with 11,740 tickets sold. In 2019, the Portland Trail Blazers celebrated their 50th season anniversary of becoming an NBA franchise. The organization played their first preseason game of
363-512: The Coliseum; in 1977 (when the Trail Blazers won) and in 1990 and 1992 . The Blazers were 10–0 in the Coliseum during the 1977 playoffs , including the clincher in Game 6 of the Finals. The Detroit Pistons were the only visiting team to win the championship at the Coliseum, claiming their second consecutive championship in Game 5 of the 1990 Finals. In 1974, Gerald Ford became the first president of
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#1733085998446396-691: The Memorial Coliseum was the home of the Portland Buckaroos of the Western Hockey League , and it was the venue for the Final Four of the NCAA basketball tournament in March 1965 , where UCLA won its second of ten such championships in the 1960s and 1970s. When the Portland Trail Blazers franchise was awarded in 1970, the Memorial Coliseum became the team's home court, capable of seating 12,666 when configured for basketball . Three NBA Finals have been played in
429-565: The Oregon High School Hockey League; local high school ice hockey teams play a few games each season and it also hosts some other events such as conventions, touring shows, and high school graduations. The Memorial Coliseum also hosts the OSAA High School Dance and Drill team State Championships every year in March. It will be the venue for the 2024 Pacific Northwest FIRST Robotics Competition district championship for
462-539: The Portland City Council voted to change the name of the arena from Memorial Coliseum to Veterans Memorial Coliseum, to better reflect its history as a memorial to war veterans, and as part of the larger Rose Quarter Development project. The seating capacity for basketball has been as follows: In 2018, Avantika Bawa had a solo exhibition of drawings and prints of the Veterans Memorial Coliseum at
495-592: The Power acquired Steding's former Stanford teammate, point guard Sonja Henning . Though they got off to a slow start, the Power was leading the Western Conference after completing a five-game win streak when the ABL abruptly folded due to financial difficulties on December 22, 1998. At the time of their demise, the Power's starting lineup was: After the franchise folded, many Power players went on to continue their careers in
528-411: The Power managed to go 9–9 the rest of the first season, and finished last in the Western Conference. Regional cable television network Prime Sports Northwest broadcast four Power games. In their second season, the Power showed much improvement. The team acquired Sylvia Crawley from North Carolina 's 1994 national championship team and Delisha Milton from Florida among other players, and won
561-743: The U.S. to host the Dew Tour , an extreme sports franchise started in 2005. Titled the Vans Invitational , the event was held at the Rose Quarter August 17–21, 2005. The Memorial Coliseum hosted BMX: Park , BMX: Vert , Skateboard: Park , and Skateboard: Vert . The Dew Tour returned to the Rose Quarter again with the Wendy's Invitational on August 12–15, 2010, marking the tour's sixth year in Portland, which
594-567: The United States to attend an NBA game. On November 1 at Memorial Coliseum, he arrived in the third quarter and watched the Trail Blazers defeat the Buffalo Braves , 113–106. Construction began on the nearby Rose Garden Arena (now Moda Center ) soon after the 1992 NBA Finals, and it became the team's home arena when it opened in 1995 . As part of the team's 40th anniversary celebration,
627-565: The Western Conference. Coach Dunn was named ABL Coach of the Year, and Williams was named the league's MVP. In the playoffs, the team met the conference runner-up, the Long Beach Stingrays , and lost 2 games to 0. Season ticket costs ranged from $ 176 to $ 265 ($ 334 to $ 503 adjusted for inflation). Individual game tickets cost $ 11, $ 13 or $ 15, depending on the section ($ 21, $ 25, $ 28, respectively, adjusted for inflation). For their third season,
660-676: The Winterhawks announced they will be playing at Veterans Memorial Coliseum full-time. The original Portland Timbers of the NASL played indoor soccer at the coliseum from 1979 to 1982. The Portland Power of the American Basketball League played in the Coliseum from 1996 to 1998. It hosted the OSAA 4A Men's State Basketball Tournament in March 1966 – 2003 and the March 2005 Big Sky Conference Basketball Tournament. The Memorial Coliseum hosts
693-499: The band recorded most of the footage for their music video Lay Your Hands On Me . A political rally for 2000 presidential candidate Ralph Nader sold 10,500 $ 7-tickets at the venue on August 26, 2000, with every seat sold except those behind the stage. President Barack Obama spoke at the Memorial Coliseum on March 21, 2008, before winning the Democratic Nomination . In 2004, Portland was selected as one of five cities in
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#1733085998446726-464: The city in all directions. The 1,060-foot-long (320 m) black curtains can be closed to block sunlight in 90 seconds. Seating includes 9,000 permanent seats expandable to 14,000 with portable chairs and bleachers. At its opening, it was called the largest multipurpose facility of its kind in the Pacific Northwest . The war memorial consists of two black granite walls below ground level and near
759-460: The city's historic resource inventory of 1984. The proposal to demolish Memorial Coliseum was dropped early in May 2009 with Lents Park being re-considered as a ballpark site. Other proposed uses of the grounds include turning the site into an entertainment district, a recreation center, a retail center, or a multilevel center for arts, athletics, and education. Another possibility is to update and repair
792-508: The coliseum on August 26, 1967. Elvis Presley performed at Memorial Coliseum on November 11, 1970, April 27, 1973, And Again on November 26, 1976, in front of 12,000 13,000 and 11,000 fans, respectively. The Bee Gees performed two sold-out concerts on July 17 and 18, 1979, as part of their successful Spirits Having Flown Tour . Bon Jovi played at the Memorial Coliseum for two consecutive nights as part of their New Jersey Syndicate Tour . During these shows on May 8, 1989, and May 9, 1989,
825-409: The community and to the memory of our veterans of all wars who made the supreme sacrifice." The facility is 100-foot (30 m) tall and has a footprint of about 3.1 acres (1.3 ha). It is sometimes referred to as "The Glass Palace" in Portland. The building was designed by architecture firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill . Original plans called for a building made of wood, which is plentiful in
858-473: The facility since 1961. On August 22, 1965, The Beatles played two shows at Memorial Coliseum to 20,000 screaming fans as part of their 1965 American Tour. Allen Ginsberg , who was in the audience, wrote a poem about the event called "Portland Coliseum". Led Zeppelin performed at the Coliseum on May 7, 1969, during their second North American concert tour and returned during their fifth and eighth tours in 1970 and 1972, respectively. The Monkees performed at
891-450: The facility to improve its marketability. In December 2011, it was announced that the Coliseum will undergo a $ 30 million renovation, partially paid for by the city and partially by the Winterhawks. The renovations would be completed in the spring and summer of 2012. Indoor arena An arena is a large enclosed platform, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre , musical performances , and/or sporting events . It
924-574: The larger arenas hold more spectators than do the stadiums of smaller colleges or high schools. There are exceptions. The home of the Duke University men's and women's basketball teams would qualify as an arena, but the facility is called Cameron Indoor Stadium . Domed stadiums, which, like arenas, are enclosed but have the larger playing surfaces and seating capacities found in stadiums, are generally not referred to as arenas in North America. There
957-416: The main center ice scoreboard in time for the 2007–2008 hockey season. The city agreed to rent the screens, which are owned by the Winterhawks, for the first year, and then either buy them outright or replace them with different screens in 2008–09. Other improvements included adding a beer garden area, replacing graphic displays, and general painting and repairs. Prior to the start of the 2021-22 WHL season,
990-455: The main gate. The names of the dead are inscribed in gold paint, now faded with age. There are no dates given, only the names and an inscription: "To the memory of a supreme sacrifice we honor those who gave their lives for God, principle and love of country". The International Style glass and concrete building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in September 2009. In 2011,
1023-421: The outer glass walls as part of the exterior for a new ballpark. Opposition to razing Memorial Coliseum included some veterans and architectural historians who successfully applied for National Register of Historic Places status for the building. Former governor Vic Atiyeh also opposed demolition if it led to the veteran memorial being forgotten. The Memorial Coliseum was given a rank of the highest importance in
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1056-471: The region, but cost and safety factors precluded that. The structure instead consists of a modernistic gray glass and aluminum, non-load-bearing curtain-wall cube around a central ovular concrete seating bowl. Four 70-foot (21 m) concrete piers support the steel roof, with no interior columns required. The exterior appearance, with 80,000 square feet (7,400 m) of glass, is of a skyscraper laid on its side. The curtain-wall windows inside offer views of
1089-497: Was Greg Bruce , who had previously been the head women's basketball coach at Portland State . The Power's first roster included: The Power got off to a poor start, going 5–17 under Bruce. Power players reported to ABL management on at least two occasions that Bruce was difficult to work with. The league met with Bruce, who resigned on January 1, 1997, citing personal reasons. He was replaced by former Purdue coach Lin Dunn . Under Dunn,
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