Photos by Richard Smith, Stadium Journey
Stadium Info FANFARE Score: 2.43
Gator Court 4701 N Charles St Baltimore, MD 21210
Year Opened: 1989
Capacity: 1,000
Gators In Baltimore
Notre Dame of Maryland University is a Catholic liberal arts college located in Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded in 1873. It is right next door to the “Evergreen” campus of Loyola University Maryland (which it shares a library facility). It was formerly an all-women’s college, but that ended in 2023 as it is now co-ed. The university has over 3000 students.
The original name of the school was the Notre Dame of Maryland Preparatory School and Collegiate Institute. It also spent many years with the College of Notre Dame of Maryland name.
In 2011, the school attained university status with the addition of several graduate-level programs.
Notre Dame’s athletic teams are members of Division III of the NCAA. All sports but swimming compete within the United East Conference. Although the swim team does not compete within a conference, it participates in the yearly Old Dominion Athletic Conference swim championships.
The university’s sports teams are known as the Gators. The 2023/2024 season is the first for the men's basketball program. Gator Court is home to Gators basketball and volleyball. It is located within the larger Marion Burk Knott Sports Complex.
Food & Beverage 1
There is no permanent food stand at Gator Court. There is a small table set up near the entrance to the gym where candy and chips are sold. The prices are great, but you will want to plan for food.
Atmosphere 3
This is a medium size gym that is very reminiscent of a high school gym. Because of the relatively small size, it can get loud pretty quickly depending on the game's action.
There is a small simple grandstand on the main side of the court. There are no seats on the other side of the court, behind the benches. A few people stand or sit in an area above the gym level where a balcony has a view of the game's action. These do offer a great view of the action, although this area is not meant for much of a crowd.
Neighborhood 3
Notre Dame is in a very good part of Baltimore City. The problem is that there is just nothing much around the local neighborhood. Luckily Baltimore is a big city that is not too big to get around.
Miss Shirley’s at 513 West Cold Spring Lane is noted for their great breakfast and down-home food. They are one of the closer options to campus.
Also relatively close to the university is the Mt. Washington neighborhood that straddles I-83 South (known as the Jones Falls Expressway, or the JFX, by locals). The Mt. Washington Tavern is an excellent restaurant with both a fine food and bar food type of menu. The place is large, and there always seems to be room for more. Parking is the biggest problem here, so it would be worth paying the nominal valet charges.
Radisson Hotel at Cross Keys is the closest hotel and has a lobby restaurant which is another option.
Venturing further from the university, one may want to try out the suburb of Towson with its variety of shops and restaurants. Try the Charles Village Pub in the heart of downtown Towson for good food and drinks.
Fans 2
As with most small college gyms, the bulk of the fans tend to be family or friends of both teams. There will be some local fans who just happen to stop by for the game as well. The men's team, although new, is still drawing relatively well since many of the players are from the local area.
Access 3
The campus is located in a quiet north Baltimore neighborhood. That means that getting to the campus is not easy. The best route is to travel I-83/The JFX, south and get off at Cold Spring Lane. Other options include exiting I-695, the Baltimore Beltway, and driving south via York Road or Charles Street. York is the busiest route, but may be easier than the high-speed curves of Charles Street.
If one is attending weekend games, there should be no problem finding parking. There is a big lot near the tennis courts and is just a short walk away from the Knott Complex. I have not attended a game here on weekday nights so I am not sure how filled that parking lot gets. You may want to arrive a little early just in case.
The Knott building can be accessed in one of two main ways. The main entrance is on the south side, while if coming from the parking lot, there is a small unmarked door from the north. The north entrance is better anyway as it takes you right to the gym level, whereas the main door brings you to the balcony area.
Return on Investment 4
You are not going to be watching the highest level of basketball competition, but the cost is about the best you can find. That’s right, there is no admission cost. Combine that with free parking, and you have a pretty great night out.
.
Extras 1
The Notre Dame campus is small but quite pretty. Take a quick walk around before the game. There is a small trophy case with some athletic trophies and accomplishments right at the main Knott entrance.
Final Thoughts
There is not too much to see at a Notre Dame of Maryland University men's basketball game. But the gym is still a pleasant place to see some intercollegiate action.
Commentaires