Augustana basketball is returning to a familiar venue.

– Augustana College President
Rob Oliver, Director of Athletics Bill Gross alongside Sioux Falls Mayor Mike
Huether and Terry Torkildson, General Manager of the Sioux Falls Arena and
Convention Center, announced at a news conference today today that the two
entities have entered into a five-year agreement to move Augustana men’s and
women’s basketball doubleheaders to the Sioux Falls Arena starting in 2014-15.
Augustana last played basketball at the Sioux Falls Arena during the 2006-07
season.

The Sioux Falls Arena was the permanent home of
Augustana basketball from 1961-1989.

“After our discussions began last fall, our
athletic administrative team went to work and outlined our plan for how we
wanted the Arena to look and feel for our home games,” Gross said.
“The city of Sioux Falls and SMG have met every one of our requests, so
today I am pleased to announce an exciting future for Augustana basketball at
Sioux Falls Arena.”

Augustana athletics has been looking for a way to
improve the atmosphere for home basketball games for some time. “As the
Elmen Center reached its 25th anniversary, it became apparent to our
administration that we either had to make improvements to the facility or look
at other options,” Gross said. “The current state of the Hall Sports
Forum, with bleacher seating and challenging parking, was no longer attracting
to new fans to help us grow our current fan base of 1,750 season ticket
holders. As we looked into upgrading the Forum to include chairback seats,
suites and videoboards, we found it was impossible to make the Forum in the
Elmen Center the space we need to help our fan base grow.”

The Sioux Falls Arena will be transformed into the
new home of Augustana basketball. The venue will be painted in Augustana blue
and gold, including the playing surface. The transformed arena will offer many
amenities to fans not available at the Elmen Center, including:

• Over 3,500 chairback seats on
the lower and upper levels.

• Two three-year old
videoboards to enhance the fan experience.

• A new state-of-the-art
digital scorers table.

• Over 4,400 parking spaces in
the Arena/Convention Center and Event Center lots.

• Club seating with over 100
preferred seats.

Other improvements at the arena will include a
re-painted basketball playing surface with Augustana colors and logos. The
lobby areas will be updated with Augustana colors and logos. Inside the arena,
a 16-foot high curtain will be installed behind row 12 of the second level to
provide a more intimate feel. The capacity for Augustana basketball at the
Sioux Falls Arena will be 4,066. The Arena also offers Augustana opportunities
to host events for the Viking Kid’s Club and other promotional activities to
enhance the gameday experience at basketball games.

“We have discussed this move with our season
ticket holders, students and fans,” Gross said. “After learning more
about the move, we have received support from our Athletic Club Board of
Directors, our Augieholics student support organization, our Student-Athlete
Advisory Committee, and basketball coaches Tom Billeter and Dave Krauth.”

With 13 doubleheaders scheduled for 2014-15 at the
Arena, Sioux Falls’ Mayor Mike Huether was excited about the opportunity of
Augustana basketball being played at the Arena. “This is positive
out-of-the box thinking by the folks at Augustana and we are so pleased to have
them partner with the city,” Huether said. “Augustana basketball and
the Sioux Falls Arena will be a solid partnership and create another quality of
life win for Sioux Falls.”