The Don Haskins Center, located in El Paso, Texas, is a large indoor arena that can accommodate thousands of people for various events such as basketball games, concerts, and graduations. Determining the maximum capacity of the Don Haskins Center is an important consideration when hosting large-scale events there.
Basketball Game Capacity
When set up for a basketball game, the Don Haskins Center can seat up to 12,222 people. This includes both general admission seating as well as courtside seats. The arena contains retractable bleachers on both sides that can be pulled out to increase the seating for big games when a larger capacity is needed. There is also additional standing room available behind the baskets when needed.
The Don Haskins Center is home to the UTEP Miners men’s basketball team. When they play home games, the arena is usually set up to hold around 12,000 fans. This provides a great home court advantage for the Miners with seats for the energetic “Miner Nation” fan base.
In addition to college basketball, the Don Haskins Center also hosts NBA preseason and exhibition games on occasion. When professional teams come to play, the seating capacity can be expanded to accommodate over 13,000 fans.
The arena has hosted many major basketball tournaments over the years as well, including the NCAA Men’s Final Four in 1983. During marquee events like that, extra courtside seating and standing room areas are added to allow over 14,000 screaming basketball fans into the Don Haskins Center.
Concert Capacity
When major concerts come to the Don Haskins Center, the seating capacity is adjusted to allow for bigger crowds. For end-stage concerts where the stage is set up on one end of the arena, the capacity can be over 15,000 people.
The retractable bleachers are pulled out and floor seats are added in front of the stage to allow for large general admission crowds. The Don Haskins Center has general admission floors that can hold thousands of passionate concert-goers who want to get close to the stage.
Some of the biggest names in music have brought their live shows to the Don Haskins Center over the years, including bands and artists like U2, Paul McCartney, Elton John, and Beyoncé. When acts like these come through El Paso, they expect big crowds at their concerts which the Don Haskins Center can accommodate.
The arena also hosts large Latin music shows frequently, such as concerts by regional Mexican bands like Los Tigres del Norte. These shows bring in huge crowds as well, with general admission crowds on the floor that can number over 15,000 fans.
Graduation Capacity
In addition to athletic and entertainment events, the Don Haskins Center is also used every year for graduation ceremonies by the University of Texas at El Paso as well as local high schools. When set up for graduation, the Don Haskins Center can seat up to 7,500 people.
For graduations, the floor is covered in seating set up for the graduating students. Behind them on retractable bleachers, additional seating is available for family members and guests to watch the ceremonies.
UTEP generally holds multiple graduation ceremonies over a full weekend in order to accommodate all of the graduating students and their families. Each individual ceremony normally hosts between 1,500-2,000 graduates.
Local El Paso high schools like El Dorado High School also use the Don Haskins Center to hold their own commencement exercises. The large capacity lets them host graduating classes of over 1,000 students plus all their loved ones there to support them on their big day.
Maximum Standing Room Capacity
When needed for extremely large events, the Don Haskins Center can accommodate massive crowds in excess of 15,000 people if needed. By removing most seating and just allowing for standing room only, arena management estimates crowds of over 17,000 could fit inside.
Standing room only situations are rare, but could potentially happen for hugely popular concerts or championship sporting events like a NCAA Final Four tournament game if El Paso were to host it again in the future.
This maximum capacity is rarely needed nowadays. Modern concerts and basketball games usually top out at around 15,000 people for the largest draws.
But it’s helpful to know just how big of a crowd the Don Haskins Center could potentially hold if absolutely necessary. With over 17,000 people standing shoulder-to-shoulder, the arena would be an extremely crowded environment!
Total Arena Square Footage
In addition to looking at maximum capacities, another way to consider the size of the Don Haskins Center is by looking at its total indoor area.
The arena has a total indoor space of 145,000 square feet. That’s the equivalent of about 2.5 football fields of area under one roof.
Within that space, there is around 38,000 square feet dedicated to the main basketball/hockey surface. The additional 100,000+ square feet includes all concourse areas, concession stands, locker rooms, offices, storage rooms, and more.
Here is a breakdown of the total square footage of the Don Haskins Center:
| Area | Square Feet |
|---|---|
| Main arena surface | 38,000 |
| Concourses | 52,000 |
| Offices/storage | 20,000 |
| Locker rooms | 4,000 |
| Miscellaneous | 31,000 |
| Total | 145,000 |
Knowing the total square footage gives you a sense of just how large the Don Haskins Center is. With 145,000 square feet, it has ample space to accommodate crowds of 10,000+ for all types of different events.
Conclusion
In summary, the Don Haskins Center can hold anywhere from 7,500 people up to a maximum of over 17,000 depending on the type of event being held and the seating configuration used. Typical capacities are around 12,000 for basketball, 15,000 for concerts, and 7,500 for graduations.
The versatility of the arena with its retractable bleachers and configurable floors allows it to handle everything from small ceremonies to massive rock concerts. This flexibility makes the Don Haskins Center a hugely valuable venue for El Paso and the surrounding region.
With a total indoor area of 145,000 square feet, the Don Haskins Center provides an absolutely enormous amount of space under one roof. This allows thousands of screaming fans to gather together and enjoy epic live events in one place.
The next time you attend a memorable event at the Don Haskins Center, keep in mind the sheer size and scale of the arena. It takes a lot of space to hold all those people, and the Don Haskins Center has plenty of it to create an electric live entertainment atmosphere.
