City: Indianapolis, IN

Category: Spectator Sports

Telephone: (317) 917-2500

Address: 125 S. Pennsylvania St.

Description: The $183 million Conseco Fieldhouse stands as a monument to Indiana’s rich basketball tradition. Opened in 1999, the Fieldhouse is a surprising blend of cutting edge and nostalgia. It is the first retro-styled facility in the NBA. With 750,000 square feet and 18,345 seats, the Fieldhouse is home to the Indiana Pacers and its sister team, the Indiana Fever, as well as an excellent venue for other major events. Conseco Fieldhouse has 69 suites, 2,400 club seats, and state-of-the-art amenities. There are plenty of places to grab a hotdog or slice of pizza or sit down for a gourmet meal. The Ultimate Sports Road Trip ranked Conseco Fieldhouse as “the finest of them all in the four major sports” in 2006. USA Today called it “A Cathedral to Basketball.” The Fieldhouse has hosted major boxing events, ice shows, swimming championships, and performers such as Pavarotti, Bruce Springsteen, the Boston Pops, John Mellencamp, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Britney Spears, Kid Rock, and many more. The Pacers square off against basketball’s biggest stars from Nov through Apr. Ground was broken on July 22, 1997, to create the landmark facility that has risen 14 stories into the Indianapolis skyline. Modeled after Indiana’s old high school and college field houses, the building is an experience in itself. Featuring an eye-catching half-barrel type roof with a redbrick and steel interior, the Fieldhouse has huge skylights at the bottom of the building that bathe the arena bowl in natural light during the day and offer an awesome view of the city skyline at night. Other features include two huge glass curtain walls facing east and west, a grand staircase, seating bowl, large memorabilia cases on each side of the entrance to the seating bowl, roll-out bleachers at the south end, 20- to 22-inch seats, and retro light fixtures. The box office has old-fashioned teller cages with vintage billboards above them. The Pacers were born in 1967 when six investors bought a franchise in the proposed American Basketball Association. The nickname “Pacers” was picked, it is said, because it reflects the state’s history with harness racing pacers and the pace car used for running the Indy 500. For their first seven years, the Pacers played in the Indiana State Fairground Coliseum, now called the Pepsi Coliseum. In 1974 they moved to the great new Market Square Arena in downtown Indianapolis, where they stayed for 25 years. The Pacers were the most successful team in ABA history, winning three ABA Championships in four years. In all, they appeared in the ABA Finals five times in the league’s nine-year history. The Pacers were one of four ABA teams that joined the NBA in the ABA-NBA merger in 1976. Pacers team members have included Roger Brown, Mel Daniels, Bobby “Slick” Leonard, George McGinnis, Jermaine O’Neal, Rik Smits, Reggie Miller, and Larry Bird (now team president). Pacers tickets range from $15 to $500.