What it won’t have are memories, at least for a while. Old Convo is where Floretta and Syd wowed us, where Holly and Sarah took Ticha and Clarisse to school. Dawn hung 42 on U.Va., and Nikki was on the hardwood more than any other. It’s where Tamera turned into a thief. Shelia paced and Kenny crouched. It’s where JMU ended Old Dominion’s 49- and later 113-game conference winning streaks, and where Chad Reep and the pep band roared as loud as the trucks on I-81.

Nobody else had The Ramp, and oh, what an entrance for the Dukes who compiled 444 wins over 38 seasons there.

We’ll miss it. We won’t forget it.  What are your best memories of The Convo? We asked. Here are the responses we got.

 After losing in the semifinals against Drexel, we were very disappointed about not achieving our goal of being the CAA champs, so on the long ride back to Harrisonburg, we rode in silence. As we pulled up to the Convocation Center, before exiting the bus, Coach Brooks said that he WILL be coaching in the WNIT and which players “are with him?!” At that moment, our mindset had to change and we began to prepare for the WNIT. We beat several “Big Conference” teams, such as Wake Forest, South Florida, and Syracuse to name a few. Syracuse was our most exciting game because that game led us to the WNIT championship. It came down to the last minute, with the crowd cheering and chanting our names. — Guard Tarik Hislop (2009-13)

Running down that ramp! The band was playing, the crowd was forming and the energy was building. There was nothing like jogging out of the locker room, into the energy of the arena and then onto that court. THAT was what the Convo was about. In a time when support for women’s sports was just building, the Convo provided a special place for us (as women) to shine. There are plenty of Division I women’s programs that are undersupported and at the Convo, we felt the love, energy and equality every single game. — Guard Holly Rilinger (1992-93, 94-97)

Obviously, the ramp! It was amazing running down the ramp right before every game and treacherous, sometimes. We also had to run up the ramp, at halftime and after warmups. The Convo had a distinct smell. Not a bad smell, but a distinct one. They had indoor track in there and we were in there when no one else was. As for a game, it would have to be when we beat Old Dominion to break their record. The atmosphere in there was off-the-charts that night, especially in the second half when it looked like we were going to win. They pulled the bleachers all the way out that night, and they didn’t normally do that for a women’s game. I  also remember a game during spring break, when there were no audiovisual people there to play our warmup tape. We ran down the ramp to almost a crowd of no one and the pep band started playing our warmup song — Dave Mathews’ “Ants Marching.” Everybody stopped and we started cheering them. They had taken the time to learn and play our song. — Guard Sarah Schreib (1993-97)

It’s obviously a very special place for me. I like to say that unofficially I have scored more baskets in that building than anyone on Earth. I played there so I practiced every day there for four years. I played there. I coached there with Lefty for a year. I came back and coached with Sherman Dillard for four years. I coached with (Bud) Childers for a year and then I was the head coach for 14 years. I’ve spent a lot of time in that building. My fondest memories were probably just coming in there when the building was quiet – being with my family, being with my daughters, allowing them to run around, watching them shoot or working them out. It just felt like home, an extension of home.

I won a championship in that building. I played a midnight game against the University of Richmond which was on ESPN, which was the wildest scene I’ve ever been associated with in college athletics. My fondest memories are honestly after hours with my family.  — Coach Kenny Brooks (played 1988-92, part-time men’s asst. coach ’93-94, men’s asst. ’98-02, women’s head coach 2002-2016)

My “fondest” memory was the pep band in the Dog Pound right next to the visiting team bench   They had some incredibly “creative“ cheers and songs.   Most of the time directed toward me.
Kenny’s wife across from the benches behind the radio broadcasters was also very entertaining.  I understand that she was a former cheerleader.   Good crowds and good competition.  Always.

I love the Convocation Center. It brought people together that normally wouldn’t have interaction in everyday life. It brought us toward one common thing, the love of basketball. Whether it was a coach, a player, a college student that couldn’t throw a rock in the ocean or even the university president. It brought us together.

That being said. My favorite memory was the Fab Five’s senior year playing Old Dominion. I remember not being able to sit still in all of my finance classes all day. Plus I knew it was T-shirt day (added bonus). We were top 25 at the time, yet we all knew a JMU-ODU matchup was a no-holds-barred Yankees-Red Sox type of rivalry.

The game “festivities” began with the normal pregame getting ready rituals. And when that hour before tip-off mark hit, I headed down The Ramp. The ramp that Coach Warner made us run up and down a thousand times backward. Our amazing pep band was already taunting ODU as they were warming up. Signals that this game was going to be good. The fans started piling in. From our Crown Club to the Duke Club, to the students and the community. They were there for us.

We did our normal warm-ups and stretching, headed back up the ramp toward our locker room getting ready for our starting lineup and quick brief of our matchups and game plan. Coach Brooks was at his finest giving us confidence and inspiration before we ran back down on the court.

The huddle before running down was just amazing. We did our normal cheer, lined up and ran down. The Convo was shaking as the crowd erupted when the pep band played our fight song and the cheerleaders got the crowd more into it.

Our starting introductions felt more elaborate than usual. There was something in the air. Then tipoff. From the moment Tamera won it, every single person in the Convo knew it was over. We were about to perform a symphony. From Andrea’s perfect spot-on assists to Lesley knocking down her smooth jumpers, Shirley shutting down T.J Jordan completely, Tamera knocking her shots down.

We were already winning by half, but the second hits with a bang. Onge hits me with her standard QB pass on a break. Then next play, Shirl gets the same opportunity. Then IT happens. The wave. The Convo had the wave going on. You just saw a sea of purple and gold in a shaking arena. Even the announcers were more enthusiastic than normal (trust me, they were the best). My parents were listening via JMU website and heard David Taylor’s excitement.

This was also still when we had the bleachers on the floor, and our practice guys had their normal seats, as close to our bench as they could be. Cheering us on even though we’d beat them up at practice. But we wouldn’t be the players we are without them.

We wound up winning that game by 29. And I truly believe it is because of the magic that is the Convocation Center. It has taken our blood, sweat and tears. It has tried us mentally, physically and emotionally. It made us stronger players, but more importantly better people. That magic that is the Convo will always live with us. Coaches, players, students and folks that just downright love the sport of basketball.

So a thank you to everyone. Thank you for making the Convo a place in my heart forever. — Forward Meredith Alexis (2003-07)

I think it’s my junior year when I came back from tearing my ACL. It was the Christmas tournament and it was my first game back and the Convo and pep band cheered so loud, that love and support from JMU was the best ever! It was home! They always made you feel loved! Even on not so great days being in that Convo was the best place! — Center Lauren Jimenez (2008-11)

Anyone who played basketball at JMU spent at least four hours a day inside the Convocation Center (5+ during the season). From the naps in the lounge to clowning around the coaches’ offices, post-practice study halls (love you, Coach Brown), to the court (and track- oh the track)… the Convo was home. I was fortunate enough to experience the Convo as a player and a staff member. It holds some of my greatest memories and some of my now saddest.

One particular memory that comes into mind, I believe, speaks true to the JMU family and how supportive our community is. I remember as a senior being hurt and struggling through my injury. After a month of not playing, I was able to play again and when I went in you could feel the support from everyone in the Convo with how the crowd cheered for me. We aren’t only athletes. We’re humans with feelings and emotions. And JMU nation supports humans. So for me, that was special as a transfer student. Oh.. And how could I leave out beating Coach Brooks as a GA 😉 That was special and weird all in one. — Guard Ashley Perez (2014-16)

I have so many great memories of the Convo, it’s hard to pick just one. In my four years at JMU, it is undoubtedly the place that I spent the most time. Hours and hours of practice, conditioning, weights, film, meetings, naps, and just hanging out in the coaches’ offices. And obviously the best part, which was playing games. Some of my fondest memories in the Convo include our annual pre-season photoshoots when we would get to put on our uniforms for the first time and we would see the coaches dress up. I loved all of our Duke Dog Reading Days when the lower bowl would be filled with tons of excited little kids cheering us on. I have really fond memories of the Crown Club post-game potlucks and them seeing us off from the Convo for the conference tournament, our NCAA and WNIT appearances. Lastly, I remember the ramp. I probably couldn’t even count the number of times I went up and down that ramp, but I will never forget how great it felt to run out of the tunnel and down the ramp to play our games. The Convo was a special place and I will always think of it as my home during my college years. — Guard Lesley Dickinson (2003-07)

I’d have to say senior night or the big WNIT games there, but it always came down to the crowd /community support and pep band! It was just electric to play there and it made it that much tougher for the opponents. Those are when I felt those the most intensity.  –– Guard Kirby Burkholder (2010-14)

There’s so many memories. The one thing I can appreciate about the Convo is when I played, it was packed, head to toe. The fans, they loved us and other.schools hated coming there. That was probably the best memories because our band and our crowd made it so rough for them that I sometimes felt bad for them. But that was the Convo. That was our identity. We filled the stands with love, cheer and passion. I miss it to this day. It’s hard for me to watch their games sometimes because I miss being there so much. I loved it that much. — Guard Jamon Gwathmey (2012-16)

Where do I even start? I have a million memories. My whole career started at the Convo. Start wearing purple started at the Convo. Watching the most incredible athletes, and making music with the most amazing students. The band worked so hard and changed the game. Watching Kenny continue to grow such a talented women’s program was a highlight. Watching Coach O’Regan take over was so much fun. Probably one of my favorite memories, though, is the 2010 game against Delaware that went into overtime. A lot of people remember that victory, with Dawn Evans putting up 38 points. But there happened to be this redshirt freshman named Elena Della Donne from Delaware who broke the Convo scoring record with 54 points. It was an unbelievable showing, the Convo was electric, and somehow we still won that game. And it’s pretty neat that she will hold that record after it’s gone. That’s when I knew there was something special brewing in Harrisonburg. But man…the talent that went through that program. Just unbelievable athletes. And we had the opportunity to watch them all grow. Dawn Evans, Nikki Newman, Kirby Burkholder, my favorite Jazmon Gwathmey, Logan Reynolds, Hailee Barron, Meredith Alexis, Tamera Young. So many more I’m missing, but had such an impact. Having Kenny Brooks give me a thumbs up after every game. The Convo is a special place, with so many incredible moments. For my time at JMU, the women’s program reigns supreme. It made me fall in love with women’s basketball and JMU. Coming back to the Convo with Virginia Tech and Kenny was so hard and so incredible. Lots of memories for me there. — Chad Reep, pep band director (2009-2017)

I guess I’ve been part of the Convo from its beginning. I was there when it opened in November 28,1982; incidentally, that first game is where Duke Dog (the costumed mascot we all fondly know today) was introduced.  Lou Campanelli’s men’s team beat VMI that night. As a broadcaster for the JMU women’s program, there are so many games and moments I remember …. This is the basketball equivalent of Pringle’s potato chips …. you can’t pick just one!!

There were the Sheila Moorman program-building teams that made winning commonplace, with four NCAA Sweet 16 appearances. The program’s biggest win EVER was at #1 Penn State in the 1991 NCAA tournament, but that game only happened because of a hard-fought win over Kentucky at the Convo in the first round.  The Dukes also beat Clemson, Vanderbilt and Providence in NCAA games at the Convo.

This past weekend … on Play4Kay day …  the JMU team honored breast cancer survivors and memorialized others who had lost their battles to that awful disease.  Sheila was there as a survivor of 21 years. As a coach, an administrator and as a person, few people have ever contributed so much to a community!

Many of the most memorable Madison victories at the Convo happened in the storied series with Old Dominion when the two were regularly 1-2 in the CAA standings.  In the ’90s, ODU was the dominant team and just a regular-season victory for JMU over the Lady Monarchs was huge news.  ODU had two LONG conference win streaks come to an end at the Convo … Sarah Schreib and Holly Rillinger helped JMU shoot 80 percent (!!) in the second half and end a 49-game ODU conference win streak 87-80 in 1995.  Then 114 games later the Dukes did it again, edging ODU 49-48 in 2001.

But JMU would ultimately take its place in the driver’s seat against ODU. In Kenny Brooks’ first year … he was interim coach on Feb. 9, 2003, and his team was down 16 points, 72-56 with just over 5-1/2 minutes to play.  But as would be the case so many times in his 14 years, his team patiently rallied back, sending the game into overtime and winning 98-95. As much as anything, that’s the game that launched the Kenny Brooks story as the Dukes’ coach.  In 2010 at the Convo, his team would capture its first CAA Tournament Championship in 20 years, defeating top-seed ODU 67-53.

But oh my …. who can forget maybe the most amazing individual performance ever at the Convo (David Robinson’s included) when Delaware’s Elena Delle Donne scored 54 points in an overtime loss to the Dukes on Feb. 18, 2010.  It even overshadowed Dawn Evans’ then-school-record-tying 38 points in the JMU win!

And then there’s Evans with a school-record 42 points the following December rallying the Dukes from down 13 points in the final 3:59 to beat Virginia 82-80.

Oh, and then the WNIT games.  There’s Kirby Burkholder’s sophomore season back-to-back three-pointers to rally the Dukes to a quarterfinal win over UVa.  Followed by a win over Syracuse to make it to the WNIT championship in 2012.

And then there’s Kenny Brooks’ return to the the Convo last spring.  Never mind that the game went to the Dukes 70-66 … the standing ovation for Brooks as the opposing coach … and the way that Sean O’Regan embraced Kenny’s return … just remembering that will always bring tears to my eyes.  That evening transcended the game. I was there as a fan in my JMU season ticket seat … not far from Brooks’ bench where my dear friend was coaching his team against the team wearing my colors. Never has a JMU win been so bittersweet for me. — Broadcaster David Taylor, play-by-play announcer for 38 years

Just everything involved with Senior Day… it was bittersweet for sure but the amount of people who showed up for us was incredible. We set the record that day for attendance. The energy in the Convo was unbelievable. The game itself was great

My favorite/best Convo memories . . .  there are so many. From dying my first workout and we were only on agilities to beating UVA. The atmosphere is crazy. From the fans to the pep band to the Crown Club. But my best memory was definitely my senior night. Emotions were everywhere and then to have such an intense game against Elon was definitely the greatest way to go out…with an earned win. Afterward, the emotions were super intense and for somebody who doesn’t cry, I definitely boo-hooed giving my senior speech. Just never know the impact of the Convo until it’s time to leave it. — Guard Angela “Muff” Mickens (2012-16)

My favorite memory of playing in the convo is definitely running down the ramp during warm-ups and having the band there playing and cheering us on. — Courtney Hamner Brown (2007-11)