Northern Illinois University Athletics unveiled its newly renovated men’s and women’s basketball locker rooms on Wednesday (Oct. 9). The renovation was the first major upgrade to the Huskie basketball locker rooms since the opening of the NIU Convocation Center more than 20 years ago.

“We are extremely appreciative of all of the donors that helped make this locker room renovation a reality,” said NIU Vice President/Director of Athletics Sean T. Frazier. “Our newly renovated locker rooms will greatly enhance the student-athlete experience for both our men’s and women’s basketball programs and provide them with a first-class location to call their own within the Convocation Center.”

Among the highlights of the renovation is the complete replacement of the lockers. Each of the new lockers, which replace the originals from when the Convocation Center opened in 2002, includes a padded seat and backrest, power outlets, a footlocker and overhead storage space.

The locker rooms also received other renovations, including fresh paint and wall graphics as well as updated lighting and other amenities.

“There are a lot of people to thank for making this project happen,” NIU women’s basketball head coach Lisa Carlsen said. “These renovations show an investment in our current and future Huskies and gives them a space that is their own. This upgrade provides our program with a player-friendly experience while adding to our student-athletes overall development here at NIU.”

“I would like to thank everyone that made this project possible,” said NIU men’s basketball head coach Rashon Burno. “To finally have an updated locker room is unbelievable. We have updated lockers, a new fueling station, new TVs. All of these things give our guys the best opportunity to be successful and compete for MAC Championships. Without your help, this wouldn’t have been possible, and we are forever grateful.”

Huskie Basketball season tickets are on sale now. Men’s basketball season tickets start at just $105 for general admission tickets in sections 106-109 (lower bowl baseline) with reserved seats available for just $120 while women’s basketball season tickets start at just $35 for general admission seats and $50 for reserved tickets located in section 103 as well as 111-113.

Premium experiences areas are also available for NIU Basketball, including courtside season tickets, Nelson Suite and Victory Pub passes as well as private suites. For information on all premium experience areas, contact the Huskie Athletic Fund at 815-753-1923 or HuskieAthleticFund@niu.edu.

The NIU women’s basketball team will host Benedictine in an exhibition game on Sunday, Oct. 27, before hosting Louisiana in its regular season opener on Monday, Nov. 4 as part of the MAC/Sun Belt Challenge. The Huskie men’s basketball team travels to Georgia Southern on Monday, Nov. 4 to open the year in the MAC/Sun Belt Challenge and will host Holy Cross College in its home opener on Thursday, Nov. 7.

Quotes from Project Donors:

“I am thrilled to have been able to assist with such an important project for women’s basketball. The locker room is a critical place for the formation of a team.  It’s where potential recruits get a sense of the team and the culture they’d be joining and the place where both new recruits and established members come together to strengthen that culture and keep it going.”   – Ann Kaplan

“We think the locker room is a space that is not only utilitarian in nature, but a place where the team spends a great deal of time and where camaraderie is built. We are so happy to see this project come to fruition,” – David and Lyn Rasmussen.