Rickey Reese has constructed and removed the Wright State men\u2019s and women\u2019s basketball floor over 300 times since he began working at the Nutter Center in 2002.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is where my heart is,\u201d said Reese, the operations supervisor for the Nutter Center.<\/p>\n
It takes a team of four, without breaks, two and a half hours to completely construct the 15 rows of wood flooring. Each panel needs to be lifted and then placed into position while Reese uses a rubber mallet to perfectly place each piece into a snug position and then secure the panel of court with a metal pin.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery line needs to be lined up exactly or else you\u2019ll need to redo the entire row,\u201d said Reese.<\/p>\n
The four-person team is often faced with tight deadlines. Before Reese\u2019s crew could get to work, for instance, the Nutter Center hosted Monster Jam this past weekend and before the basketball flooring was installed, 17 tons of dirt needed to be removed from the ground floor.<\/p>\n
\u201cI give these guys all the credit in the world,\u201d said Joe Dick, interim associate director of the Nutter Center. \u201cThey want the floor to be perfect when the basketball team walks out here tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n
The floor was ready for action on Nov. 9 for the men\u2019s basketball home opener against Davidson. It will remain in place for the OHSAA girls volleyball tournament and another men\u2019s basketball game versus Bowling Green on Nov. 15 but will quickly need to be picked up for the Dave Matthews Band concert on Nov. 16.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
It takes a team of four, without breaks, two and half hours to completely construct the 15 rows of wood flooring for the men’s and women’s basketball court. Continue reading