By Dave Johnson
W&M Athletics
Gabe Dorsey was hot from the start, his sweet left-handed stroke knocking down six 3-pointers in 12 attempts. Each basket was celebrated on the brand-new videoboard and booming sound system at Kaplan Arena.
Not to mention the upgraded lighting system, which is almost literally a night-and-day difference.
"The court popped a little more and the basket looked a little brighter today," said Dorsey, whose 18 points led William & Mary to an 84-29 win over Regent University Monday night. "It was pretty cool.
"(We're) very appreciative of everybody who donates and supports our program and all the hard work that goes into things like that. The videoboard and lighting made the court pop, so that contributed to me shooting the ball a little better."
William & Mary celebrated its newly refurbished arena with a double-header Monday night, which started with the Tribe women playing Norfolk State. From the start, the improvements were eye-opening.
The lighting focuses more on the court and less on the backdrop. It is dimmed during the starting lineups and immediately returned to full strength.
The videoboard, designed and installed by Daktronics, is 1,000 square feet of LED technology and has 2.6 million pixels of digital display space. It shows videos of players during the starting lineups and replays during the game — among many other possibilities.
It also keeps up-to-date statistics on the players. That allowed fans to keep track of Dorsey's 3-pointers and
Nylah Young's 29 points, undoubtedly one of the highest-scoring outputs in a Kaplan debut performance.
"It was a great feeling," Young said. "I thought the energy in the building was alive. It was a great environment to be in. I loved every second of it."
As for the sound system, let's just say no one will complain about not being able to hear what they're saying again.
"It's going to completely change the in-game experience for our fans and our players," said women's basketball coach
Erin Dickerson Davis, whose team fell to Norfolk State 66-64. "They can do some really fun things with the lighting. We've shot some videos so it's more interactive.
"With the sound system, you're able to hear the announcers and the music. It's really top-of-the-line equipment. We're super excited to be able to have it. It's truly going to change the game for Tribe basketball."
Men's coach
Dane Fischer agrees.
"This is a great step for us," he said. "We've always had a good atmosphere at the games, but this just heightens it. As the year goes on and people learn all the things we can do with this scoreboard, it's going to get even better.
"There were a lot of challenges over the summer (by) not being in the arena. I thought our administration did an unbelievable job of making (everything) really functional. That set the tone for all the programs that this was what we were going to do, and it's going to be worth it. We're seeing that now."
Although Monday night was the first basketball games to be played at Kaplan since the renovations, W&M's volleyball team broke it in with a five-set win over the College of Charleston on Sept. 16. The Tribe is 6-2 in Kaplan.
Also competing in the arena will be the gymnastics teams, who get the season going with the annual intra-squad Green & Gold meet on Dec. 8.
In addition to the present, Davis and Fischer expect the arena upgrades to make a significant difference in the future of their programs.
"We've had recruits come already, and everyone has talked about how amazing the arena looks," Davis said. "This is truly, truly a beautiful place."
And it's not over.
"There are upgrades that people can't see on game days," Fischer said. "A brand new weight room, and the next thing coming is the practice facility.
"It shows the commitment William & Mary is willing to make to its student-athletes and how valuable they are. To be able to show first-class facilities is really important."
