There was a time when blaring music, full-throat public address and time-out gimmicks weren’t necessary to get a crowd out of their seats.

At NIU, that was the era of the Chick Evans Field House.

“The thing about the Field House is that it was like the old [former Blackhawks arena] Chicago Stadium,” said Mike Korcek, NIU sports information director emeritus. “When you got 4,000 people in there, and it sat 6,000, the building sounded like the old stadium.”

A definitive home-court advantage existed at the Field House. The NIU men rang up a 369-165 record, and the women built a 190-101 mark. In 45 years, the NIU men only posted a sub-.500 record at home six times.

It is estimated that more than 1.5 million sat on the backless bleachers that lined the Field House to witness men’s basketball, an average of 2,873 per game.

A former Northern Star sports editor said despite its shortcomings – which included such simple improvisations as garbage cans used to capture water from a ceiling that would leak when it rained – watching a game at the Field House was like going to a high school game.

“The Field House was worn down,” said Nick Gerts, sports editor at the Daily Chronicle. “I remember there was one game where the bleachers didn’t work on one side. Everyone had to bunch together and it made for a loud game.”

The acoustics of the Field House might not have been primed for the concerts the Convocation Center hosts, nor did it have the numerous comforts of the Convo. And even though the buildings are approximately one mile apart, they are polar opposites as far as modern innovation.

The seats at the Convo are wide and comfy, and the backrest makes it perfect to sit through a game in the $35.8 million facility.

The high-tech wizardry of the $1.5 million Daktronics score board, the 215,000 square feet available for exhibition space and the five luxury suites perched high above the crowd further enhance the stately accommodations of the home for NIU basketball, with wrestling and volleyball using Victor E. Court.

It is an all-purpose building – but one that everyone interviewed admitted can be cold at times.

Despite a 35-25 record all time on the court of the Convo, this year, NIU men’s basketball averaged 1,428 fans per game.

At the press conference to introduce new men’s basketball coach Ricardo Patton, NIU president John Peters expressed his desire to see the building filled. The former coach of Colorado called the confines better than most in the Big 12.

So why have fans not come in droves to attend basketball games at the Convocation Center?

The main difference between the Convocation Center and the Field House seems to be fan experience. Former NIU men’s basketball coach Rob Judson told tales of heckling fans that would dress in rain coats and get quite vociferous when displaying their displeasure with referees and opponents.

Fans were literally on the floor with the seat configuration in the Field House, and NIU women’s basketball coach Carol Owens recognizes the home court advantage that existed there.

“The field house was a smaller venue, and in the 80’s it was the best thing for us,” the NIU Hall of Famer said. “It was our home, and a very difficult place for other teams to play.”

To get a glimpse of the bigger picture as far as having an atmosphere similar to that of the Field House, unfortunately, recruits and fans have to travel into the head of Owens.

Despite attendance short comings, Owens said the modern brilliance of the Convo has been a great recruiting tool. And she is convinced that with a good product on the floor fans will come.

“When we fill these seats it’ll feel a lot closer than they have in the past,” Owens said. “I have no doubt we’ll fill this lower bowl, and then the top. It’s a vision of my staff and the program.”

Owens speaks with determined conviction about filling the larger venue, and said that once filled, the Convo will be like the Field House; a tough place for opponents to play.

But it is still a work in progress as the lack of attendance shows. And those empty seats are at the forefront of concerns of the athletic department.

As manager of the basketball team for four straight winning seasons, from 1978-1982, Glen Krupica has had a front row seat to the evolution of home basketball games at NIU.

The current senior associate athletics director, Krupica said the Convocation Center has the potential to grow into a living, breathing entity, just like the Field House.

“We’ve got a gift here with the Convocation Center,” Krupica said. “It is our job to maximize it and create the home-court element that has been lacking for a while.”

Banners now adorn the rafters as a reminder to fans of the history and tradition of NIU basketball. The athletic department, Patton and the Convocation Center staff are all vying for the attention of a society over-saturated with media options.

“There are 7,000 kids within 500 yards of the facility,” Krupica said. “Maybe we need to further point that out, or work out better transportation routes between the dorms and Convo to make it easier for people.”

Maybe a collection of memories will bring a throng of people to the Convocation Center.

Ask Krupica and Korcek of their favorite moment, and they both turn to a Terry Green dunk in 1979 that sent a game with then No. 11 DePaul into overtime. Krupica went so far as to call it the single greatest play he’d ever seen.

Or, maybe the Convocation Center needs that Field House charm. Though it’s hard to believe a leaky ceiling would help.

Maybe it’s that player that transcends the constant sports coverage on ESPN. The one who makes you get off the couch and trudge through the snow just to watch. Could that bring more students?

Only time will tell.

But as a new era in NIU basketball dawns, what can fans expect at the Convo?

“We have a great place to sell,” Krupica said. “I think it’s a matter of continuing to sell people, getting into the dorms and other organizations both on- and off-campus. It worked in football. It can work in basketball.”