Howard University Burr Gymnasium

I wanna show «The Burr» some love. Built in 1963, it is home of the HU Men’s and Women’s Basketball teams. I’m sure some other teams play here but we’ll focus on hoops because that’s why I’ve been here. It’s not that bad a place to see a game. Really. Doesn’t look or feel quite it’s age, you can sit pretty much anywhere, unless there’s a larger than expected crowd for a game. The court feels like it’s in a dish but the seats are so close you can see and feel the action. HU does a good job of building some hype with music and dance/​cheerleaders. If you can park or take metro and make the walk here, its a nice, underrated option of things to do in DC: Watch MEAC Basketball or Howard vs some reasonably-​known team. I’ve been doing this for years and it’s a nice way to spend a couple hours plus as a Basketball fan. Go at the right time and you can just walk in. It’s free… In fact they’re happy to have anyone come in (It’s like that for a good number of College Basketball programs during exams and the holidays). Go HU !

Use the pool. It’s fantastic

I’m giving this not because it’s a great arena, but because you can see college basketball for free. I went the other day to see GW versus Howard and there’s no ticket booth, you just walk in. The place is really small, maybe 1,500 seats max, and the seats are very close to the action, so you can see and hear everything — coaches calling plays, players talking smack, etc. It was also 85 degrees, which was odd, but hey.
There’s a snack bar with the usual stuff if you’re hungry, and a DJ played during timeouts.
If you like college basketball or want something cheap to do, check it out. But keep in mind, it’s not exactly a palace (it’s a little dumpy to be honest.) I’m giving it 4 stars because it was fun, free, and has character.