NCAA Basketball: Ranking the nation’s 25 best home-court advantages

13) New Mexico – Dreamstyle Arena (The Pit)

Based on team success, it wouldn’t be a surprise if New Mexico’s play in recent years kept them off of this list. They haven’t won the Mountain West, made the NCAA Tournament, or even won 20 games in a season since 2013-14.

HOWEVAH, everything else about The Pit is extremely intimidating and gives New Mexico a tremendous home-court advantage.

Part of the advantage comes from the location of the court and design of the arena. In Albuquerque, the arena sits a mile above sea level, and opponents have problems adjusting to the altitude. The court is also 37 feet below street level, making it feel like you’re playing underground – but you also have trouble catching your breath because of the altitude.

Because the court is so low, it feels like the fans are right on top of the court. There’s a lot of them, and they’re loud.

With a capacity of 15,411 seats, New Mexico has consistently ranked among the nation’s leaders in attendance since the arena opened in 1966. In fact, they ranked in the top 10 nationally in every season but one through 2002.

Noise levels in the arena can also be deafening, measuring up to 125 decibels, which is close to the pain threshold for the human ear! They also registered at 118 decibels in another study.

There’s also the famous message written along the wall of the tunnel where the opposing team walks from the locker room to the court that says, “Welcome to the legendary Pit, a mile high and louder than…”