Relive some great moments from Allen Fieldhouse before the 800th game

• After three years of construction, the Fieldhouse opened on March 1, 1955, with a Kansas victory over Kansas State. The Jayhawks came out victorious against the Wildcats with a 77-67 win.

• Before Danny Manning, the school’s all-time leading scorer, left to have a career in the NBA, he squeezed out a few indelible performances. One of the best for Manning came against Digger Phelps and the Fighting Irish on Feb. 8, 1987. Manning dropped 40 points that game as Kansas beat Notre Dame 70-60. It was Manning’s best performance in the Phog behind a 42-point effort against Missouri State later that year.

• 150 points is major accomplishment in college basketball. It means even more against a powerhouse like Kentucky. The Jayhawks dropped 80 points in the first half and went on to put another 70 points to set the school record for most points in a game. The final score: Kansas 150 Kentucky 95.

Note: This video is the first part of this game. Go to YouTube to find the entire game. 

• In his first varsity game inside Allen Fieldhouse, Wilt Chamberlain started off his career with a bang on Dec. 3, 1956. The Jayhawks crushed the Northwestern Wildcats behind Chamberlain’s 52 points. That record still stands as the most points scored in a single game by any Kansas Basketball player.

• In one of the more memorable Final Four runs for Kansas, no game was bigger than Nick Collison’s 24-point, 23-rebound performance that led the Jayhawks over Texas by the score of 90-87 on Jan. 27, 2003. For those who watched on television, this was the game ESPN commentator Dick Vitale gave Collision a standing ovation.

• It was a day full of record-setting accomplishments on March 3, 2007 when Kansas came back from a 12-point deficit to win 90-86 over the Texas Longhorns. On that day, Kansas won its 1,900th all-time game and clinched its 50th conference title. However, what is still remembered most is Texas’ Kevin Durant’s 25 point first half. He finished the game with a total of 32 points.

First Half highlights:

Second Half highlights:

• Raef LaFrentz, Billy Thomas, and Kansas won 83-70 over Oklahoma on Feb. 23, 1998, completing their careers as Jayhawks undefeated at home. There was also a man by the name of Paul Pierce that even made Oklahoma coach Kelvin Sampson impressed with his 31-point performance that night.

• With the Border War appearing to be on hold for the near future, Kansas’ 87-86 overtime victory over Missouri proved to be one of the greatest games in the rivalries history while also adding to the lore of the Fieldhouse. As you might remember, The Jayhawks overcame a 19-point second half deficit to force overtime and the eventual victory.