The Epicenter of Steel City Sports

From Forbes Field to Pitt Stadium, Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood has been home to some of the most iconic moments in sports history. Including the Fitzgerald Field House and the Duquesne Gardens, Oakland has drawn in both professional and college sports fans alike.

Local authors and sports historians David Finoli, Tom Rooney, Robert Healy III, Douglas Cavanaugh and Chris Fletcher celebrate the glorious victories and heartbreaking losses throughout the history of Pittsburgh's Oakland section, the epicenter of Steel City Sports.

Lovingly nicknamed the Igloo, the Civic Arena was home to the Pittsburgh Penguins until 2010 and hosted some of the most important sports and entertainment events in Steel City history. During the glorious Mario Lemieux era, the venue hosted four Stanley Cup Finals, including three championship-winning seasons. Muhammad Ali KO'ed Charlie Powell in 1963 there. It was home to Duquesne Basketball in the arena's early days and has hosted some of the University of Pittsburgh's most important basketball games as well. Some of the biggest acts in music history have rocked the Igloo's seats, including Elvis, the Beatles and frequent favorite, Bruce Springsteen. Join local sports and media writers as they recall the greatest moments in Civic Arena's storied history.

When the University of North Carolina fielded its first varsity men's team in 1911, nobody could have imagined the mark its program would make on the history of college basketball. University of North Carolina Basketball chronicles the long and distinguished history of the Tar Heels, including the
school's numerous Southern Conference and Atlantic Coast Conference titles and its national championship teams. North Carolina has produced arguably the finest group of basketball minds and talent the sport has ever known. The list reads like a "Who's Who" of influential figures in college and professional basketball history, including Jack Cobb,
George "The Blind Bomber" Glamack, "Bones" McKinney, Frank McGuire, Lennie Rosenbluth, Dean Smith, Doug Moe, Donnie Walsh, Larry Brown, Billy Cunningham, Charles Scott, George Karl, Mitch Kupchak, Phil Ford, James Worthy, Michael Jordan, Rasheed Wallace, Antawn Jamison, Vince Carter, and Roy Williams.

In the City of Brotherly Love, there are few things taken as seriously as local bragging rights. In a city that lives and dies with its sports heroes, basketball is no exception. This volume traces the lore and history behind Philadelphia's Big 5, an informal basketball league that features five of the area's most prestigious colleges: LaSalle University, Temple University, Saint Joseph's University, Villanova University, and the University of Pennsylvania. Formed in 1955, the Big 5 pulls teams from the Ivy League, the Big East, the American Athletic Conference, and, in the case of both LaSalle and Saint Joseph's, the Atlantic 10. With a round-robin format, each team plays the other once and best record takes home the trophy. In a sport that has become a nationwide sensation, the spirit of Philadelphia lives on, led by the most loyal and passionate fans in the world.

Providence College Basketball: Take a journey with the small school from the country's smallest state that became New England's college hoops powerhouse.

Providence basketball's journey from a realtive unknown to national brand has captured the attention of sports fans in Rhode Island and throughout New England for over 45 years. Friar hoops historian Richard Coren sets the scene of how the small Dominican school on Smith Hill started from humble beginnings and has produced a story reminiscent of David and Goliath. The legend persists: tiny Providence College taking on and beating the big boys of college basketball. Run on a shoestring budget in the 1950s and 1960s, the program rose up out of nowhere to pull upset after upset. The school went on to dominate college basketball in New England, recording more postseason tournament games and victories, more 20-win seasons, more All-Americans, and more players in the pros than any school in the region. Providence College Basketball: The Friar Legacy examines the 75-year history of Friar hoops and celebrates the great players, coaches, games, and moments that have made Providence College basketball so unforgettable. Relive the annual trips to the National Invitation Tournament and the two Final Fours and discover how Rhode Island became hooked on the Friars.