The arena was renamed in 1981 for Wallis Beasley (1915–2008),[6] a long-time sociology professor and executive vice president,[7] shortly before his retirement from the university.

Friel stepped down as head coach in 1958 and five years later became the first commissioner of the Big Sky Conference, originally based in Pullman (from 1963 to 1971), because that's where he lived.

The court was named for Friel in late April 1977, announced by President Glenn Terrell at a meeting of the board of regents;[22] the dedication ceremony was at halftime on December 3.

The 1975 tournament expanded to 32 teams and the sub-regional had just two games:[28][29][30] Big Sky champion Montana (20–6) and second-ranked UCLA (23–3) advanced on Saturday night before 10,500.

[33] Five days later in the Sweet Sixteen in Portland, UCLA defeated the Grizzlies by a mere three points;[34][35] the Bruins continued on and won a tenth national title in 12 seasons, and hall of fame head coach John Wooden retired.

WSU's archrival Washington beat Nevada then upset third-seeded Duke,[39] while eventual champion Georgetown outlasted SMU 37–36 before over 10,500 spectators on Sunday afternoon.

An onsite reverberation chamber tuned with fiberglass panels for the specific acoustical configuration was combined with the first commercial use of a digital delay line, the Lexicon DD1, then fed to the side and overhead speakers.

Unfortunately, a sewer drain line had been installed from the southeast corner restroom facilities through the reverb chamber, and if a toilet flushed when the system was in operation, the resulting sound effect was extraordinary.

The Coliseum's Hall of Fame—famous entertainers who have performed there—include comedians such as Bob Hope,[42][43] Bill Cosby, Jay Leno, and Whoopi Goldberg, and musical stars or shows such as The Beach Boys, The 5th Dimension, Tony Orlando and Dawn, Stevie Wonder, Bob Dylan, Elton John, Def Leppard, Metallica, Bon Jovi, Van Halen, Dana Carvey, Drew Carey, Montgomery Gentry, Bill Engvall, Howie Mandel, Grease & Cats.