[2] Often called "the UC" within the university, it was built in 1982 at a cost of $16.3 million.

It also hosts many other functions including Southeastern's commencement, a variety of concerts and community events, circuses, and rodeos.

From 2001 through 2008, the arena hosted the girls basketball state championships tournament of the Louisiana High School Athletic Association; after a 1-year hiatus at a location on another campus, the tournament returned to Southeastern and to its University Center in 2010.

The tournament is well received and supported in Hammond and Tangipahoa Parish, where girls basketball has been popular for many decades.

Baylor coach Kim Mulkey starred at Hammond High School before a standout career at Louisiana Tech and as a member of the U.S. national team that won the gold medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics.