The Pavilion’s crown jewel will soon be in the hands of a lucky ‘Nova Nationer. 

The 20 by 24 foot center court section from the Pavilion will be auctioned off during a two day online bidding period that will begin on Nov. 30 and conclude on, Dec. 1. The opening bid is set at $18,000, and a $500 travel credit will be offered if the buyer lives more than an hour from where the court is stored in King of Prussia. The auction is the latest offering in a series of memorabilia products from a University alumni couple who purchased the Pavilion’s contents before renovations began on the building in 2017.  

Scott Reidenbach already had ties to the men’s basketball team as a sponsor when he first heard talk of the renovations in the spring of 2017. He and wife Sheryl wondered what would become of everything inside—the court, bleachers, flags, and signs. As avid fans, they knew how much the Pavilion meant to Villanovans. 

So, they made the University an offer. Much to their surprise—they had no experience in the sports merchandise industry—it was accepted. 

“Villanova really just wanted to keep it in the family,” Sheryl said. “They wanted to keep it so that alumni had it and were going to sell it off to other alumni.” 

Since clearing out the building in the spring of 2017, the Reidenbachs have worked with manufacturers and local vendors to create unique products, including keychains, bottle openers, cufflinks, step stools and diploma frames made with the wood from the court and bleachers. Other items, such as signs, chairs and banners were left intact and sold. The majority of the sales are made on the Reidenbachs’ website.

A significant portion of the sales have benefitted the University community. A portion of all sales is given back to the University’s Athletics program, and the Reidenbachs say they have donated countless items to charitable organizations with ties to the University and surrounding areas. Proceeds from the sale of the Pavilion’s American flag went to the Wounded Warrior project, and the sale of the building’s Special Olympics flag benefitted that organization. Jalen Brunson, a member of both the 2016 and 2018 championship teams, donated several pairs of his sneakers to the Reidenbachs to sell. Proceeds from the sale of one of those pairs were given to the Children’s Hospital of Pennsylvania.    

The Reidenbachs are every bit the quintessential Villanova couple. Scott played baseball, and Sheryl was a member of the University’s Tri Delta Sorority. They met during a fire drill in the Quad and married in the Villanova chapel. Since then, both have remained active in the University community. Scott is an adjunct professor in the School of Business’ DiLella Center for Real Estate and gives an annual life skills presentation to freshmen class student athletes. Sheryl said sharing parts of the Pavilion with others who mirror their love for the University has been one of the most rewarding parts of the project. 

“We’ve gotten so many cute stories of people who are like, ‘My grandfather went there back in the ‘70s, and he’s going to love this sign,’ and then they’ll send us a picture of him holding it,” Sheryl said. “I’m really happy to say that all of our sales have been to people who went there.”