LSU’s Board of Supervisors voted Friday morning in favor of amending LSU’s basketball court to the Dale Brown-Sue Gunter Court to honor former LSU women’s basketball coach Sue Gunter.

The academic committee voted 6-2 for approval and the full board passed it with one objection. 

The board renamed the Pete Maravich Assembly Center court after the winningest basketball coach in LSU history, Dale Brown, in September 2021 on a 12-3 vote.

Gunter coached the Tigers from 1982 to 2004, as she amassed 448 wins, eight Sweet Sixteen appearances, four Elite Eights, and one Final Four. At the time of her death in 2005, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer left LSU as the third all-time winningest women’s basketball coach in NCAA history.

Some controversy emerged around the decision, as prominent sportscaster and former basketball head coach Dick Vitale voiced his criticism about the potential naming.

“How absurd-in Louisiana the Governor wants to change the name of the LSU basketball court that was named Dale Brown Court in a dedication ceremony about a year ago,” Vitale said. “Dale deserved the honor and it was finally affirmed.”

One of LSU’s Board of Supervisor members, Jay Blossman also levied criticisms against the process of the vote. He voiced displeasure that the Board had not been told about Sue Gunther’s nomination prior to her March 17 nomination.

Another board member, James M. Williams, also voiced displeasure with the notion that the Board had some level of outside pressure to make this decision and did not make this decision of their own accord.

“I think it is insulting to this board and insulting to our governor that anyone could be told what to do,” Williams said. “However this vote turns out, it’s a very unfair characterization of what we are trying to do.”