The building was completed in 1927 and named by Greek professor William N. Bates after the ancient Greek term palæstra, a rectangular enclosure attached to a gymnasium where athletes would compete in various sports in front of an audience.
Penn's Palestra was built adjacent to and today is connected to Hutchinson Gymnasium.

The Palestra hosted its first basketball game on January 1, 1927.
Pennsylvania defeated Yale 26–15 before a capacity crowd of 10,000, then the largest crowd ever to attend a basketball game on the East Coast.

For many years, the building shared the same management as Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Teams wishing to play at the Manhattan venue were often required to schedule a game at the Palestra, which thereby hosted several very high-level sporting events.
Many professional games were played at the Palestra before the completion of the Spectrum in 1967.

The arena hosted the 1968 Intercontinental Cup basketball tournament.

The Palestra's 50th Anniversary was celebrated on February 10, 1977.

During the 2011 NBA lockout, on September 25, 2011, a team including NBA stars LeBron James, Chris Paul, and Carmelo Anthony, among others, took on Team Philly, a team of NBA players with connections to the Philadelphia area.
Team Philly won the game 131–122 in front of 8,725 attendees.
The building was completed in 1927 and named by Greek professor William N. Bates after the ancient Greek term palæstra, a rectangular enclosure attached to a gymnasium where athletes would compete in various sports in front of an audience. Penn's Palestra was built adjacent to and today is connected to Hutchinson Gymnasium.
The Palestra hosted its first basketball game on January 1, 1927. Pennsylvania defeated Yale 26–15 before a capacity crowd of 10,000, then the largest crowd ever to attend a basketball game on the East Coast.
For many years, the building shared the same management as Madison Square Garden in New York City. Teams wishing to play at the Manhattan venue were often required to schedule a game at the Palestra, which thereby hosted several very high-level sporting events. Many professional games were played at the Palestra before the completion of the Spectrum in 1967. 
The arena hosted the 1968 Intercontinental Cup basketball tournament. 
The Palestra's 50th Anniversary was celebrated on February 10, 1977.
During the 2011 NBA lockout, on September 25, 2011, a team including NBA stars LeBron James, Chris Paul, and Carmelo Anthony, among others, took on Team Philly, a team of NBA players with connections to the Philadelphia area. Team Philly won the game 131–122 in front of 8,725 attendees.
Palestra