updated 4:27 p.m. ET July 2, 2008

LEXINGTON, Ky. - The University of Kentucky Basketball Museum has shut its doors due to falling attendance and financial problems.

The museum, located in the Lexington Center near the entrance to Rupp Arena, has struggled to find an audience since opening in 1999.

Kentucky deputy athletic director Rob Mullens said Wednesday that the museum, which was not affiliated with the university, was averaging less than 25,000 visitors a year. Consultants told museum officials before it opened that 110,000 fans a year could push through the turnstiles.

Mullens said the university has decided to reallocate its annual $100,000 donation to the museum to help offset $1.2 million in debt. Mullens said the university would try to open a new fan-friendly experience at the Craft Center, the school’s new basketball practice facility.

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