In a game that wound up being the last of the University of Virginia men’s basketball season, a sellout crowd of more than 14,000 fans packed John Paul Jones Arena for the Hoos’ Senior Night win over Louisville on March 7.

Nearly two months later, a tiny fraction of those spectators will be back in JPJ to do their part in a much bigger battle.

On Tuesday and Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the American Red Cross will hold a drive to help replenish its blood supply, which has dwindled during the coronavirus pandemic.

Donors from Charlottesville and surrounding areas are being encouraged to make an appointment through the Red Cross website.

Due to social distancing guidelines, the Red Cross is only offering 65 appointment slots each day. As of Friday morning, 24 open slots remained for Tuesday and 51 for Wednesday.

“Everyone at UVA Health is so thankful for the outpouring of support we have received in so many different ways from the University and the greater Charlottesville community, including the American Red Cross,” said Eric Swensen, public information officer at UVA Health. “Blood donations are vital to helping us carry out our mission of patient care, and we would greatly appreciate anyone who is able to participate in the blood drive.”

If no appointments at JPJ are available, community members are encouraged to make one at other locations in the area, which they can find by entering their zip code on the website.

“As we tell people all the time, the need for blood is constant,” said Austin Rehfield, district manager of recruitment at Red Cross. “It’s going to be there today, tomorrow, two weeks from now. It’s always going to be needed. If you’re not able to make an appointment on your preferred day, there are drives scheduled going six months into the future. There are many other opportunities to give.”

To give blood, donors must be 16 or older, weigh at least 110 pounds, bring proper identification, be healthy and feeling well and meet other eligibility requirements.

Prospective donors will have their temperatures taken prior to entering JPJ and will be provided masks if they don’t already have them.

To help speed up the process, donors must fill out an online “rapid pass,” which asks them health questions on the day of their donation. All told, Rehfield said donors can expect to spend about an hour on site.

Rehfield said UVA has been an “outstanding” partner.

“We have a UVA Red Cross club on Grounds that has been integral in supporting the Red Cross mission across all lines of service, not just blood drives,” he said. “And anybody who has been on Grounds has probably seen our Bloodmobile parked outside Clark Hall on a regular basis.”

Last month, UVA Facilities Management held a drive coordinated by senior customer service representative James Plakal.

“It’s been really terrific in having the support of the UVA community,” Rehfield said. “From early on, there’s been a great willingness to support us in whatever measure possible.”

And, in these unusual times, Rehfield said JPJ is the perfect location for a drive.

“With the criteria being big, open spaces that would enable us to do the social distancing and also trying to have them at places that are well-known … everybody in this area knows John Paul Jones Arena.”