Jefferson Hagen
MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON – Expecting a raucous atmosphere as they visit hoops hotbed Lethbridge this weekend, the MacEwan Griffins men's basketball team is embracing the challenge.
The scene is usually a frenzied one at 1st Choice Savings Centre but will be amped up even more than usual this weekend as the Pronghorns host their Senior Night and Hall of Fame ceremony.
"To me, I'll always say that it's one of the top five home-court advantages," said Griffins head coach Mike Connolly, who was head coach of the Pronghorns from 2002-09. "When they're playing and they have decent teams, it's one of the toughest places to play. Senior's night, there's always a full crowd. People support them. It will be passionate and it's good. This is why we play the game, for the experience."
The Griffins and Pronghorns will do battle on Friday (8 p.m.) and Saturday (7 p.m., both Canada West TV).
"You have to be focused," said Connolly about dealing with a hostile crowd. "When we went to Calgary, we had the football team behind our bench, and we had to take our timeouts out on the floor. So, it's been fun. Those are things that make university sports special.
"When you have that, it's fun. You have the people supporting the players and they're all one big family and they're against everyone else. It's what university sports should be about."
The Griffins (0-16) come into the weekend searching for their first win of the season and will be focused on getting a result against the Pronghorns (4-12).
As they head into the stretch drive (their final four games of the season), there will be some evaluation, too.
"Obviously, we want to win," said Connolly. "That's always our goal, but we're still developing, so we want to make sure we're playing well. It's a good time to evaluate the guys we have.
"As we move forward, and as good as all these players are, we still have to strive to get better. So, there will be changes. It's the nature of the beast. It gives us a chance to evaluate who's playing and how they're performing. Will they be able to sustain what we want in the future, taking the next steps to make us better?"
Following this weekend, the Griffins will conclude the 2022-23 campaign with a home weekend vs. Regina Feb. 10-11.
