Every league in every sport has that quirky city where it鈥檚 difficult for opposing teams to win. Bounces just seem stranger and always seem to go the way of the home team.
Lethbridge has always been that kind of place in sa国际传媒 West basketball. The University of Victoria Vikes venture to L.A. 鈥� the regional slang nickname for Lethbridge, Alberta 鈥� for men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 games tonight and Saturday against their Pronghorns counterparts.
The Vikes men are 5-1 in conference play after a slow start in pre-season, while the Pronghorns are 3-1 in sa国际传媒 West following an excellent pre-season campaign.
鈥淭he 鈥橦orns put a lot of points on the board and can really score on their own court, where they always seem to play looser,鈥� said Vikes head coach Craig Beaucamp.
鈥淭hey play run-and-gun and are especially dangerous on their own court. With the history and tradition they have in their gym, we will have our hands full this weekend. It鈥檚 never easy in that place. If it鈥檚 a matter of trading baskets, they will be tough to beat.鈥�
This is basketball country.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of basketball tradition in Southern Alberta and they love their hoops,鈥� said Beaucamp, of the region that has produced the likes of Karl Tilleman, who starred at the University of Calgary, and later joined with former UVic stars Eli Pasquale and Gerald Kazanowski to play for sa国际传媒 at two Olympics.
The UVic women (1-5), meanwhile, meet a Pronghorns squad (0-4) that is also trying to right its course. This seems like a prime chance for UVic.
鈥淏ut Lethbridge is probably looking at our record, and saying the same thing: 鈥楬ere鈥檚 our chance to get going,鈥� 鈥� noted UVic head coach Dani Sinclair, of the double-edged sword. 鈥淚t鈥檚 dangerous to look past any team.鈥�
The youthful Vikes, with five new players and no graduating fifth-year players, are still finding their way.
鈥淲e have to grow up quickly,鈥� said Sinclair of the steep learning curve her club has faced this season. 鈥淲e are giving up way too many points. We need to get better off the dribble and we need to guard the ball better.鈥�
Sinclair can point to last season, where after a slow start, the Vikes rebounded with a furious rally in the second half of the season that resulted in a post-season berth and a breathless run deep into the sa国际传媒 West playoffs.
鈥淭he season is a marathon and you can鈥檛 get too high or too low,鈥� said Sinclair.
This weekend concludes the pre-Christmas portion of the sa国际传媒 West schedule in both men鈥檚 and women鈥檚.
