It will tonight, however, with the first sa国际传媒 West basketball games to be played in the CARSA High Performance Gym when the University of Victoria Vikes take on the University of Saskatchewan Huskies in women鈥檚 and men鈥檚 games.
Possessing a sense of occasion is very important. It can also be distracting. So it was probably wise to get the major ceremonies out of the way last month during the first UVic game to be played in the new facility, which was an exhibition men鈥檚 contest against Carleton Ravens鈥� national championship dynasty in the Guy Vetrie Memorial Tournament.
鈥淔rom a basketball perspective, there was so much excitement that night that we were maybe not ready to play [Carleton won a blowout],鈥� said Vikes coach Craig Beaucamp.
The first conference game in CARSA will be historically significant, too, but with more sense of normalcy, Beaucamp hopes. His Vikes go in 2-0 after opening the regular season with a road sweep last weekend in Langley against the Trinity Western Spartans.
The Huskies are 1-1 after splitting their sa国际传媒 West openers with the Manitoba Bisons, yet are still ranked No. 9 nationally in the CIS. Tonight is a reprise of last season鈥檚 sa国际传媒 West playoff championship game, won by the Vikes in Saskatoon en route to making the CIS national Final Four for the second consecutive year. The Huskies gained a measure of revenge last month with a 95-72 victory over the Vikes in the Vetrie tournament.
鈥淭his is a good Saskatchewan team. But we鈥檙e a better team than we were last month [during a 2-6 pre-season],鈥� said Beaucamp.
Having already played at CARSA during the Vetrie tournament, the Huskies are no strangers to the new gymnasium. But every sa国际传媒 West opponent will get to know the place in the years to come. And, Beaucamp hopes, they come to dread it.
鈥淚t鈥檚 intimate. Fans are part of the experience and sitting on top of the game,鈥� he said, of the design.
It鈥檚 a different vibe than the old McKinnon Gym. Despite its epic history with the UVic championship dynasty, and star players such as Olympians Eli Pasquale and Gerald Kazanowski, the seating in McKinnon was well away from the court.
鈥淐ARSA has a band-box feel to it that can be intimidating for opponents when the place is filled and gets loud,鈥� said Beaucamp.
The Vikes women鈥檚 squad opened sa国际传媒 West play with a 1-1 split last weekend in Langley against Trinity Western. The CIS nationally second-ranked Huskies are 2-0 after easily sweeping away Manitoba to start.
鈥淪askatchewan is one of the top teams in the country, with multiple players who can score,鈥� said Vikes coach Dani Sinclair.
鈥淲e are going to have to battle and fight for every inch of the court, but above all, we have to rebound well.鈥�
But there is that intangible of the opening sa国际传媒 West games in CARSA history.
鈥淲e expect quite a few people out. The atmosphere will be special,鈥� said Sinclair.
The two-game UVic-Saskatchewan men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 sets conclude Saturday night.
