The MSU-N Skylights basketball team is having their home opener this weekend. They will be playing back-to-back days at the Armory Gym as part of the MSU-Northern Classic Tournament. Their opponents will be the Concordia University of Edmonton Thunder and the Valley City State University Vikings.
New Media Broadcasters caught up with Skylights coach Chris Mouat and he explained what the significance of playing at home will mean to his players in the conversations they have had since returning from Hawaii on Wednesday.
“(It’s) an opportunity for us to play at home for the first time this season,” Mouat said. “We’ve traveled a lot of miles (and) played in a lot of different places and it’s just time to get home.”
“We can come out and perform like we can,” Mouat continued. “I know our kids are excited to be home and play in front of parents, host families, professors, (and) friends.”
“We just get such great crowds here,” Mouat said. “They’re really exciting. When we recruit kids, we talk about it and now this is a chance for them to see what I’m talking about.”
Mouat gave a breakdown for what his team expects against the competition.
“Valley City is from the North Star conference. They’ve played a tough schedule,” Mouat said. “Coach (Vanessa Johnson) does a good job with them. They’re very active on offense. They have some very good pieces to the puzzle. They play extremely hard and rebound hard, so we know we’re going to have to do some things.”
“Our attention right now is on Concordia,” Mouat continued.
The Skylights will be on the court around 5pm on Saturday and around 4pm on Sunday. Listen to the Saturday game against Concordia exclusively on KPQX with Noah Friedman on the call.
