As
northern Utah turned into a frozen tundra Tuesday night, Weber State's
men's basketball team was going up to Alaska, up to the land of the
midnight sun.
After a two-hour delay to their late-night flight and arriving in
Anchorage, Alaska, at nearly 5 a.m. MST Wednesday, the Wildcats will be
giving gratitude for basketball today as they tip off the first of
three games in three nights at the Great Alaska Shootout.
The Thanksgiving tournament begins for Weber State (1-2) at 9:30
p.m. MST at Sullivan Arena against Division II school Alaska-Anchorage
(1-2).
Weber State coach Randy Rahe said the Wildcats took the last spot in
the Shootout tourney field even though it meant facing the hosts in the
first round.
"We're playing a good Division II program on their court in front of
8,000 fans in their biggest game of the year for them," Rahe said. "The
first round of this tournament is always (the Seawolves') biggest game
of the year and they make no bones about it. Whatever happens after
that, whatever teams we play are going to be good, quality competition."
Alaska-Anchorage might also be motivated to get 6-foot-9 transfer
center Taylor Rohde a game against his former school, Arizona State.
Rohde leads UAA in scoring and rebounding, averaging 15.0 points and
5.7 rebounds per game.
Arizona State, of the Pac-10 Conference, and St. John's, of the Big East, are the most notable names in the Shootout field.
Weber State, Arizona State, Houston Baptist and Alaska-Anchorage are
on one side of the tournament bracket, with St. John's, Drake, Ball
State and Southern Utah -- Weber State's in-state rival and future Big
Sky foe -- on the other.
"We know it's going to be a good test playing back-to-back-to-back
games," Wildcats senior center Trevor Morris said. "We just like to see
what we're made out of. We're going to have to be tough up there; we're
playing some good teams. This will give us a good look at where we're
at as a team."
The winner of the Weber State-Alaska Anchorage game will face the
winner of the Arizona State-Houston Baptist contest in the Shootout
semifinal Friday at 10 p.m. MST.
The losers of those games face each other at 4 p.m. MST.
Morris said the Wildcats are more concerned with improving themselves than worrying about who their opponents might be.
"It's not about the other team anyways. If our mindset is right, and
we're aggressive, and we do what we come to do, we'll take care of
business," Morris said.
Senior guard Lindsey Hughey said the Wildcats never look past a team and will take the tourney day by day.
"Going into a tournament, we're looking to place No. 1. That's our
first objective," Hughey said. "You've just got to be mentally tough.
You've got to be ready for anything because you don't have time to plan
(between games). We just have to be ready and play Weber State
basketball."
Weber State (1-2) is looking for its first win away from the Dee
Events Center. The Wildcats' two losses have been on the road against
in-state rivals Utah State and Utah.
WSU junior guard Damian Lillard is one of the top scorers in the
country, averaging 27.0 ppg. Senior guard Lindsey Hughey is next,
scoring 10.0 ppg, while sophomore guard Scott Bamforth averages 9.7 ppg
off the bench.
Alaska-Anchorage features two starters from the state of Utah, 6-6
forward Casey Robinson of Manila and 6-2 guard Drew Robinson, of Lehi.
With the quick turnaround between Shootout games, Weber State will
try to prepare mentally for the second and third contests with film
study and walkthroughs.
"Each team's in the same boat," Rahe said. "If you're going to have
a chance to be successful, you've got to show a lot of toughness, fight
and determination and even if you get a little fatigued, you've got to
fight through it."
It's the same kind of preparation that's required during a conference tournament at the end of the year.
"(Playing a tournament) just tells you a lot about your team," Rahe
said. "Your strengths always show up a lot more, your flaws show up a
little more. I do think it might magnify it a little bit. Hopefully
you're able to come back and correct those things better for the next
game."
Weber State has two areas of emphasis right now.
"We're a work in progress with the new guys and trying to get them
experience," Rahe said. "We've got to get better defensively. That's
our No. 1 concern. We've got to rebound the ball better. That's
something we've been doing fairly well, but those two things have to be
the strength of this basketball team if we're going to be successful
when conference comes around."