For UND women's basketball, there is no place like home
Jan. 11—GRAND FORKS — There are venues in the Summit League that are more challenging than others for visiting teams, UND's Betty Engelstad Sioux Center included.
Frost Arena in Brookings, the Sanford Coyote Center in Vermillion and the Mabee Center in Tulsa, Okla., headline the list of difficult venues.
But The Betty, for what it has done for the UND women's basketball team, certainly should be included in that list. The Hawks are 7-0 at home this season and 196-67 since the program moved next door to The Ralph in 2004.
And, at no time this season, is The Betty a more welcomed sight for sore eyes as this weekend for the Hawks.
UND is coming off the most difficult road trip of the season, falling last week at South Dakota (79-67) and (105-72) at South Dakota State. UND (2-3 Summit, 9-6 overall) hosts Omaha on Thursday night and Denver on Saturday afternoon.
"We love The Betty," said UND guard Maggie Manson. "A big part of it is our fan base. There is a noticeable difference between UND fans and other fans on the road. We just get so much support here that we love home games and getting the chance to perform for the Grand Forks community."
But UND's focus this week isn't so much on its home court advantage as it is on team defense.
UND was ranked nationally in one def stat a couple of weeks ago, but not this week as last week's South Dakota road trip ended that status.
"We gave up a lot of points on the road last week," said Manson. "So we learned you can't get too comfortable. We have to keep working on both ends of the floor, no matter what."
UND was ranked in the top two of Summit team defense before the South Dakota trip. The Hawks went from giving up 62.6 points per game to 66.0, which now ranks fifth.
"At one point, we were in the top 25 in the nation in defensive scoring average," said UND coach Mallory Bernhard. "We've worked really hard this week in getting back to what those defensive principles are and how we actually handle the situation. We looked at our transition defense as an area we needed to improve on."
But there is no place UND would rather be this weekend than The Betty.
"There is a huge advantage for us playing at The Betty," said the UND coach. "Our record this season and at home over the course of our history indicates that. A lot of that has to do with our fans. We're an energy-based team.
"We want to bring our own energy but our fans really get us going."
Omaha at UNDWhen: 7 p.m. Thursday
Where: Betty Engelstad Sioux Center
Record: UND 2-3 Summit League, 9-6 overall; Omaha 3-1, 8-7
TV/Radio: MidcoSN, 1440 AM
Of note: UND hosts Denver, 3-1, 7-8 at 1 p.m., Saturday
