Guelph, ON - School colours and common goals link them. But as the University of Guelph men's and women's basketball teams enter the last ever opening weekend at the W.F. Mitchell Athletics Centre, they begin their home schedules against the visiting Carleton Ravens and Ottawa Gee-Gees with a big difference in how each squad has been assembled. The Gryphon women boast a blend of established veterans and dynamic first-year players, while the men are eager to take on the rest of the tough OUA with a core dominated by third-year athletes, who have endured growing pains and matured through the process. Composition aside, both Gryphon teams would love to start off right on their home court with a sweep against the visiting powerhouses from the nation's capital.
 
Third-year coach Christin Dickenson could not have been more pleased about how her women began their league schedule. Two wins on the road at Lakehead meant more than just a couple checks in the W column. They were decisive victories over a team that has traditionally had Guelph's number. More importantly, the performances which came in a hostile gym where success can be rare, reinforced the value of the work Dickenson's players have put in.
 
"We finished last season on such a high beating them and we were thrilled they were our first opponent because that's unfinished business," the coach said. "Going up there and winning two is very difficult for any team so for us, that was a really big step for us to show all of the work we've been doing in the offseason. Our girls are here all summer; they don't move home, they train five days a week all summer. I'm always saying to them, these sacrifices that we are making will show up. And in a weekend like that, it showed how much harder we worked in the offseason.
 
"We try and say 'we don't talk about it, we're just about it.' Show it in our actions and leave it on the court."
 
The veteran core has taken that mantra to heart. Graduating players like Barbara Inrig-Pieterse, Dana Van Balkom, Katelyn Yallin, Vanessa Rampado and fifth-year star forward Kate MacTavish are the "gatekeepers of the program," according to Dickenson. They have helped turn it around and with so many talented rookies coming in, guard Abbey Clark among them, the future of the Gryphons is as promising as the present.
 
Carleton and Ottawa offer another litmus test for this uniquely comprised group. Carleton brings 6'3" forward Heather Lindsay to the Mitchell Centre this weekend, while fourth-year guard/forward Catherine Traer will be a focal point for the Gee-Gees. Both teams, like Guelph, are 2-0 so a loss will be suffered. Dickenson hopes the Gryphons' emphasis on a sound defence will ensure her girls don't taste that first defeat.
 
"We can rely on that night after night," the coach says. "The success that we have on the defensive end allows us to have easier offensive looks. When you think about the momentum of a game, if you're coming off of a stop, you feel better about your offensive possession but if you get scored on, it's going to feel different about that offensive possession."
 
Defence will also be critical for the Gryphon men this weekend with Ottawa and Carleton entering the matchups as the number one and two ranked teams in the nation respectively. Both can score at will. So head coach Chris O'Rourke knows his emerging team will need incredible focus defensively as well as good execution on the offensive end.
 
"There are going to be challenges for us at both ends," says O'Rourke. "It's a question of how disciplined we can be and how consistent we can be."
 
Now is the time for the Gryphon men to provide those answers. The bulk of O'Rourke's deep rotation is made up of third-year players like Daniel Dooley, Jonathan Wallace, Andrew Grant and Taylor Boers, while Kingslee D'Silva, a 6'6" transfer from Sheridan College, will add some size to the Guelph roster. There is more experience on the team now and with that comes more in terms of expectations.
 
"We've been waiting for the young guys to mature and get that experience they needed," says O'Rourke. "We were a little up and down in the preseason. But I thought this past weekend at Lakehead (1-1, including a tight 65-64 loss), we established more of the defensive identity that we want. That will be a big challenge this weekend. Offensively, we want to have as much balanced scoring as we can. We're certainly hoping that our depth, having those 10 or 11 guys on a consistent basis, will put us in a position to win.
 
"We're still finding ourselves in a lot of ways. It's kind of been a two-year project in that sense."
 
Guelph will need to key on Ottawa's star guard Caleb Agada, a first team OUA all star last season and potential All-Canadian this season, in O'Rourke's eyes. The Gee-Gees can flat out shoot the ball. And though Carleton may look somewhat different than the perennial national championship winner of past years, the coach believes they are extremely athletic, and equally formidable. How Guelph defends fourth-year guards Kaza Kajami-Keane and Connor Wood will be a big factor in whether or not the Gryphons can come out of that game with a win.
 
While the challenge of going against the nation's two top teams back-to-back in the schedules first two home games may seem daunting, O'Rourke knows it will be good preparation for the brutal OUA.
 
"I think Ontario is far and away the best conference in Canada," says the coach. "Six of the top 10 teams in the country are from this conference. The level has just continued to rise, the parity is unmatched."
 
"Our central division will be very tough. It's very deep and there are no nights off."
 
The matchups with Ottawa and Carleton provide an interesting way to start the home schedule for both Guelph teams. It's also the last-ever home opener in the W.F. Mitchell Athletics Centre as next season both the Men's and the Women's teams will be moving to the brand new Athletic Centre that is currently being constructed. In the meantime, each of the Gryphon squads is intent on defending a court that's been a part of the university's history.
 
"There's gonna be all out war in our gym," says Dickenson. "Both games, men and women."