SFU's women's basketball team are road warriors, which could fair well considering their next home game isn't until Jan. 11, 2024.
In fact, the Red Leafs were on a recent hot streak of seven consecutive wins that included six on the road and one on home court in Burnaby.
That fell just short of tying the program record of eight in a row, set twice in the same 2016-17 campaign — Nov. 5 to 26, 2016, and Dec. 3, 2016, to Jan. 14, 2017.
Tuesday's, Nov. 28, six-point loss in a non-conference match with Biola University (L.A.) by score of 69-63 ended SFU's bid at school history, but it also came with a promise of what's to come for the rest of the season.
"We have a bunch of new rookies and we've worked really well together," said senior guard Grace Killins in a team release after the setback.
"The team chemistry on and off the court has gone really well, and our seven-game win streak was a great morale push. We'll get it back Saturday."
Saturday, Dec. 2, is when Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) play starts for the Red Leafs when they visit the defending-champion Western Washington Vikings in Bellingham, Wash.
This after 11 straight contests outside of the GNAC that also included three losses in the CCA Div. II Canadian Tip-Off Classic they hosted to start the 2023-24 calendar year.
One area head coach Bruce Langford wishes his players to improve on for the games ahead is three-point shooting as that was SFU's bread and butter prior to Tuesday.
"We shot it [well] right at the end, but before that we were under 20 per cent as a team," he said, referring to the Red Leafs' 15.1 per cent shooting percentage (4/26) from around the arc against Biola.
"You live and die by the three, but tonight [Nov. 28] we died by the three.
"After the game, I told them we had many outstanding pieces and we won many of the pieces that we wanted to win," added Langford, "but the fact is when you don't shoot the ball well, you can't beat people."
SFU is now 7-4 to start the new year with a roster that's led by Killins and Jessica Wisotzki, the only other senior that leads the red and white in scoring (213 points).
Killins is at the top of the stats sheet with 24 successful three-pointers out of 72 attempts.
Last year, the SFU women's basketball team finished with a combined record of 10-13, including 8-10 in GNAC play and a quarterfinals exit from the playoffs.
The SFU men's basketball squad, who are 2-7 to start the 2023-24 season, will also begin GNAC competition at Western Washington on Saturday at 3 p.m. The women tip-off at 7 p.m.
