It looked like the Calgary Surge were well on their way to their first victory of the season Wednesday night against the Saskatoon Mamba. But as has happened in quite a few games this season, the Surge faded down the stretch. The Mamba walked away with a 94-88 victory. With the loss, the Surge drop to 0-8 on the season, and guard Evan Gilyard says it hasn’t been easy going through this losing streak. “It’s been tough,” the 27-year-old said. “We want to go out and win every game, and we’re trying to win and put our best foot forward. We’ve just been coming up short a lot. I think it’s just a block in the road and something we’ve got to get over and stay together and find our way through it.” Interim head coach Earlier this week, the Surge fired head coach Perry Huang. He’s been replaced on an interim basis by Dave DeAveiro, who has a wealth of experience at the university level and coached Ottawa last season. DeAveiro says his message to the club is simple. “The big part of it is just staying together through difficult times,” he said. “The only way we’re going to get out of a situation like this is if we stay together, believe in each other and support each other.” “These are good enough basketball players to figure out the basketball piece, but us staying together and supporting each other is a big part.” Adversity The Surge have had an incredible amount of success in their first three seasons in the Canadian Elite Basketball League. They went to the final twice, losing both times. It’s the first time the club has faced this kind of adversity, and guard Sean “Rugzy” Miller-Moore says now isn’t the time to put your head in the sand. “A little bit of adversity—it’s how you respond,” said the 27-year-old. “It’s only a loss if you look at it and you can’t bounce back from it. It’s part of sports that you win some and you lose some. I just want fans to stay with us and stay engaged because I know we’ll be on top at the end.” Home court There’s no question things look bleak right now, but general manager Shane James believes his club can get out of this. “We started with six of our first seven games on the road. So, we get a chance to play in front of our home crowd, and you know the home court advantage is a big thing in this league,” he said. Up next for the Surge is a home-and-home series against Winnipeg. They’re in Winnipeg on Friday night and then return to Calgary for the rematch on Sunday.
