Home Stretch

The Vipers have 19 games left, 12 of which are at home (63.2%), you know, a place where they're 11-1. This is a best-case scenario for a team that's in a tight battle for a playoff spot.

But for a team comfortably in first place and with the second best record in the NBA Development League? Well, it's just icing on the cake.

The one thing teams in the NBA Development League don't often do is win on the road, making for photo finishes at the end and it really does come to who has the home games.

Consider these league-wide home court advantage winning percentages:
09-10 (.580) - Vipers one of six teams with winning record on the road.
08-09 (.590) - Champion Colorado 14ers one of only three teams with winning record on the road.
07-08 (.626) - Champion Idaho Stampede one of only two teams with winning record on the road.
06-07 (.567) - Champion Dakota Wizards one of only three teams with winning record on the road.

Iowa, the team the Vipers are chasing for the #1 seed, has nine home games and nine road games left. Iowa's got a winning record on the road too, so the unbalanced scheduled doesn't necessarily favor the Vipers, but it certainly doesn't hurt.

The Vipers have only three known road trips left, all back-to-backs. A weekend at Bakersfield, a weekend at Reno, and a quick trip through Utah and Idaho (I'm ignoring the Springfield game since I haven't heard makeup plans yet).

The Vipers had some tough travel in the first half of the season, so this is a nice reward for them. Now come out and support them. I will be taking attendance...