It's that time of year again. The men's and women's basketball teams will host their annual "first-night" festivities, which signify the opening day of NCAA basketball, tonight at Gampel Pavilion. The doors will open at 6 p.m. and the event is scheduled to last until about 8 p.m.
This year, "first night" has undergone some significant changes and will combine new activities along with returning ones.
"We wanted to condense the program a little bit," said Mike Enright, UConn's Associate Director of Athletics and Communications. "We got feedback that it might have gone on a little long in years past."
For the first time ever, the men's and women's introductions will be combined and supplemented with a laser light show.
In addition, the men and women will have combined contests in the Skills Challenge Triple Threat Challenge and in the dunk contest.
One event that fans will not see this year is the inter-squad scrimmages between the respective teams.
"Practice starts the next day for both teams and I'm sure they're not looking to scrimmage on the night before first practice," Enright said.
At the event, fans will be able to see the new scoreboard and message board systems inside Gampel. According to Enright, the scoreboard will be fully operable.
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