Short week keeps setback fresh in minds of the Utah Blaze

Following a tough-travel trip to Cleveland for a game last Sunday, the winless Utah Blaze have had precious little time to prepare to meet the Orlando Predators on Friday.

But Blaze coach Danny White doesn't think that's necessarily a bad thing.

"I like it," said White of the short time between games. "Because you get back on the field while the loss is still fresh in your mind. I like to say to guys 'Don't forget what it feels like to lose.'

"But when there is a week between games, it seems like they come out all pumped up on Wednesday and Thursday (at practice), but by Saturday they've forgotten what it felt like to lose."

Due to a huge snowstorm in Ohio last Saturday the Blaze were unable to fly into Cleveland. Instead they were forced to bus in from Chicago, which took them more than seven hours due to the rough road conditions. The team finally arrived at its hotel to check in at about midnight prior to an early game the next morning against the new-look and much-improved Gladiators.

So Utah's 66-63 loss at Cleveland wasn't too disappointing to White. The Blaze now have two losses this season by a grand total of four points.

"We got better," said White of the Cleveland game. "We played better. It was tough with the travel and everything. We played a better team, but we came back at the end and made it a game."

After Sunday's loss, the Blaze didn't arrive back to Salt Lake City until late Monday afternoon. The team had toyed with the idea of not coming home at all between the games, but the extra costs of lodging the team and finding places to practice made returning to Utah the most practical choice. The Blaze held a short practice Tuesday and a full practice Wednesday before traveling back to the Eastern Time Zone again today.

"A short week with two games at home would be great," White joked. "Unfortunately, we don't have that."

While the Blaze are off to their worst start in the three-year history of the franchise, White is not down on his team.

"We need to focus on the the big picture and not focus too much on being 0-2," he said. "I still have a lot confidence in this group. We just have to jell and get the confidence going and we'll be fine."