KEY POINTS:
The only undefeated team in the NBL, the Harbour Heat, have a chance to improve to 3-0 when they take on the winless Canterbury Rams at the newly-rebranded Furnace tonight.
The Furnace was formerly known as the North Shore Events Centre.
Given their recent home record - a frigid 21-31 since 2000 - the new name might be a touch optimistic. Then again, the Heat might just have warmed up. They won the pre-season blitz tournament and will take a decidedly cosy 2-0 record into their home opener against Rams (0-4) tonight.
"We decided the [name] Events Centre wasn't suitable to our requirements," said North Harbour Basketball chief executive John Hunt.
"Our initiatives will be about trying to create an atmosphere like a Hawkes Bay or Nelson."
The match will feature a Red Zone of 30 hecklers behind the visiting team's bench as the Heat look to turn up the, er, temperature.
"They'll be there to make sure the opposition remember the experience - and not in a pleasant way."
Meanwhile, the Auckland Stars have been fined an undisclosed sum but avoided being docked points after Dillon Boucher failed to sign the team's roster before the match against Nelson Giants last week.
In other matches this round, Wellington Saints take on Otago in the capital, Nelson host Taranaki and Waikato entertain Hawkes Bay tomorrow night.
