A big weekend in Swift Current for basketball as eight teams will battle it out in the Senior Ardens Invitational Basketball Tournament.

Swift Current will be one of two teams to hit the court first on Friday afternoon as they take on the Vanier Spirits from Moose Jaw for the first time this season.

Ardens point guard Alexandra Vance said this weekend will be a true test for the team to measure themselves amongst the elite.

"We're pretty excited because we just got second in our first tournament in Saskatoon," she said. "We're playing a bunch of teams that we have to play in regionals to see who gets to go to provincials."

The Ardens will play their first game at 2 p.m. but not on their home court.

"We're pretty excited because we are playing in front of Ecole Centennial (students) and that's kindergarten to grade eight," Vance said. "We think it should be a good environment to play in."

Vance, who has been on the team for three seasons and helped guide the team to a third-place finish last season, said the team believes they can improve on that result.

"I think the big thing is our attitude," the grade 12 student said. "Our team is pretty deep and we are all pretty athletic, we should be able to win these games it's just whether we are mentally prepared to do that."

The Ardens will return to their home confines on Saturday for their second game and will play at 11:30 a.m. if they win Friday. If they lose they will play at 8:30 a.m.