Former Drake coach Maury John was frustrated and probably a little flustered after a visit to Denton to play North Texas back in the heyday of the Missouri Valley Conference.

Drake had just faced the Mean Green on its home floor, and according to a few UNT players and fans, uttered a phrase that altered the course of athletics at the school.

“Coach John said after the game that playing there was like playing in a snake pit,” said Emmett Baker, a former UNT player who now teaches basketball classes at the school. “The students brought out a snake that they caught on a golf course and walked it out onto the floor with a string around its neck like a leash the next game.”

The facility that is now officially called the Ken Bahnsen Center has been known as the Snake Pit ever since.

UNT will return to the historic venue that was the home to Mean Green basketball from 1950-73 tonight in its season opener against Cameron.

UNT head coach Johnny Jones is hoping the legendary atmosphere that provided the Mean Green a decided home court advantage will return as well.

“I have always wanted to play there because I have heard the stories about when Oscar Robertson played there,” Jones said. “They always talk about the crowd noise. The students were involved and so was the community. That is what we hope we can get back at the Super Pit. … We feel like we can go back there and have some of the people who watched North Texas play there come back and have the students come out and see what that kind of atmosphere is like.”

Those who played and watched games in the facility say the experience is unlike any in UNT athletics today. The fans sat just feet from the court in an era when it wasn’t unusual for an enthusiastic student to be planted just a few feet away from the action.

“Playing at the Snake Pit gave North Texas a big home court advantage,” said Bob Way, a former member of the football team who attended games at the Snake Pit. “The fans were right there. It was almost like they were on the court.”

The fans who were on hand had the chance to see some of the best players in college basketball up close. Robertson, a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, played at the Snake Pit during his time with Cincinnati.

And Robertson was just one of several of the legendary players who played at the Snake Pit while UNT was a member of the Missouri Valley Conference, which was one of the elite basketball conferences in America at the time.

UNT spent 18 seasons in the league, but never did better than a third-place finish in the 1969-70 season. The Mean Green finished 11-5 in league play that year.

“The Valley was very tough and had five Top 25 teams every year,” said Ben Joyner, a 1974 UNT graduate who still attends games. “We were tough at home. It was one of the toughest places to play in the Valley. It was the best conference we were ever in.”

UNT left the Snake Pit to move across the street to the Super Pit after the 1973 season and left the Missouri Valley to play an independent schedule in 1975.

The Mean Green has gone through some ups and downs since, but seems to be headed the right direction under Jones, who led UNT to the NCAA Tourna-ment in 2007.

Jones and the fans that enjoyed the atmosphere at the Snake Pit are hoping to rekindle it and eventually transplant it to the Super Pit.

“It’s good to go back there for the same reasons it was a good place to play back then,” said UNT regent Gayle Strange, who has been attending games for several years. “The crowd was right there on your back. As Johnny continues to build the program, we will have a chance to make the Super Pit like the old Snake Pit.”

UNT announces women’s basketball signees

The UNT women’s basketball team has signed four players to national letters of intent, coach Shanice Stephens said on Thurs-day.

Jasmine Godbolt, a 6-0 forward from Garland Naaman Forest, joined Raquel Cuffie, a 5-10 guard from Winston Salem (N.C.) Prep; Lakevia Taylor, a 5-5 guard from Hempstead; and Brittany Thompson, a 6-4 post from Texas Christian Academy in Waco, in the class.

“I feel like this class will be the foundation to the program as we continue to grow and get to our ultimate goal of winning the Sun Belt Conference, getting to the NCAA Tournament and becoming a nationally prominent team,” Stephens said.

Cuffie averaged 12.5 points a game last season and helped lead Oak Hill Academy to the national title as a sophomore. Godbolt was the District 10-5A MVP last season after averaging 10.9 points and 8.6 rebounds a game.

Taylor was named to the Class 2A all-state team and averaged 17 points and six assists a game. Thompson averaged 26 points and 22 rebounds a game, a total that led all players in Texas last season.

BRETT VITO can be reached at 940-566-6870. His e-mail address is bvito@dentonrc.com .