Men's Basketball

November 5, 2009

Men's Basketball To Visit Pair Of NCAA Division I Powers This Weekend


SMC/UVM Game Notes: http://www.smcathletics.com/sports/mbkb/2009-10/news/gamenotes0910.pdf.

SMC/BC Game Notes: http://www.smcathletics.com/sports/mbkb/2009-10/news/gamenotes0910bc.pdf.

SMC 2009-10 Men's Basketball Media Guide: http://www.smcathletics.com/sports/mbkb/2009-10/news/mbball_guide0910.pdf.

COLCHESTER, Vt. - The Saint Michael's College men's basketball team will visit a pair of NCAA Division I powers this weekend, as the Purple Knights play two exhibition contests in preparation for the regular season.

Saint Michael's, led by 13th-year head coach Tom O'Shea, will head across town to take on the University of Vermont on Saturday at 1 p.m., then drive Southeast to tackle Boston College on Sunday at 2 p.m.

Saturday's game at UVM can be heard live on 96.7 DOT-FM, The Zone 960 AM and WSTJ-1320 AM (Randolph), and on the internet at www.UVMathletics.com with the audio stream provided by SportsJuice.com. The game will also be broadcast live on the Internet via B2 Networks on a pay-per-view basis of $7.

UVM is coming off of a 24-9 season in the America East Conference last year. Saint Michael's, however, tested the Catamounts last year in the two teams' annual exhibition contest, falling at Patrick Gym, 73-59.

Sunday's contest at Boston College is free, and kicks off the exhibition season for the Eagles of the Atlantic Coast Conference. It marks the second time since 2005 that Saint Michael's has visited Conte Forum to take on the Eagles. The Eagles earned the program's seventh NCAA Tournament big in the last nine years last season, finishing 22-12 overall.

In the two teams' last exhibition contest, BC earned a 102-62 home win on November 13, 2005, behind 26 points and 19 rebounds from future NBA draft pick Jared Dudley.

Saint Michael's returns four of its top five scorers from its 10-15 season last year, led by sophomore Alex Berthiaume (Springfield, Mass./Cathedral) and his team-leading 13.4 points per game. Sophomore co-captain Tyler Schilling (Excelsior, Minn./Minnetonka) led all NCAA Division II freshmen last year with 10.2 rebounds per conest, while fellow co-captain junior Nate Birr (Burnsville, Minn./Saint Thomas Academy) started all 25 games last year, and all 51 in his career.

##PURPLEKNIGHTS###