Exhibition: NCAA's Northern Arizona to visit Calgary Dinos for Battle of the Border

CALGARY – After a one-year hiatus, the Battle of the Border tournament returns to the Jack Simpson Gym in 2010 when the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks of the NCAA’s Big Sky Conference pay a visit Aug. 11-15.

The event, which will take place nearly a month before fall term classes begin, marks the earliest season start in the history of Dinos men’s basketball.

The Lumberjacks will play five games over five days in the tournament, including a pair against the host Dinos on Friday, Aug. 13 and Saturday, Aug. 14. Northern Arizona will also play the Lethbridge Pronghorns twice along with a single tilt against Edmonton’s Concordia University College of Alberta.

Northern Arizona is the third Big Sky school to make the trip to Calgary for the tournament after Weber State in 2007 and Montana in 2008. The tournament began in 2006 with the Wyoming Cowboys of the Mountain West Conference, while Creighton of the Missouri Valley Conference also appeared in 2007.

The Lumberjacks, based in Flagstaff, Ariz., went 14-14 overall (8-8 Big Sky) in 2009-10, falling in the opening round of the Big Sky Tournament. Led by two-time All-Big Sky guard Cameron Jones, the team returns four starters in 2010-11 under head coach Mike Adras.

They will face a new-look Dinos squad with eight new faces set to join the lineup following the graduation of four seniors. After back-to-back trips to the national semi-final, Calgary will be a much younger team led by second-year point guard Jarred Ogungbemi-Jackson and fourth-year swing man Tyler Fidler, who is off to the national team training camp this summer.

Dinos fans will get their first look at head coach Dan Vanhooren’s 2010 recruiting class at the Battle of the Border, with the likes of Phil Labongo, Josh Wolfram, and Matt Letkeman making their first appearances on the floor in the Jack Simpson Gym.

"We are excited to be hosting another NCAA Division I school, and I look forward to the competition with our young lineup,” said Vanhooren. “It will be an opportunity for us to have a look at some of our young talent and measure where we are and what we need to do in the preseason to get ready for the Canada West schedule.”

Calgary’s 2010-11 non-conference schedule also includes a trip to the Saskatchewan tournament mid-October, hosted by the defending national champion Huskies, along with a repeat trip to California over the holidays to take on a trio of NAIA schools.

The Dinos open their Canada West schedule Oct. 22-23 at Victoria, returning home to host the Lethbridge Pronghorns Oct. 29-20 in their conference home opener.

2010 Battle of the Border Men’s Basketball
All games in the Jack Simpson Gym / All times MT

Wednesday, Aug. 11
7 p.m. Lethbridge vs. Northern Arizona

Thursday, Aug. 12
8 p.m. Concordia vs. Northern Arizona

Friday, Aug. 13
7 p.m. Calgary vs. Northern Arizona

Saturday, Aug. 14
7 p.m. Calgary vs. Northern Arizona

Sunday, Aug. 15
10 a.m. Lethbridge vs. Northern Arizona

Source:

Calgary Sports Info