UVU campus briefs

BASKETBALL: Coach Dick Hunsaker has announced the 2010-11 Wolverine basketball schedule.

The slate includes the road games and the first-ever meetings between UVU and Big East Cincinnati (Dec. 11) and Pac-10 Oregon State (Dec. 1) and home and away contests with Florida International, a team coached by NBA legend Isiah Thomas.

Utah State makes the trip south to Orem on Dec. 18 for what will be the fifth straight season and sixth meeting overall between the in-state programs.

"We have a challenging schedule with a lot of new first-time opponents," said Hunsaker, who is entering his ninth year in Orem. "We could field the youngest team that I have coached here at Utah Valley and have a great respect for the tests that lay ahead in our schedule."

Twenty different programs from 10 different Division I conferences make up the schedule including the Wolverines' second season of Great West Conference play. The conference season begins Jan. 8 at Chicago State and ends Mar. 3 at NJIT before the Great West Tournament (Mar. 10-13), which will be held for the second season in Orem at the UCCU Center.

"We're looking forward to our second year of competing in the Great West Conference and to once again hosting the tournament. It's a great opportunity and we know how difficult and demanding that it can be," Hunsaker said.

The Wolverines open the schedule on Nov. 12 against Maine of the America East Conference. The Black Bears return four starters from a team that finished 19-11 in 2009-10.

From there UVU will head to Miami to face Florida International before a game in Atlanta against Georgia State, a rematch of last season's 59-52 GSU win over UVU in a tournament at South Alabama.

The Wolverines will be in Corvallis to battle Oregon State on Dec. 1 before returning home to take on Big Sky Sacramento State on Dec. 4.

A match with The Summit League UMKC on Dec. 8 — the fifth meeting between the schools — precedes the Wolverines at Cincinnati on Dec. 11.

UVU will also play road games at Portland State (Dec. 23) and Northern Illinois (Dec. 31) as well as home and away contests with Seattle University in non-conference action.

In Great West play, the Wolverines open with three straight away from home but will play four of their final five conference games at the UCCU Center.