BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – Exposure is a huge thing for small to mid-major schools and the CSU Bakersfield men's basketball team is going to get a big dose of it on Thursday, Nov. 16.

The `Runners (1-1) will travel from Statesboro, GA to Tucson AZ in preparation for their game against the third ranked team in the country, Arizona.  And CSUB will finish up this week's road trip on Sunday, Nov. 19 with a game at Lamar in Beaumont, TX.

CSUB opened the road trip with a 77-53 defeat to a strong Georgia Southern squad.  The `Runners are a young team, as well as, having four starters that have been with the program for one year or less.  So bumps in the road will be expected from time to time. 

When your team has a loss like this, the best thing that can happen is get back on the court and play as quickly as possible.  The 'Runners will get that.  CSUB will get two days off before playing Arizona in a game that will be broadcast on the PAC-12 Network on Thursday.

Arizona (2-0) has been tabbed a national title contender by everyone that wrote a preview this fall.  Many college basketball experts are saying this is the strongest and deepest team Arizona has had in 10-15 years.  The `Runners played in Tucson last year and only lost by 12.  In fact, the `Runners jumped out to an early 10-3 lead and with the added athleticism Rod Barnes, CSUB's Head men's basketball Coach, has added, well, that is why they play the game.

When Coach Barnes was asked how important the game with Arizona is, he said, "It is important.  I wanted it (our schedule) to be tough.  I wanted to put our young guys into the fire because I think our league is as tough as it has ever been.  We are taking on Goliath, but we had a great showing against them last year."

Coach Barnes knows visibility is important for his squad and CSUB as a whole, "Playing one of the best programs in NCAA history at Arizona is a big deal.  Also to play on TV, with a great crowd and two or three future NBA guys, our guys are excited."

The `Runners will hop on a plane and head to Lamar (1-0) on Friday morning for the game on Sunday.  Lamar went 19-15 last season and played in the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament and their season ended with a first round loss to Texas State.

The game with Arizona on Thursday will tipoff at 7 p.m. (8 p.m. MT) and the game with Lamar on Sunday starts at 1 p.m. (3 p.m. CT).