Men's Basketball September 19, 2019

Barnes Announces 2019-20 Men's Basketball Schedule

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BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – CSU Bakersfield's men's basketball schedule has been finalized and Head Coach Rod Barnes excitedly announced the 2019-20 slate on Thursday afternoon. The Roadrunners have put together a difficult agenda, featuring the NCAA National Runner-Up in Texas Tech and a total of nine opponents that played in postseason a year ago.

Never intimidated by a challenging schedule, CSUB's leadership has once again chosen a tough set of adversaries for the 2019-20 season. The marquee matchups of the year for Bakersfield come against Texas Tech, a squad that came up just short against Virginia in the 2019 NCAA National Championship game, and a rematch with Gonzaga, which lost to the Red Raiders in the Elite Eight.

"The only way for us to be our best is to play against the best opponents," said Barnes, Bakersfield's ninth-year Head Coach. "In order to return to the NCAA Tournament, we're going to have to beat some great teams along the way and I believe our schedule is going to teach us exactly how to do that."

The `Runners will also enjoy a home and home series with NM State, the Western Athletic Conference's representative in the NCAA Tournament last season. South Dakota State and Sam Houston State were both NIT participants in 2018-19 while fellow WAC members Seattle U and UT Rio Grande Valley joined CSUB in the CIT. Rounding out the postseason veterans on Bakersfield's schedule are Grand Canyon and California Baptist, both of which played in the CBI last year.

Barnes continued on to discuss Bakersfield's final year in the Western Athletic Conference before the `Runners join the Big West Conference next summer: "The WAC has been a great home for us these past several years. We are grateful for the memories we have in this league and we are excited to have one more year to make more memories. Our team believes we can win the WAC one more time and our goal is to make that happen."

After hosting its annual Blue-Gold Scrimmage on Oct. 22 and an exhibition against Westcliff on Nov. 2, CSU Bakersfield's season will officially kick off with back-to-back home games. The `Runners will open the season Nov. 5 with Notre Dame de Namur before facing a tough test against South Dakota State Nov. 9. The Jackrabbits, who went to the 2019 NIT, will meet the `Runners as part of the WAC/Summit League Challenge.

Gonzaga got the best of the `Runners in 2018-19 when CSUB visited on New Year's Eve, so CSUB will look to improve upon last year's results in the Nov. 23 rematch against one of the nation's top programs.

A four-game home stand from Nov. 26 – Dec. 3 will see the likes of Sam Houston State, Hampton, and San Diego Christian come to the Icardo Center. The end of that home stand features and clash with future Big West foe UC Santa Barbara, an exciting opportunity to see how Bakersfield might fare in the league next season.

On Saturday, Dec. 7, Barnes will enjoy a special homecoming event when he coaches the `Runners against his alma mater, Ole Miss. Barnes was also the Head Coach of the Rebels for eight season and was very successful, taking the squad to the Sweet Sixteen on the way to being named Naismith National Coach of the Year in 2001.

CSUB is set to host Montana State, Dec. 19, before heading out for two more road games to end the calendar year. The first stop will be close to home as another future Big West matchup is slated for Dec. 21 at Cal Poly.

On Sunday, Dec. 29, CSUB will climb into the ring with Texas Tech, last season's National Runner-Up. The Red Raiders and `Runners have met once before in 2011-12, Barnes' first season at Bakersfield. Texas Tech won that game on its home court, 74-58.

The `Runners will ring in 2020 by opening WAC play, one final time, with back-to-back home games. Grand Canyon will come to town Jan. 4 before California Baptist visits on Jan. 8. Bakersfield's other WAC home games are as follows: Utah Valley (Jan. 23), Seattle U (Jan. 25), Chicago State (Feb. 13), Kansas City (Feb. 15), UT Rio Grande Valley (Feb. 27), and NM State (Feb. 29; yes, 2020 is a leap year).

The WAC schedule comes full circle with a road game at Grand Canyon, Mar. 7, CSUB's final regular-season game in the conference. The `Runners will then head to Las Vegas to compete in the WAC Tournament one last time with an automatic bid to the 2020 NCAA Tournament on the line.

For CSUB's full 2019-20 schedule, visit the men's basketball schedule page or download this printer-friendly PDF version.

The `Runners still have season tickets available for 2019-20 in several areas. The Icardo Center features reserved and general admission options, both in bleacher and chairback seating. Interested fans should contact the CSUB Athletics Ticket Office at (661) 654-BLUE, tickets@csub.edu, or fill out this web form and a member of our staff reach out directly.

~GoRunners.com~

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