(Editors Note: Montana Western athletics release)
DILLON — University of Montana Western men’s basketball coach Mike Larsen has announced a 29-game schedule for the upcoming 2019-20 season, including 11 home dates and five tournaments.
The schedule can be found here: Montana Western 2019-2020 men’s basketball schedule
Larsen’s sophomore season as bench boss of the Bulldogs will see his team face some of the toughest teams both divisions of the NAIA has to offer. Nine games scheduled against teams that reached the national semifinals a year ago.
The Bulldogs are slated for 11 slated home contests with the first game in the Straugh Gymnasium set for Nov. 1 against Yellowstone Christian College.
UMW will spend the majority of the non-conference season on the road. The Bulldogs will partake in five tournaments starting in late October at the Montana Tech Tip-Off Classic in Butte, Mont. (meeting College of Idaho and Salish Kootenai College).
The Bulldogs play Walla Walla and Warner Pacific in the Clearwater River Casino and Lodge Classic in Lewiston, Idaho. They will stay in the Gem State and meet Corban and host College of Idaho at the Taco Bell Shootout.
UMW will spend the thanksgiving weekend in Grand Junction Colo. meeting NCAA Division II opponents Western Colorado and host Colorado Mesa. The Bulldogs will close the non-conference schedule with a trip to the desert playing Ottawa University Arizona, University of Lethbridge, and Marian University (Ind.) in Chandler, Ariz.
“We are really excited about our schedule for next season,” Larsen said. “We will face some great teams that will challenge us and will also prepare us for our conference later in the season.”
The Bulldogs are scheduled for 18 conference games and will face some stiff competition in one of the NAIA’s most competitive leagues. Montana Western plays three games each against national runner-up Carroll College, national semifinalist LC State, and tournament qualifier Rocky Mountain College.
League play begins Dec. 5 on the Hi-Line at MSU-Northern.
