NEWS: Gee-Gees men’s basketball announce 2022 NCAA exhibition schedule
Following an absence of two years, the Gee-Gees men's basketball team will be returning to their annual summer slate of NCAA Division I exhibition action this August.
Up first, Ottawa will take to the road to take on Northern Illinois Huskies at Toronto Metropolitan University in Toronto on Aug. 4. NIU finished 9-21 overall last season, with a 6-14 record in the Mid-American Conference (MAC).
On Aug. 6, Ottawa will play their first game of the summer at Montpetit Hall when they take on the Florida State Seminoles, who finished with a 17-14 overall record and a 10-10 record in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) last season. Typically a nationally-ranked program, the team from Tallahassee were retooling last season after sending three players to the NBA Draft, including NBA Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes of the Toronto Raptors.
The next day, the Gee-Gees will host the Northeastern Huskies, who will make the relatively quick trip from Boston to Montpetit Hall. Last year, the Huskies finished with a 9-22 overall record, with a 2-16 mark in-conference in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA). Each year, the Huskies feature a number of Canadians on their roster, including five last season. Recently graduated Gee-Gee, Maxime Boursiquot, played for the Huskies from 2016-20.
Ottawa will have some time to gear up for their next test, which will come against the Oregon Ducks on Aug. 22. The Ducks were ranked as high as #12 in the AP Poll early in the season last year, however had some ups and downs en route to a 20-15 overall record and a 11-9 mark in-conference in the Pac-12. In all, Oregon had wins over #3 UCLA and #5 USC and ultimately finished in the second round of the National Invitational Tournament.
Oregon is another school to prominently feature Canadian talent, including Montreal's Quincy Guerrier and Keeshawn Barthelemy and Toronto's Ethan Butler. The Ducks have sent Canadians Dillon Brooks (Grizzlies) and Chris Boucher (Raptors) to the NBA in recent years.
Last season, Ottawa finished with a 19-4 overall record across the preseason, OUA regular season, and playoffs. The Gee-Gees were nationally ranked all season, sitting at #3 in 8 of 10 polls. Ottawa has been ranked in the U SPORTS Top 10 in consecutive polls since Dec. 2012 and features a record of 12 wins and 18 losses against Division I competition since 2013.
Tickets start at $5 and entry for children is free for each game in Ottawa. Tickets are on sale now at tickets.geegees.ca. A webcast will be available for the Oregon game, details to follow.
2022 NCAA Exhibition Schedule:
Aug. 4 vs. Northern Illinois – 7 p.m. at Toronto Metropolitan University | TICKETS
Aug. 6 vs. Florida State – 7 p.m. at Montpetit Hall
Aug. 7 vs. Northeastern – 3 p.m. at Montpetit Hall
Aug. 22 vs. Oregon – 7 p.m. at Montpetit Hall
Media Contact:
Spencer Murdock
Sports Information Officer
smurdock@uottawa.ca