Aug. 4, 2009

Philadelphia, PA – La Salle will take on South Carolina in a nationally-televised contest on ESPNU on Thursday, November 19 in the opening round of the Charleston Classic, ESPN Regional Television, Inc. announced today. The two teams will meet at 9:30 PM at Carolina First Arena.

The Gamecocks were 21-10 last season under second-year head coach Darrin Horn, falling to Davidson in the first round of the NIT. South Carolina returns senior point guard Devan Downey, who earned first team all-SEC and honorable mention All-American honors.

The winner of the La Salle-South Carolina game will meet the winner of USF/Davidson on Friday at 9:30 PM.

The eight-team field also includes Miami (Fla.), UNC Wilmington, Penn State and Tulane. Four of the teams in the field played in the 2009 National Invitation Tournament, which includes NIT champion Penn State, Davidson, Miami and South Carolina.

In the first round of action Thursday, Nov. 19, Tulane will take on Miami at 1:30 p.m. ET; UNC Wilmington will face Penn State, live at 4 p.m. ET on ESPNU; USF will meet Davidson at 7 p.m. ET; and La Salle and South Carolina will square off live at 9:30 p.m. ET on ESPNU.

The second annual Charleston Classic, a bracket-format tournament, will feature 12 games in three days, Nov. 19-22. Each team will compete in one game per day, with the two undefeated teams facing off in a championship match Sunday, Nov. 22. The championship game will be televised live at 6 p.m. ET on ESPN2.

La Salle’s complete non-conference schedule and Atlantic 10 opponents will be announced in the near future.

Tournament Schedule (Davidson will be the home team in each of its games.)