NORMAN, Okla. - Games against Southern California and Arkansas are included in the non-conference men's basketball schedule released Wednesday by Oklahoma.
The Sooners also will appear in the NIT Season Tip-Off, in which they could face Arizona, Boston College or Purdue. Oklahoma finished 23-12 last season and reached the second round of the NCAA tournament.
Oklahoma will play at least 13 non-conference games, a number that could rise to 15 if the Sooners advance in the NIT event. Eleven of those games would be against teams that played last season in the NCAA tournament, the National Invitation Tournament or the College Basketball Invitational.
"This is another very challenging set of non-league games that we will approach as an opportunity," OU coach Jeff Capel said in a statement. "We played a difficult non-conference schedule last year that prepared us well for a successful Big 12 season. This year's non-conference schedule will do the same."
The Sooners will host a pair of NCAA Division II programs, Oklahoma Panhandle State on Nov. 5 and Cameron on Nov. 8, in exhibition games before starting the regular season at home against American on Nov. 14.
Oklahoma then will host a four-team regional on Nov. 17-18 as part of the NIT Season Tip-Off. The other teams in the Sooners' regional will be Davidson, James Madison and Mississippi Valley State. The semifinals and finals of the NIT event will be in New York on Nov. 26 and 28, respectively.
Between the regional and NIT semifinals Gardner-Webb will visit Oklahoma on Nov. 22.
USC will visit Oklahoma on Dec. 4 as part of the Big 12/Pac-10 Hardwood Series. The Sooners lost at Southern Cal last season.
On Dec. 7, Oklahoma will travel up the Turner Turnpike to play Tulsa in that city's new BOK Center. Three days later, Maine will play at Oklahoma and on Dec. 13, Utah will do the same.
Virginia Commonwealth - Capel's former school - will play the Sooners on Dec. 20 in Oklahoma City as part of the All-College Classic. Oklahoma will visit Rice on Dec. 22 for the Sooners' first true road game of the season and travel to Arkansas for a Dec. 30 game.
Games against Coppin State on Jan. 3 and Maryland-Eastern Shore two days later will close the Sooners' non-conference schedule. Oklahoma's Big 12 Conference schedule has yet to be released.
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