Steve Donahue leads his Boston College Eagles men's basketball team into a match-up with the Saint Louis Billikens in the opening round of the 76 Classic at 2 p.m. EDT on Thanksgiving Day at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California.
The 76 Classic, hosted by the Big West Conference, takes place from November 24 through November 27. Joining the Eagles and Billikens in the tournament are the Villanova Wildcats, UC Riverside Highlanders, Nex Mexico Lions, Santa Clara Broncos, Oklahoma Sooners and Washington State Cougars.
BC (1-2) is coming off two straight losses, most recently against the UMass Minutemen. Patrick Heckmann, who is the team's leading scorer with 15 points per game, had 11 points for the Eagles, who shot 31.1 percent from the field in an 82-46 loss. The Eagles have been outscored 168-110 in their last two games.
Meanwhile, the Billikens (3-0) are off to a hot start and are coming off of a 77-64 win over the Washington Huskies on November 20. Brian Conklin led all scorers with 25 points and made 7-of-8 free throws for the Billikens, who outscored the Huskies by 25 points (50-25) in the opening half. Conklin leads the team in scoring with 16.7 points per game.
BC and St. Louis will tip off the tournament early Thursday afternoon. VIllanova and UC Riverside will play at 4 p.m. EDT (ESPN2). New Mexico and Santa Clara do battle at 9 p.m. EDT (ESPNU) and Oklahoma battles Washington State at 11:30 p.m. EDT (ESPN2). If the Eagles win on Thursday, they will advance to face the winner of Villanova and UC Riverside at 2:30 p.m. on Friday. View the complete 76 Classic bracket here.
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