Alexander Unveils 2009-10 Pacer Men’s Basketball Schedule

AIKEN, S.C. – The 2009-10 University of South Carolina Aiken men’s basketball schedule was released on Tuesday, July 21 by fifth-year head men’s basketball coach Vince Alexander. 

The 2009-10 USC Aiken men’s basketball schedule will feature a full Peach Belt Conference schedule along with 14 home games at the Convocation Center. The Pacers will take on five teams in the 2009-10 campaign that were a part of the 2009 NCAA Division II Tournament. 

The healthy home schedule for the Pacers in the 2009-10 season does not bode well for opposition visiting the Convocation Center where the Pacers are currently 27-1 during the regular season over the past two seasons.

USC Aiken is 19-1 against PBC opposition during the regular season inside the Convocation Center since it opened its doors prior to the start of the 2007-08 season.

“I think that we definitely have another challenging schedule ahead of us,” noted Alexander. “I believe that our non-conference schedule will prepare us for another tough Peach Belt Conference season. We are looking forward to competing as we try to acquire another PBC championship while at the same time remaining one of the premier programs in all of Division II basketball.”

Under the guidance of Alexander the University of South Carolina Aiken men’s basketball program has become a national force over the past couple of campaigns. The Pacers have won a school-record 52 contests over the last two seasons. They have also acquired a Peach Belt Conference regular season championship (2007-08) and advanced farther than any other team in school history to the NCAA Division II Tournament “Sweet Sixteen” (2008-09).

Some are looking for the Pacers to drop off a bit in the 2009-10 season with the departure of two-time consensus All-America selection and two-time Peach Belt Conference Player of the Year Chris Commons, but a strong returning nucleus that includes 10 players and a stout incoming class give Alexander all the pieces to remain at the top of the Division II basketball ladder.

Two years ago, Alexander welcomed an incoming recruiting class that along with Commons would change the fortunes of the once downtrodden USC Aiken men’s basketball program. Then in his third year in charge of the Pacer men’s basketball program, Alexander alerted everyone that things were about to change. Things did truly change and now Alexander wants everyone to know that things are going to remain strong despite the fact that the Pacers do not return one starter from last season.

One thing that no matter what will be different for the Pacers in the 2009-10 campaign is that the landscape of the PBC has changed. The addition of Montevallo (Ala.) and Flagler (Fla.) means that the PBC now has 13 teams. Due to this, the PBC has split into two divisions. USC Aiken is in the new East Division along with Lander, Flagler, Francis Marion, Augusta State and Armstrong Atlantic State.

The format for the 2010 PBC Tournament has also changed with only eight of the top 13 teams qualifying for the event to be held for the third straight year at the Convocation Center in Aiken. The top two seeds from each division will host a first-round contest on campus on March 3. The four winners will then advance to the new PBC Final Four to be held the first weekend of March (5-7).

The Pacers will begin their 2009-10 season by traveling to Charleston, S.C. to take on Bobby Cremins and the College of Charleston in an exhibition. The Pacers and the Cougars will be squaring off against one another for the first time since 2002. College of Charleston owns the all-time series between the two at 17-7.

USC Aiken’s regular season will commence 11 days later at the Convocation Center against NAIA powerhouse Life University at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 18. The contest will mark the first ever meeting between the two programs. 

Just three days later, USC Aiken will hit the road for the first time in the regular season to play in the Catawba Classic hosted by South Atlantic Conference power and 2009 NCAA Division II Southeast Regional participant Catawba on Friday, Nov. 20 and Saturday, Nov. 21. The tournament field has yet to be announced, but if the Pacers play the Indians it will be a rematch of last year’s Division II Southeast Regional semifinal that the Pacers took, 85-72. 

The Pacers will close out the month of November by taking on Sunshine State Conference stalwart and 2009 NCAA Division II Tournament regional host Florida Southern at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 28. The Pacers dropped an 83-75 decision to the Mocs on Tuesday, Dec. 30 at the 2008 Florida Southern Holiday Inn South/Ledger Classic at Florida Southern’s home arena in Lakeland, Fla. The meeting was the first ever meeting between the two programs.

The month of December opens with the Pacers playing in their first Peach Belt Conference contest of the year against Francis Marion at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 2 in Florence, S.C. USC Aiken enters the game on a four-game winning streak against the Patriots.

After taking on the Patriots, USC Aiken will close the curtains on the month of December by playing three of their final four games in the month in the friendly confines of the Convocation Center. The Pacers’ first home tilt in the month will be against resurgent Palmetto powerhouse Benedict, who concluded the 2008-09 regular season with a national ranking of 14th. USC Aiken and Benedict have not tangled since the Pacers garnered a 87-85 overtime victory in Alexander’s first season in charge of the USC Aiken men’s basketball program on Nov. 19, 2005. 

The Pacers’ final road date of the 2009 year will be against Wingate in Wingate, N.C. on Saturday, Dec. 12. Tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m. USC Aiken bested Wingate, 93-67, at the Convocation Center in last year’s regular season opener on Nov. 15, 2008.

USC Aiken will look to remain unbeaten all-time against Allen (Dec. 17) in their final non-conference tune-up before PBC play on Thursday, Dec. 17. USC Aiken will then jump headfirst into PBC action after returning from their Holiday break with a 3:30 p.m. contest against Columbus State on Wednesday, Dec. 30.

The 2010 year opens with a stiff test against rival Augusta State at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 2 at the Convocation Center. The contest is the first of two league games between the two as they will also face off on 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 3 at Christenberry Fieldhouse in Augusta, Ga. 

The two contests against Augusta State are just two of many key conference games for the Pacers in the PBC portion of the season, which will feature dates against new league members Flagler and Montevallo. The Pacers will take on divisional opponent Flagler twice with the first meeting between the two at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 20 at the Convocation Center. The two will meet in St. Augustine, Fla. for the first time as conference opponents at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 8. USC Aiken and Flagler have met once before with the then 13th-ranked Pacers besting Flagler, 83-66, on Dec. 29, 2007 in their first game of the 2008 Winter Park Rotary Tangerine Tournament. 

USC Aiken and Montevallo will meet for the first time in program history and as conference opponents at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 11. 

The Pacers will play two non-conference games during the conference part of the 2009-10 campaign against Division II provisional member King College. The two programs, who have never faced off against one another on the hardwood, will first take the court against one another at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 30 at the Convocation Center. USC Aiken will close out their 2009-10 regular season with a Saturday, Feb. 27 game against King. 

USC Aiken’s final home game of the regular season will be on Saturday, Feb. 20 against Armstrong Atlantic State. The 7:30 p.m. contest will serve as USC Aiken’s senior day.