Oct. 11, 2000

The Arizona State men's basketball team will open practice this Saturday, Oct. 14, and for the third straight year under Rob Evans all practices are open to the public. The team will practice twice on Saturday, from 8-10 a.m. and then from 4-6 p.m. Fans attending the ASU-Washington football game are encouraged to stop by Wells Fargo Arena for the afternoon practice before the 7:15 p.m. Sun Devil-Husky kickoff.

During the week, ASU is scheduled to practice from 1:30-4:30 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Practices on Tuesday and Thursday are normally held from 3:30-6:30 p.m., but fans are encouraged to call the men's basketball office at 480-965-3261 for updated times and sites if interested in attending.

The Sun Devil schedule begins with an exhibition game on Nov. 1 and the first regular season game on Nov. 10, the earliest starts in school history. ASU returns nine lettermen and four starters from last year's 19-13 squad which posted 19 wins for just the fourth time in the past 17 years of the program and finished tied for fourth in the Pac-10 with a 10-8 mark.

The Sun Devils open the regular season Nov. 10 in the NABC Classic against Tulsa at the Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill, N.C. Winthrop takes on host North Carolina in the other half of the first-round. ASU opens its exhibition season on Nov. 1 against the California All-Stars, as ASU did not open its exhibition season until Nov. 10 last year and did not have its first regular-season game until Nov. 20. ASU's opponent in the first round at Chapel Hill is Tulsa, which posted 32 wins last year and returns eight lettermen from its Elite Eight squad. Its new coach is 1986 North Carolina graduate Buzz Peterson.