Division I Excursion ...

Northern State WOLVES vs. Colorado BUFFALOES Nov. 12, 2002 Boulder, Colo. Gametime TBA

Northern to open 2002-03 season against Colorado

May 30, 2002

ABERDEEN, S.D. - Before opening the regular season with four straight home games, the Northern State University men's basketball team will begin the 2002-03 campaign by traveling to challenge Division I University of Colorado for an exhibition game Nov. 12 in Boulder.

For junior point guard Steve Smiley, who grew up just 20 minutes from CU in Arvada, Colo., and will work two camps there this summer, the Wolves vs. Buffaloes matchup is a dream come true.

"It's going to be fun," Smiley said. "I grew up following the Buffs and know a lot of the players on the team. It will be a great way to start our season."

Smiley said one of his best friends is CU's 6-7 guard/forward Blair Wilson, who was the team's third-leading scorer as a sophomore last season. The friendship evolved from Smiley's Pomona High and Wilson's Westminster High School rivalries.

Colorado finished the 2001-02 season with a Big 12 quarterfinal loss to Kansas. The Buffaloes finished 15-14 overall and ninth in the Big 12 with a 5-11 conference record. CU has just over 26,000 students to Northern's 3,000.

Northern, which ended the 2001-02 season 20-8 overall and won the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference championship with a 14-4 mark, also began last season by taking on a Division I opponent in pre-season play. The Wolves traveled to Nashville, Tenn., and competed well with Vanderbilt before falling 72-59 in the exhibition game.

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