GRAND FORKS, N.D. – Ushering in a new era of North Dakota men's basketball under Head Coach Paul Sather, the Fighting Hawks have released their non-conference schedule for the upcoming 2019-20 season on Friday.
 
This non-league section of the schedule, which can be paired with the conference portion released earlier in July, features three games at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center, nine road games, and a Thanksgiving tournament in Fort Myers, Fla. UND will also battle a trio of teams who reached the NCAA Tournament and two who played in the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) last season.
 
"The way things unfolded this year, for a variety of reasons, did not necessarily provide us the most optimal situation from a non-conference standpoint, in terms of home games," said Athletics Director Bill Chaves. "But, we are excited about the various opportunities that this year's team will have as well as what it will do for our program futuristically."
 
North Dakota will begin the 2019-20 campaign on its home floor for the fourth time in the last five seasons, battling Crown College on Nov. 7 at 7 p.m. from the Betty. The Fighting Hawks will look to start 1-0 for the fifth straight season and claim their 10th consecutive victory in home openers.
 
The first of three showdowns against NCAA Tournament participants from a year ago comes on Nov. 12 in Spokane, Wash. against Gonzaga. The Hawks and Bulldogs will square off for the second time in three seasons, as the Zags clipped UND, 89-83, in overtime back in 2017. Gonzaga is 11-0 against current members of The Summit League entering the season.
 
A weekend trip in mid-November to Horizon League and Missouri Valley foes will prepare UND for the upcoming inter-conference showdowns beginning in 2020. The Hawks first head to Valparaiso on Nov. 17 to battle the Crusaders on the road for the first time in program history and the first meeting since a 112-82 triumph in the 1966 NCAA Division II Midwest Regional in Grand Forks. The green and white close the trip with a familiar foe, the Milwaukee Panthers, on Nov. 19. The two teams met in a pair of contests last season, with UND winning both games by a combined 16 points.
 
A border battle with Minnesota, another NCAA Tournament participant from last year, on Nov. 24 concludes the four-game road trip, as the two programs are set to square off for the 21st time. UND's last win over the Gophers was on Dec. 8, 1928 – the sixth men's basketball game ever played at historic Williams Arena. The showdown will be carried nationally on the Big Ten Network.
 
UND returns home for its first-ever showdown with North Central University on Nov. 26 at 8:30 p.m. from the Betty before hitting the road to Fort Myers, Fla. for the Hilton Garden Inn FGCU Classic on Nov. 29-31, hosted by Florida Gulf Coast. The Hawks begin the Thanksgiving tournament on Nov. 29 against the host-Eagles at 6 p.m. This will be the third meeting between UND and FGCU, with both sides claiming a matchup. November ends with the inaugural meeting between North Dakota and Georgia Southern at 3:30 p.m., and the Hawks ring in December against NIT participant Campbell at 11 a.m. to close the tournament.
 
A familiar trip to Missoula, Mont. against Montana (Dec. 6), the final NCAA Tournament team from a season ago, and Cheney, Wash. at Eastern Washington (Dec. 8) cap off another stretch away from Grand Forks, as UND will battle a pair of former conference mates. The Hawks will look to snap an eight-game losing streak vs. the Griz before going for their eighth win against the Eagles in 10 Division I meetings.
 
Northland College makes a return trip to the Betty on Dec. 17 at 7 p.m. to close the non-conference home portion of the slate before UND hits the road to Big Ten foe and last season's No. 4 NIT seed Nebraska on Dec. 21 at 5 p.m. on BTN+. The Hawks will be gunning for their second win in five tries vs. the Cornhuskers.
 
UND closes the non-conference season on Dec. 29 in Corvallis, Ore. for the first-ever meeting against Oregon State.
 
 North Dakota kicks off its formal practices today from the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center.