Published by Communications and Public Affairs (519) 824-4120, Ext. 56982 or 53338
News Release
August 07, 2003
Men's national basketball team coming to U of G
The Canadian men's basketball team will play the University of Western Carolina at the University of Guelph's W.F. Mitchell Athletics Centre at 3 p.m Aug. 16 before departing for an Olympic qualification tournament in Puerto Rico.
Steve Nash, the two-time National Basketball Association all-star point guard from Victoria, B.C., will be joining the team in Guelph before helping Canada qualify for the Olympics. Nash has just returned from a break he took from the game after leading the Dallas Mavericks to the NBA playoffs this past season.
The Guelph game will be the national team's one tune-up match before the San Juan tournament. Canada must finish among the top three teams in the Olympic qualification tournament in order to secure a spot in the 2004 Athens Olympic Games. Prior to coming to Guelph, the national team will be in Toronto for a four-day training camp at the Air Canada Centre.
"The University of Guelph is a great facility and the game promises to be an exciting one," said Walter Edwards, associate director of Canada Basketball. "It gives us, as Canadians, an opportunity to show our support for our national teams as they challenge for a birth in the 2004 Olympics."
Post-game festivities will include a barbecue and a meet-and-greet session with members of the men's and women's national teams.
Advance tickets are $16 and may be purchased from the River Run Centre by phone, (519) 763-3000 or 1-877-520-2408, or through the Web site, www.riverrun.guelph.on.ca. Tickets are also available for $20 at the door.
For media questions, contact Communications and Public Affairs: Lori Bona Hunt (519) 824-4120, Ext. 53338, or Rachelle Cooper, (519) 824-4120, Ext. 56982.
