Gameday Information
Veterans Classic Game One
#1 North Carolina (0-0) vs. Temple (0-0)
Friday, November 13, 2015 | 7:00 PM (ET)
TV: CBS Sports Network
Radio: Westwood One, Sirius Ch. 82, WNAV 1430 AM / 99.9 FM & WBAL 1090 AM
North Carolina Game Notes | Temple Game Notes | Live Statistics

Veterans Classic Game Two
Florida (0-0) at Navy (0-0)
Friday, November 13, 2015 | 9:30 PM (ET)
TV: CBS Sports Network
Radio: Westwood One, Sirius Ch. 132, WNAV 1430 AM / 99.9 FM & WBAL 1090 AM
Navy Game Notes | Florida Game Notes | Live Statistics

Parking / Shuttle Information
All fans attending the Veterans Classic are encouraged to park at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. Fans can enter Gate 5 off Taylor Ave. and pay $5 for parking. The shuttle is free and the pick up and drop off spot is in front of the Blue Angel plane. Shuttles will run continuously from the football stadium to Alumni Hall beginning at 4:30 PM until one hour after the conclusion of the second game. Due to Naval Academy security restrictions, the general public can not drive their vehicles on to the Yard. The pedestrian entries at Gate 1 and Gate 3 will be open throughout the evening. Parking at the stadium is the best option for fans attending the game.

ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The Navy men's basketball program will open the 2015-16 season by hosting the second annual Veterans Classic at a sold-out Alumni Hall on Friday. Nationally top-ranked North Carolina will face Temple in the opening game at 7:00 PM and Navy will host Florida in the second game of the doubleheader at 9:30 PM.

Both games will be televised on CBS Sports Network with Tom McCarthy (pxp), Steve Lappas (analyst) and Lauren Gardner (sideline) serving as the talent. There will also be the Inside College Basketball pregame show on CBS Sports Network at 6:30 PM prior to the first contest, which will include footage of the All-Access tours that the three visiting teams will receive on Thursday as they experience a day in the life of a midshipman. The pregame show will be hosted on-site by Jon Rothstein.

The Navy basketball radio network will have both games on WNAV 1430 AM and WBAL 1090 AM with Pete Medhurst (pxp) and Michael Heary (analyst) returning for another season of action. The doubleheader will also air on Westwood One Radio with John Sadak (pxp) and John Thompson (analyst) calling the game. Navy-Florida can be heard on Sirius 132 and UNC-Temple on Sirius 82.

Navy and Florida are meeting for the first time since 1961 and the Gators are the second straight high-major program that Navy has opened the season against. Navy faced #18 Michigan State in the 2014 Veterans Classic, falling 64-59.

North Carolina is ranked #1 in the Associated Press Preseason Poll and the Tar Heels share the preseason #1 honors in the USA Today Coaches Poll with Kentucky.

North Carolina will be the highest ranked team in Alumni Hall since #15 VCU beat Tennessee in the inaugural Veterans Classic in 2014. UNC will also be the highest ranked team to play on the grounds of the Naval Academy since Feb. 18, 1961 when #3 Duke defeated Navy, 75-73, in Halsey Field House. It will be the first time the nation's top-ranked team has played a game in Alumni Hall.

Midshipmen Storylines
• Head coach Ed DeChellis enters his fifth season at Navy in 2015-16.
• Navy tied for sixth place in the Patriot League standings last season with an 8-10 record in conference and the Mids were 13-19 overall.
• It was the third straight season that DeChellis increased the team's overall win total from the previous season. Navy also doubled its conference win total (8) from the previous season (4).
• Navy went 3-0 against Army West Point in a single season for the fifth time in program history last year. Navy beat Army in the Star Game for the second straight year and also defeated Army in the Patriot League Tournament First Round.
• Navy returns four players that started at least 10 games last season in seniors Tilman Dunbar, Will Kelly and Kendall Knorr and junior Edward Alade.
• Knorr will serve as the team captain.
• Dunbar is the team's leading returning scorer after averaging 9.1 points last season. Dunbar also averaged a team-best 3.3 assists.
• Kelly led the Patriot League in blocks per game last season with an average of 1.8.
• Navy graduated a pair of 1,000-point scorers in 2015 in Worth Smith and Brandon Venturini. Smith was named to the All-Patriot League First Team last year.
• For the second straight season, Navy will open the season by hosting the Veterans Classic at the Naval Academy on Nov. 13. Navy will host Florida at 9:30 PM, following North Carolina vs. Temple at 7:00 PM.

Florida Storylines
• After longtime coach Billy Donovan departed Gainesville for the NBA's Oklahoma City Thunder, Florida brought in Mike White from Louisiana Tech, where he won 101 games in four seasons.
• Forward Dorian Finney-Smith decided to bypass the NBA Draft and return for his senior season after earning All-SEC honors last year. Finney-Smith led Florida in both scoring (13.1) and rebounding (6.2) a year ago.
• Junior point guard Kasey Hill also returns after averaging 7.2 points and 4.5 assists and 6-9 forward Devin Robinson could be poised for a breakout year in his sophomore season.
• Florida's 6-11 center John Egbunu is eligible after sitting out a season following a transfer from South Florida.
• Florida was 16-17 in 2014-15.

Series History vs. Florida
• The all-time series between Navy and Florida is even at 1-1.
• Navy and Florida played in the Gator Bowl Tournament in the Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum in back-to-back holiday tournaments during the 1960-61 and 1961-62 seasons.
• Navy won the first game in the series, 69-62, in overtime on Dec. 29, 1960. The teams were even at the end of regulation at 56-56 and Navy outscored the Gators in overtime, 13-6. Navy team captain Al Hughes had 19 points and eight rebounds for the Mids who overcame 20 points from Cliff Luyk.
• Florida won the rematch the next year on Dec. 28, 1961, 68-63, with Luyk scoring 24 points.
• The teams will be meeting for the first time in 54 years in this year's season opener.
• Head coach Ed DeChellis is 1-0 all-time against Florida. DeChellis led Penn State to a 71-62 win over Donovan's Florida team on March 24, 2009 in the NIT Quarterfinals.
• DeChellis would go on to win the 2009 NIT Tournament with Penn State.

Looking Ahead
• Navy will host the College of Charleston (9-24, 3-15 CAA) on Monday, November 16 at 7:00 PM at Alumni Hall.
• The two programs will be meeting for the first time.

About the Veterans Classic
• Prior to the 2014-15 college basketball season, CBS Sports Network and the Naval Academy partnered to create a new college basketball event, the Veterans Classic, an annual showcase bringing together top teams from across the country in celebration of Veterans Day.
• The inaugural event was Friday, Nov. 14, 2015 with No. 15 VCU playing Tennessee and Navy hosting No. 18 Michigan State. CBS Sports televised the doubleheader and had on-site pre-game, halftime and post-game studio coverage, live from Alumni Hall in Annapolis, Md.
• The three visiting schools received a glimpse of what life is like as a midshipman at the Naval Academy. The teams toured the `Yard,' watched noon meal formation and ate lunch with the Brigade at King Hall. The teams boarded a yard patrol ship, went into a ship simulator, toured a MH-60S helicopter and a Marine Corps humvee.
• The teams were immersed in the culture and tradition of the Naval Academy as the event included a number of other unique experiences, including military demonstrations and receptions.
• CBS Sports produced a 30-minute `Hoops Confidential' documentary on the inaugural event and will do so again in 2015.
• The three visiting teams will once again take a Academy-immersion tour on the Thursday prior to the games.