The Long Beach State 49ers play their fifth team ranked in the top 14 this season on Thursday night as they battle the No. 14 Xavier Musketeers in the opening round of the Diamond Head Classic in Honolul, Hawaii. The four-day tournament will run through Christmas weekend and be televised by the ESPN family of networks. Here are the relevant details of Thursday's contest:
Tournament: Diamond Head Classic
Location: The Stan Sheriff, Honolulu, Hawaii
Records: Long Beach State (5-5); Xavier Musketeers (8-1)
Ratings: Long Beach State is ranked 48th by both Ken Pomeroy and Jeff Sagarin; Xavier is ranked 35th by Pomeroy, 49th by Sagarin, No. 14 in the AP poll and No. 15 in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches poll.
Time: 8 p.m. PST
TV: ESPNU, with Kanoa Leahy and Stephen Bardo on the call
Series History: This is the first meeting between Long Beach State and Xavier
Sitting Out: Both Mark Lyons (17.4 points per game) and Dezmine Wells (9.5 ppg) will miss Thursday's game for Xavier, serving a suspension for a fight against Cincinnati on December 10.
Up Next: The winner of this game will play at 8 p.m. PST on Friday on ESPN2 against the winner of Auburn vs. Hawaii. The loser of both of those games will play Friday at 10:30 p.m. PST on ESPNU.