Penguin basketball to open against UCLA

They’ll play the Bruins in Los Angeles Nov. 12 in Pauley Pavilion.

YOUNGSTOWN — Youngstown State will open the 2007-08 men’s basketball season against 11-time national champion UCLA at Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles.

The game, scheduled to begin at 11 p.m. on Nov. 12, will be televised by ESPN2. It is part of the O’Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic.

The other game in the Los Angeles regional will feature Weber State and UC-San Bernardino. Weber State finished 20-12 last season and lost to UCLA in the first round of the NCAA tournament. UC-San Bernardino, a Division II school, was 26-6 last season and advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA tournament.

The teams will also play a doubleheader Nov. 13, matching the losing teams from the first night followed by the winners.

Bruins loaded again

The Bruins, who reached the Final Four the past two seasons, are predicted by many to make a run at the national title again in 2007-08. Athlon’s Magazine has tabbed UCLA as its national champion while Lindy’s has the Bruins ranked their preseason No. 1 team. UCLA finished the 2006-07 campaign with a 30-6 record.

The Los Angeles regional is by far the toughest of the four brackets. The four teams combined to post a 90-41 mark last year. The Columbia (Mo.) regional’s teams were 80-46 (.635), the East Lansing (Mich.) regional’s teams were 68-57 (.544) while the College Park (Md.) regional’s four teams were 63-62 (.504).

The contest is YSU’s first against a Pac-10 Conference team, first in the state of California and first on ESPN2 since playing for the Mid-Continent Conference title in March 1998.

The winners of the four regionals advance to the championship round in Kansas City, Mo., Nov. 19-20.