WEST HARTFORD, Conn. - The Hartford men's basketball team announced its non-conference schedule on Monday, with the official start of the John Gallagher Era set for November 13 in the Connecticut 6 Classic against Central Connecticut. The Hawks will play four non-conference home games, opening their 22nd season at the Chase Family Arena at the Reich Family Pavilion on Friday, November 19 against Dartmouth. Hartford will play three NCAA tournament teams from last season, traveling to Florida State, California and Saint Mary's.

For the second consecutive year, the Hawks will open their season at the Connecticut 6 Classic. After playing Quinnipiac in the inaugural event last season, Hartford will take on Central Connecticut at Mohegan Sun Arena on November 13 as part of this year's event. The game will be the first between the two nearby rivals since December 11, 2002, a 70-66 Blue Devils victory. Also playing will be Sacred Heart against Fairfield and Quinnipiac against Yale.

In total, the Hawks will play four of their five fellow Connecticut 6 participants, including trips to Quinnipiac on November 16, Yale on November 30 and Sacred Heart on December 8.

The home schedule gets underway on November 19, a Friday night when Hartford hosts Dartmouth and looks for a measure of revenge after last year's 68-56 defeat at the hands of the Big Green in Hanover. Hartford will stay at home for a match-up against St. Francis (PA) on Wednesday, November 24 before breaking for a brief Thanksgiving holiday.

After trips to Fordham and Yale and a home date with Brown, the Hawks will play the first of three 2010 NCAA tournament participants when they head south to Tallahassee, Florida to take on the Florida State Seminoles out of the Atlantic Coast Conference. Florida State earned a #9 seed in the West region of last year's tournament after finishing tied for third in the ACC with a 10-6 conference record (22-10 overall). The Hawks and Noles will tip off on December 5, after which Hartford heads back to the northeast for road battles with Sacred Heart and Monmouth. The Hawks and Pioneers will face off in Fairfield on December 8, and Hartford will visit Monmouth on December 11 before breaking for exams and the Christmas holiday.

Coming out of the break, the Hawks will once again find themselves up against tournament-tested opponents, as they traverse the continent to take on California out of the PAC-10 on December 28. Cal, the top seed in last year's PAC-10 Tournament, fell to Washington in the league's championship game and earned an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the #8 seed in the South. The Golden Bears knocked off #9 Louisville before falling to eventual national champion Duke.

Staying in California, Hartford plays its third and final non-conference NCAA participant, staying in the San Francisco Bay area to take on Saint Mary's. Last year's West Coast Conference champion, the Gaels were the 10th seed in the South and upset #2 Villanova en route to a Sweet Sixteen appearance.

Hartford concludes its non-conference slate back at the Chase Family Arena at the Reich Family Pavilion on January 3, where they will ring in the new year by attempting to payback St. Francis (NY) for the defeat the Terriers handed them in Brooklyn last season.

For a second consecutive season, the Hawks will host the America East Championships at the Chase Family Arena at the Reich Family Pavilion in March. The America East is expected to release its conference basketball schedules later this month. Check back to HartfordHawks.com for that information and game times as the season approaches. For ticket information, call 860-768-HAWK or visit the Malcolm and Brenda Berman Athletics Box Office at the Reich Family Pavilion.