WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – The annual Connecticut 6 Classic, which pits the University of Hartford men's basketball up against instate member Sacred Heart on Friday, November 14 in a season-opening showdown, is 94 days away. But who's counting? Fortunately, despite the 90-degree Connecticut summer, a sneak peak of winter is right around the corner. Fans will not have to endure the wait to get their fix of Hartford men's basketball as the Hawks have been hard at work on the courts and in the weight room since July 7 in preparation for an Australian tour that features five-games throughout three different cities in the "Land Down Under."
 
Beginning on August 15, fifth-year head coach John Gallagher and his Hawks embark on a 14-day journey to Australia, the home country of rising senior Corban Wroe, junior Taylor Dyson and sophomore Dougal Weir. As the trip serves for a "homecoming" for Hartford's three Aussies, the team's non-Aussies will gain a unique opportunity to immerse themselves in a foreign culture and play basketball internationally, all while absorbing the culture and scenery of the Land Down Under. The Hawks are permitted to hold 10 practices prior to leaving Connecticut in order to prepare for their Australian excursion, the first of which will be held on Tuesday, August 5. Following the team's final practice on campus, the Hawks will depart at 1:30 p.m. to head to John F. Kennedy International Airport where it will begin its journey. 

After enduring the 21-plus hour flight from New York City and crossing over into the Eastern and Southern Hemispheres, the Hawks are scheduled to land in Sydney on Sunday, August 17. Slated to play two games in four days against the Sydney Kings and Norths Bears in Australia's most populous city, Hartford will again board planes and head to Melbourne where it will play two more games against the Dandenong Rangers and Knox Raiders.

Following their three-day stay in Melbourne, the capital city of the state of Victoria, the Hawks head to their final destination. Cairns will be the last stop of Hartford's Australian tour. During the four days in the Queensland city, which harbors the Great Barrier Reef, the Hawks will play their final exhibition game against the Cairns Taipans.

"This is about more than basketball," said Gallagher. "It's an educational opportunity to see another culture, see the amazing sites of Australia, and meet amazing people along the way. It is also a bonding experience and an opportunity for the team to experience something together, and it will be something they will remember for the rest of their lives."

The trip marks the second time Gallagher has taken his team to the Land Down Under, as the Hawks previously spent 12 days in Australia, facing a series of opponents from the National Basketball League and the Australian Basketball Association while touring Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne and the Gold Coast prior to the 2010-11 campaign.

Don't have your passports ready? No problem. Fans can travel with the Hawks without the hassles of international flight by following the Hartford men's basketball team on Facebook (/UHartMensHoops), Twitter (@UHartMensHoops) and Instagram (@UHartMensHoops). Fans can also catch up with the Hawks by visiting HartfordHawks.com, where there will be daily video blogs from the players, game highlights and stats, as well as a view of the tour through the eyes of Anton Goff, Hartford's newly hired Director of Athletics, via the "Goff Blog."