Issued: December 19, 2002

MEN'S BASKETBALL TO HOST 34TH ANNUAL HOLIDAY CLASSIC

EAU CLAIRE - The UW-Eau Claire men's basketball team will look to win its fourth straight Holiday Classic title as it will host the annual event December 29-30 at W.L. Zorn Arena.

Joining the Blugolds in the four team tournament is Augustana College of Illinois, the University of Sioux Falls of South Dakota and William Penn University of Iowa. The first round of the tournament will pit Augustana against Sioux Falls at 6:00 p.m. while the Blugolds will battle William Penn at 8:00. The winner of each game will advance to the championship game held Monday night at 8:00 and the third place game will be held at 6:00.

Eau Claire has won the last three championships in the Holiday Classic, a tournament the Blugolds have hosted since the 1969 season. The Blugolds took the title last year with a 79-70 victory over North Central College. None of the other teams competing in this year's event have previously participated in the Holiday Classic.

Augustana College has a 5-1 record prior to its December 19th game against Mount St. Clare. The Vikings return all five starters from a year ago while losing just one letter winner. The team is led by 2001-2002 All-American Drew Carstens who is living up to his All-American status by averaging 21.8 points per game and 3.8 rebounds per game. Shaun Clements has come up big for the Vikings in the 2002-2003 season by averaging 13.2 points per game and leading the team with 7.2 rebounds per contest.

The Cougars of the University of Sioux Falls own a 9-3 record as of their December 11th loss to South Dakota State University with two contests left to play before the Holiday Classic. Returning for the Cougars is 2001-2002 leading scorer Ryan Coapstick who is averaging 15.1 points per game while totaling 45 assists in 12 games. The Cougars lose 27 game starter Jason Robinson from a year ago who averaged 14.7 points and 5.0 rebounds per contest during the 2001-2002 campaign. Adam Burnison has provided a huge spark off the bench for Sioux Falls this season as he leads the team with 15.4 points per game and 5.6 rebounds per game.

William Penn currently holds a 5-9 record as of December 19th with one game left to play before the Classic. The Statesmen are led by Jason Beall who leads the team with 15.3 points and 8.0 rebounds per game. Chris Klassen has followed up his impressive 2001-2002 season where he averaged 13.0 points per game with 11.3 points per game through 14 games in the 2002-2003 season. Head coach John Henry is in his first full season after taking over coaching duties part way through the 2001-2002 season

The Blugolds come into the Holiday Classic with a 7-1 overall record and a 3-0 record in Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play. Jason Larson (Sr-Sugarland, TX/Stephen F. Austin) leads the way for the Blugolds averaging 21.8 points per contest while adding 6.3 rebounds per game and shooting nearly 44 percent from behind the three point line. Larson scored his 1,000th career point as a Blugolds against Superior. Also making large contributions for the Blugolds is Dan Archambault (So-Oshkosh/West) as he is averaging 13.8 points per game while shooting 90 percent from the free throw line on 30 attempts.

Tickets for the games will be sold per night. Admission prices are five dollars for adults, four dollars for seniors and UWEC faculty, three dollars for youths, and two dollars for UWEC students.