Xavier confirms non-conference slate

Xavier basketball returns to the hardwood on November 7th with an exhibition game against Northwood. While that one won't count, everything that follows will.

Friday, November 13 -- Miami (Ohio)
Tuesday, November 17 -- Missouri
Friday, November 20 at Michigan (Gavitt Tipoff Games)
Monday, November 23 - Northern Kentucky
Thursday, November 26 vs. Alabama at AdvoCare Invitational at 12 p.m. ET
Friday, November 27 vs. Wichita State/USC at AdvoCare Invitational
Sunday, November 29 vs. TBD at AdvoCare Invitational *
Saturday, December 5 -- Western Kentucky
Tuesday, December 8 -- Wright State
Saturday, December 12 -- Cincinnati
Saturday, December 19 - Auburn
Tuesday, December 22 at Wake Forest (Skip Prosser Classic)

Thanks as always to Tom Eiser and Xavier Athletic Communications for plenty of advance notice on where the team will be and when. The schedule now includes at least 12 guaranteed games against 2015 NCAA teams and four more NCAA tournament teams possible over the Thanksgiving meltdown holiday. This may not be the utterly loaded set of games that Xavier used to play when the conference schedule was a trainwreck, but it's not a cakewalk, either. Michigan away figures to be a very early referendum on where the team is, and the Crosstown Shootout will be a nice measuring stick as conference play nears.

And, of course, there's always Thanksgiving to start dreading.