SALEM, Va. – Roanoke Men's Basketball will open the 2016-17 season in the new Cregger Center Arena with the Dick Leftwich Tip-Off Tournament Nov. 18-19 as Head Coach Clay Nunley announced the complete 2016-17 schedule Thursday afternoon.
"Our schedule has an impressive list of teams both in and out of conference, and I'm confident our players will be eager and ready to work and prepare for those challenging tests," said Nunley. "Our group is excited to open the season in the fabulous Cregger Center, and we look forward to fans and members of the RC community experiencing this tremendous facility we now call home."
In their first year under the direction of Nunley, the Maroons will host two tournaments for a total of 12 homes games while hitting the road for 13 contests, including the Swarthmore College Garnet Holiday Tournament Dec. 17-18.
RC will host Worcester State, Ferrum and the Newport News Apprentice School in the season opener in the Cregger Center on Nov. 18, as the Maroons will face Worcester State at 6 p.m. in day one of the Dick Leftwhich Tournament followed by the Consolation/Champion on Nov. 19. Roanoke plays on the road for the next three match-ups beginning with Old Dominion Athletic Conference foe Bridgewater on Nov. 22 followed by N.C. Wesleyan on Nov. 26 and at Greensboro on Nov. 29.
Roanoke kicks off December at home against conference rival Virginia Wesleyan on the third. A week later, the Maroons head south to Raleigh, N.C. to take on William Peace. RC then faces in-state opponent Averett on Dec. 17 in the Swarthmore College Garnet Holiday Tournament followed by the consolation/championship on Dec. 18 in Swarthmore, Pa.
In the final games of 2016, Roanoke hosts the Coast Guard, Anderson and Frostburg State in the Cregger Tournament Dec. 30-31.
The Maroons return to action in 2017 to kick off conference play beginning with Guilford on Jan. 4 in Greensboro, N.C. Hampden-Sydney and defending 2016 conference champion, Lynchburg head to Salem to face the Maroons on Jan. 7and Jan. 11, respectively. In back-to-back road games, RC heads to Ashland, Va. to take on Randolph-Macon followed by a mid-week match-up at Randolph on Jan. 18
Washington & Lee heads to Salem, Va. as the Maroons host the Generals on Jan. 21 and the Wasps of Emory and Henry on Jan. 25. Three days later, RC heads to Harrisonburg, Va. to take on the Royals of Eastern Mennonite.
In the final games of the regular-season, Roanoke hosts Bridgewater on Feb. 1 before heading to Virginia Wesleyan on Feb. 4. The Maroons return home on Feb. 8 to take on the Quakers of Guilford before heading to Lexington, Va. for a match-up against Washington and Lee on Feb. 11. On Feb. 15, RC hosts Eastern Mennonite in the last home game before heading to Shenandoah for the final game of the regular season.
Last season, the Maroons earned a No. 3 seed in the ODAC Championship after owning an 11-5 conference record. Roanoke fell to No. 6 Randolph in the tournament quarterfinals closing the season with a 19-7 overall record. First Team All-ODAC selection, Joey Miller returns for his junior campaign with the Maroons.
No stranger to the ODAC, Nunley comes to Salem after nine seasons at the helm of the men's basketball program at Randolph College, where he has guided the WildCats since the program's inception in 2007.
In April, Nunley became just the fifth head coach of the Roanoke program since 1967 and follows the likes of RC Hall of Famers Charlie Moir (1967-73), Ed Green (1977-89) and Page Moir (1989-2016), the all-time winningest coach who stepped down in March after 428 victories.
