NORFOLK, Va. (ODUSports.com) – Old Dominion men's basketball head coach Jeff Jones announced that the Monarchs will commence the 2020-21 season by playing host to William & Mary on Saturday, Nov. 28. ODU will also welcome Virginia Wesleyan to Chartway Arena on Tuesday, Dec. 22. These two home non-conference opponents, along with the league schedule, comprise an 11-game home schedule at Chartway Arena.
The full non-conference schedule will be announced at a later date. Additional home games may be added. As part of new conference guidelines this season for basketball operations, all league games played on a Saturday will tipoff no later than 2:00 p.m. local time.
Conference USA will be making adjustments to its regular season conference scheduling and Championship formats for men's basketball, as approved by the league's Board of Directors. This season, the league will move to a new 18-game regular season format for conference play that focuses on the health and safety of student-athletes.
In this format, schools will play two games per visit at four select C-USA schools and host four select teams for a two-game series, while playing a rival opponent one-time home and away. The Monarchs open conference play with two games at FIU, beginning on Dec. 31.
The Monarchs, who return four of their five starters and 86% of their scoring from last season, will have nine home league games, while playing nine on the road. ODU will host Florida Atlantic (Jan. 7/9), North Texas (Jan. 21/23), Marshall (Feb. 4/6), Charlotte (Feb. 13) and Middle Tennessee (Feb. 25/27), while traveling to Florida International (Dec. 31/Jan. 2), Rice (Jan. 14/16), Western Kentucky (Jan. 28/30), Charlotte (Feb. 10) and UAB (Feb. 18/20).
Per the league's release, moving to this schedule format will significantly reduce the amount of travel during conference play, with the aim of minimizing the risks associated with COVID-19. Additionally, the final week of the regular season may be utilized to re-schedule any postponed games.
The 2021 C-USA Basketball Championship format will return to its familiar 12-team field that it has utilized for the past several seasons. The top 12 regular season finishers in conference play will qualify for the Championship.
The 2021 C-USA Basketball Championships presented by the Baylor, Scott & White Sports Performance Center at The Star are scheduled for March 10-13 in Frisco, Texas. This will be the fourth year that the event will be held in Frisco.
Based on state guidelines, ODU plans to allow a limited number of ticketed fans in Chartway Arena per game. Seating will be socially-distanced and all tickets will be provided via mobile delivery. Seat locations will be determined by the ODAF priority point system.
Priority for purchasing tickets will be provided starting with ODAF members and season ticket holders from last year. Seat holders from the 2019-2020 season will be contacted via email by ODAF and the ODU ticket office during the first week of November with further information and instructions for purchasing tickets, along with the safety protocol that will be implemented for games this season.
2020-21 Old Dominion Men's Basketball Non-Conference Home Schedule:
Saturday, Nov. 28: vs. William & Mary
Tuesday, Dec. 22: vs. Virginia Wesleyan
2020-21 Old Dominion Men's Basketball Conference Schedule:
Thursday, Dec. 31: at Florida International
Saturday, Jan. 2: at Florida International
Thursday, Jan. 7: vs. Florida Atlantic
Saturday, Jan. 9: vs. Florida Atlantic
Thursday, Jan. 14: at Rice
Saturday, Jan. 16: at Rice
Thursday, Jan. 21: vs. North Texas
Saturday, Jan. 23: vs. North Texas
Thursday, Jan. 28: at Western Kentucky
Saturday, Jan. 30: at Western Kentucky
Thursday, Feb. 4: vs. Marshall
Saturday, Feb. 6: vs. Marshall
Wednesday, Feb. 10: at Charlotte
Saturday, Feb. 13: vs. Charlotte
Thursday, Feb. 18: at UAB
Saturday, Feb. 20: at UAB
Thursday, Feb. 25: vs. Middle Tennessee
Saturday, Feb. 27: vs. Middle Tennessee
