THOMASVILLE, Ga. – After a difficult early season schedule has seen the team play five of its first six games away from home, Thomas University men's basketball will host a pair of teams on Nov. 20-21 in the TU Classic.  The Night Hawks will face Voorhees on the 20th and Edward Waters on the 21st.  Webber International is the fourth team participating in the tournament.
 
Thomas will face Voorhees in the tournament opener in an effort to snap a two-game losing skid.  The Night Hawks nearly pulled off an impressive victory against NCAA Division I opponent FAMU, but the team's last gasp effort rimmed out and the Rattlers escaped with a narrow 70-68 win.
 
The contest undoubtedly gave Thomas momentum, however, and the team will attempt to turn that into a win against Voorhees.
 
Despite winning just 13 games last season, Voorhees is returning seven of the team's eight leading scorers, a fact that makes the Tigers a top candidate to win the A.I.I crown.
 
Desmond Louis averaged nearly 20 points per game in 2014 and is the team's top returning scorer, but he is joined by Jerrodd Brown (17 PPG) and Marcus Hogan (12 PPG) as players capable of carrying the team.  Brown garnered Second Team All-GCAC honors a season ago.
 
The Tigers have also recruited well recently, as the team has added assist-oriented guards Keyonis Phillips and Jeffrey Mack during the past offseason to boost the team's already strong back court.
 
In the second game of the TU Classic, the Night Hawks will face Edward Waters in an attempt to avenge a 78-60 loss to the Tigers that occurred on Nov. 14 in Jacksonville, Fla.
 
Edward Waters lost four games to ranked opponents last season, including twice to conference foe Talladega, by an average of 12.75 points per game.  The Tigers alternated wins and losses as much as was possible, as the team never had a winning streak or a losing streak longer than three games.  The team's season-long winning streak came at the optimal time, however, as Edward Waters won its final three regular season games against Tougaloo, Dillard, and Voorhees.  That streak was snapped when the Tigers lost 80-70 to Philander Smith in the first round of the GCAC tournament.
 
The only two seniors listed on the roster, Keith Williams and LaQuan Kirce, are top candidates to lead Edward Waters as the team attempts to duplicate its above .500 record from a season ago.
 
The TU Classic will not only provide the Night Hawks with quality minutes against talented competition, but it will also afford the team a much-needed hiatus from road play. 
 
After the tournament, the Night Hawks will travel to face NCAA Division I opponent Jacksonville University in another exhibition game (Nov. 23).
 
Tipoff versus Voorhees is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 20, while the Nov. 21st game versus Edward Waters is slated to begin at 3:00 p.m.
 
For up-to-date information on this game and other TU Athletics, visit http://www.TUNightHawks.com. Stay up-to-date with news, scores, photos, game summaries, play-by-play, and feature stories of your TU men's basketball team by following them via Twitter at @NightHawksMBKB.