Cougars to Play in Chicago Invitational

PROVO, Utah – The field for the 2011 Chicago Invitational Challenge has been announced and will include BYU, Big Ten power Wisconsin, Bradley, Nevada, UMKC, Longwood, Prairie View A&M and Wofford. The Invitational will be held at the Sears Centre Arena on Nov. 25 and 26.

BYU advanced to the Sweet 16 and set a program record with 32 wins last season. The Cougars will be led in 2011-12 by seniors Noah Hartsock (8.6 ppg and 5.9 rpg) and Charles Abouo (7.2 ppg and 4.8 rpg). In all the Cougars return seven letterwinners and welcome the addition of several talented recruits.

Wisconsin (25-9) returns a pair of starters including All-America senior guard Jordan Taylor (18.1 ppg). Alongside Taylor will be sophomore guard Josh Gasser (5.9 ppg) as well as key reserve junior forward Mike Bruesewitz (4.6 ppg).

Bradley (12-20) is under the direction of first-year head coach Geno Ford, the Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year the last two seasons at Kent State. The Braves return three starters: junior guard Dyricus Simms-Edwards (10.5 ppg), senior forward Will Egolf (8.0 ppg) and sophomore center Jordan Prosser (5.3 ppg).

Nevada (13-19) returns all five starters including the backcourt of junior guard Malik Story (14.5 ppg) and sophomore guard Deonte Burton (13.7 ppg) and two senior forward standouts Dario Hunt (12.4 ppg) and Olek Czyz (12.3 ppg).

Rounds one and two will be played at Wisconsin, BYU, Bradley and Nevada with the final rounds during Thanksgiving, Nov. 25-26 at the Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates. Tickets are available at the ticket offices of the participating schools and at the Sears Centre Arena Box Office, online at www.searscentre.com or by calling 1-888-SEARSTIX (732-7784. Tournament passes – good for all eight games – are $92 for floor seats and lower bowl and $62 for upper bowl. Groups of 10 or more can save by calling Brad at (847) 647-2368 or emailing brad.cranston@searscentre.com.

Sears Centre Arena is an 11,000-seat multi purpose family entertainment, cultural and sports arena located in Hoffman Estates’ Prairie Stone Business Park. The Sears Centre Arena, which opened in 2006, is designed to accommodate a variety of events including concerts, family shows and sporting events. For more information regarding the Sears Centre Arena and upcoming events, please visit the arena’s website at www.searscentre.com.