Wyoming, Saint Mary’s to Meet in Phoenix in December

LARAMIE -- Wyoming has added another marquee non-conference basketball game to its 2022-23 schedule.

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced Tuesday the Cowboys will take on Saint Mary's in the fourth annual Jerry Colangelo Classic inside the Footprint Center in Phoenix.

The game is scheduled for Dec. 21.

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SMC finished the 2021-22 campaign with a 26-8 overall record and finished second in the West Coast Conference behind the NCAA Tournament's No. 1 overall seed, Gonzaga.

The Pokes and Gaels nearly met last March in that very same tournament.

If UW could've knocked off Indiana in the First Four game in Dayton, it would've played Saint Mary's in Portland, Oregon. Instead, the Hoosiers won 66-58 inside UD Arena before falling to the Gaels, 82-53. SMC would lose to UCLA in the second round, 72-56.

Wyoming leads the overall series against the Gaels, 2-1. The last meeting between the two schools came during the 1956-57 season.

"We are excited to play in the Basketball Hall of Fame's Jerry Colangelo Classic,” UW head coach Jeff Linder said in a school press release. "The Basketball Hall of Fame’s Jerry Colangelo Classic is a tremendous showcase of college basketball. It will be a great opportunity for our players and fans."

This nine-team showcase will tipoff on Dec. 10 when Grand Canyon takes on North Texas. Mountain West foe San Diego State will play Saint Mary's that night.

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Wyoming will kick off the second round of games 11 days later against the Gaels. The Pokes' Border War rival, Colorado State, will battle Max Agbonkpolo and Ethan Anderson's former squad, USC. The nightcap will feature UC Santa Barbara and Appalachian State.

Tip times will be announced at a later date.

What else do we know about the Cowboys non-conference slate?

UW will face Howard Nov. 18 in the opening round of the 2022 U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam. Tip time is scheduled for 1:15 p.m. Mountain Time. The winner of the first game in St. Thomas will face the winner of the Drake-Buffalo game in the second round.

Linder's squad will also play a neutral site game Dec. 17 against the Dayton Flyers inside Chicago's United Center.

Grand Canyon will also visit Laramie this season as part of a home-and-home with the Antelopes. UW knocked off GCU 68-61 last November in Phoenix.

UW's schedule so far:

Nov. 18 vs. Howard (Virgin Islands)

Dec. 17 vs. Dayton (Chicago)

Dec. 21 vs. Saint Mary's (Phoenix)

TBA vs. Grand Canyon (Laramie)

Tickets for the 2022 Jerry Colangelo Classic will go on pre-sale on Monday, July 25 and will be on-sale on Tuesday, July 26. Tickets will be available to purchase online at ticketmaster.com and in-person at the Footprint Center Box Office. Game times and television broadcast details will be released at a later date. For more information, please visit hoophall.com.

* A University of Wyoming press release contributed to this report