COLUMBUS, Miss. -  The week ahead promises to be an eventful one for the Mississippi University for Women men's basketball team. Before the Owls (3-2) play their first-ever conference game in program history next Thursday (Dec. 7), they will take on back-to-back NCAA Division I foes Alabama State University (Sun., Dec. 3/3 p.m.) and McNeese State University (Tue., Dec. 5/7 p.m.) on the road in what will be exhibition contests for the NCAA Division III The W team.
 
This will mark just the second and third times in the MUW program's brief history that it will take on a Division I opponent, all three exhibitions. The first was in 2022-23 – also under current Head Coach Dean Burrows – when the Owls went to Troy State University on November 10, 2022 (a 96-42 loss). Both Alabama State and McNeese State, as it was with Troy State, will count the games as official on their records.
 
"Winter Break can be interesting in the world of D3 basketball," Burrows explained. "Campuses are more or less shut down and your fellow students are heading home for a month plus. How the two coming exhibition games for us lined up couldn't have been better in my opinion. We are coming out of exams and what better way to get some work in before the SLIAC portion of our schedule kicks off later next week than by going out and getting work in against the likes of Alabama State and McNeese State? McNeese, I believe, has the potential to win their conference tourney and get their league's automatic bid, and win a game or so in the tourney. Look at their body of work to date. Alabama State has gone toe-to-toe with the likes of Ole Miss and Memphis, and are long and have two dynamic guards that anchor them." 
 
"Most players, and even coaches for that matter, grow up thinking/having the goal of being 'D1 caliber'," Burrows continued. "The opportunity to compete on those stages, against those teams, I believe, can benefit a program such as ours when it comes to being exposed, in ways, to the importance of what gets emphasized daily that goes into winning, while having the game, hopefully, slow down some for our guys for when we get into conference play. We will always try to recruit young men who crave and appreciate these types of opportunities and who won't run from them." 
 
After the exhibition bouts versus the DI Hornets and the Cowboys, MUW will get back to its regular season slate by traveling to Elsah, Ill., for its inaugural St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) game at Principia College.
 
Sunday's game in Montgomery, Ala., will also begin a string of seven consecutive road games to close out the calendar year 2023. The Owls return home on January 4 versus Blackburn College.
 
"Exams are over and the focus now turns to getting better on the court while growing closer off of it because it's just us now," Burrows summarized. "Being out on the road and creating moments and memories with and for our guys is what this is about. We have some fun opportunities scheduled and lined up for our program over the course of the next few weeks off the court, as well, that are tied into this road trip as we always keep in mind that they are indeed college students and never 'just athletes'."
 
Game links for all games can be found on The W Athletics website:  www.owlsathletics.com.