Jan. 31, 2008

RICHARDSON, Texas - Tickets are now available for the Lone Star Conference Basketball Championship to be played in Bartlesville, Okla., for the first time in 2008.

The tournament will feature eight men's and eight women's teams and is scheduled for a thrilling five-day run from March 5-9 at Bartlesville's Bruin Field House.

Reserve tickets to join your favorite team on "The Road to Bartlesville" at http://www.bartlesvillecommunitycenter.com/ezbuytix.html or call the Bartlesville Community Center Ticket Office toll-free at 800-618-2787 or locally at 918-336-2787. Tickets can be purchased individually for each of the eight sessions or in all-session ticket booklets. Single-session tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students. All-session ticket booklets can be purchased at $50 for adults and $25 for students. College students must present valid identification at the Bruin Field House ticket gate to purchase student tickets.

Tournament action starts with men's first-round games on Wednesday, March 5, while women's first-round action begins Thursday, March 6. Men's semifinals will be played Friday, March 7. On Saturday, March 8, fans can see women's semifinals played in the afternoon and the men's championship that night. The festivities conclude Sunday afternoon, March 9, with the women's championship game.

The LSC is using a predetermined tournament site for the first time in more than a decade, and Bartlesville's Bruin Field House is the first host facility in a truly neutral location. The 2008 tournament marks the first of a three-year stay in Bartlesville as the Bartlesville Sports Commission has agreed to serve as the host agency through 2010.

Bruin Field House, an award-winning $5.5 million facility that opened in December 2006, will serve as home to the LSC Basketball Championship for the next three years. The arena seats about 2,300 fans, including more than 1,100 chairback seats. The facility features a spacious two-story lobby and an innovative crowd control design, in which the lower level is accessible to players, coaches and authorized personnel only while spectators enter the facility from above. Fans and participants alike will enjoy the arena's state-of-the-art auxiliary areas: concessions, merchandising and hospitality areas that overlook the playing court, locker rooms equipped with game clocks and film theaters, plus a spacious training room with all the latest treatment capabilities.

One of the premier conferences in NCAA Division II basketball, the LSC consists of 15 member institutions including eight in Texas, six in Oklahoma and one in New Mexico. In basketball, the membership is split into North and South Divisions. North Division members are Cameron, Central Oklahoma, East Central, Northeastern State, Southeastern Oklahoma, Southwestern Oklahoma and Texas A&M-Commerce. South Division members are Abilene Christian, Angelo State, Eastern New Mexico, Midwestern State, Tarleton State, Texas A&M-Kingsville, Texas Woman's and West Texas A&M.

For more information on "The Road to Bartlesville" please visit www.lonestarconference.org.