Johnson City, Tenn. -- The East Tennessee State University athletic department today announced the 2001-02 men's basketball schedule. The dates are subject to change. The 2001 Southern Conference North Division Champion begins the season with 11 non-conference contests before opening its Southern Conference slate on January 2 against Appalachian State in Memorial Center. ETSU plays four of its first six SoCon games on the road. After opening the season with a home contest against Guilford College, the Bucs face five challenging road contests, including games at Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth, South Carolina, UNC Asheville and Coastal Carolina. Following the tough road swing, ETSU returns home for dates with Radford and James Madison. Home games against Shendandoah and University of Virginia-Wise preclude the final non-conference game, against Vanderbilt in Nashville on December 22. The Bucs will entertain a demanding Conference slate in Memorial Center. In addition to the North Division foes, ETSU hosts Wofford, Chattanooga and Georgia Southern. "This season's schedule is very challenging," head coach Ed DeChellis said. "The late November and early December schedule features five straight road games. As our program has improved, it is increasingly harder to secure home games. The Southern Conference schedule is difficult with four of our first six games on the road."