By Jon Cooper

The fourth annual 76 Classic features a powerful eight-team field with five schools that played in the postseason last year. Three of them—Murray State, Oklahoma State and UNLV—competed in the NCAAs, while Virginia Tech and Tulsa, who played in the NIT, were NCAA Tournament-worthy, going a combined 48-22. Cal State Northridge, DePaul and Stanford round out the field and are determined to make a statement. The result should be four days of the kind of high-intensity basketball that has become the calling card of this event.

» See 2010 Matchups

CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE
Nickname: Matadors
Conference: Big West
Location: Northridge, Calif.
2009-10 Record: 11-21, 6-10

Cal State Northridge dropped eight of its final 10 games and finished eighth in the nine-team Big West. Yet they were only two games out of third place. The Matadors lose six seniors from last year's squad, but return 6-7 senior forward Lenny Daniel, who led the club in scoring 18 times, was leading rebounder (7.8 rpg) and set a school record with 44 blocked shots. Redshirt junior Vinnie McGhee, the team's leading three-point shooter (53 three-point FGMs), also returns.

DEPAUL
Nickname: Blue Demons
Conference: BIG EAST
Location: Chicago
2009-10 Record: 8-23, 1-17

DePaul hired former Clemson coach Oliver Purnell to rebuild a program that was 8-23 (1-17, last in the Big East). Purnell has his work cut out for him; Will Walker and Mac Koshwal, who made nearly 53 percent of the conference-low 61.4 points per game, are gone. Junior Mike Stovall (7.0 ppg) is the leading returning scorer. He's joined by Eric Wallace, the team's second-leading rebounder (4.9 rpg) and shot-blocker (24), and Jeremiah Kelly, their second-leading three-point shooter (27 3-point FGMs). DePaul lost its final 13 games, but 11 were by 10 points or fewer. Purnell knows the 76 Classic, having coached Clemson to a 2-1 mark in last year's event, including a 70-69 win over No. 10 Butler.

MURRAY STATE
Nickname: Racers
Conference: Ohio Valley
Location: Murray, Ky.
2009-10 Record (postseason result): 31-5, 17-1 (NCAA 2nd Round)

Murray State's 31 wins last season were a school single-season record and fifth-most in the country, while their 17 wins in Ohio Valley Conference play tied the school high. The Racers also set a school record with a 17-game winning streak, passing the previous mark set in the 1930s. Billy Kennedy returns eight of his top 10 players from last season, including leading scorers and three-point shooters B.J. Jenkins, who led the OVC with 64 steals (10.6 ppg, .379, 67 three-point FGMs); and Isaiah Canaan (10.4, .482, 54). Inside presence Ivan Aska (10.3 ppg, 4.8 rpg) and point guard Isacc Miles, fifth in the OVC with 132 assists, also return.

OKLAHOMA STATE
Nickname: Cowboys
Conference: Big 12
Location: Stillwater, Okla.
2009-10 Record (postseason result): 22-11, 9-7 (NCAA 1st Round)

Oklahoma State took and made a bunch of three-pointers last year (274 of 784, both Big 12-highs). While they ranked ninth in three-point shooting percentage (.349), Travis Ford’s up-tempo, long-range strategy proved successful, as OSU earned its second straight 20-win season and NCAA Tournament bid. The Cowboys lose Big 12 Player of the Year James Anderson and second-gun Obi Muonelo, but junior guard Keiton Page, whose 2.24 three-point field goals per game and .383 three-point shooting were seventh and 10th in the conference, is back. Also returning is senior forward Marshall Moses (8.1 rpg, seventh) one of the conference's best rebounders.

STANFORD
Nickname: Cardinal
Conference: Pac-10
Location: Stanford, Calif.
2009-10 Record: 14-18, 7-11

Stanford's upset of Arizona State in last season's Pac-10 Tournament gives the Cardinal confidence heading into 2010-11, despite losing two of its three top scorers, including Pac-10 scoring leader and second-leading rebounder Landry Fields. Johnny Dawkins' squad returns its starting back court of juniors Jeremy Green, who was sixth in the conference in scoring (16.6 ppg) and paced the league in three-point shooting (2.91 per game, 93 three-point FGMs), and point guard Jarrett Mann (4.3 apg). The scrappy Cardinal were only 7-11 in games decided by 10 points or fewer, but took then-No. 5 Kentucky to overtime and dropped a one-point decision to 76 Classic competitor Oklahoma State.

TULSA
Nickname: Golden Hurricane
Conference: Conference USA
Location: Tulsa, Okla.
2009-10 Record (postseason result): 23-12, 10-6 (NIT 1st Round)

Coming off its unprecedented fourth consecutive 20-win season and third straight postseason appearance, Doug Wojcik's Golden Hurricane look to continue their golden days. They'll do so without three of last season's starters, including leading scorer and rebounder Jerome Jordan, and second-leading scorer Ben Uzoh. Junior guard Justin Hurtt (14.5 ppg, and .811 free throw shooter, fourth in C-USA) will carry much of the scoring load, while junior forward Joe Richard will crash the boards. Steven Idlet, a 6-10 redshirt junior (and C-USA Sixth Man of the Year) should play a bigger role. Tulsa held 10 teams to 50 points or less last season and blocked 195 shots, second in the conference and second-most in school history.

UNLV
Nickname: Runnin' Rebels
Conference: Mountain West
Location: Las Vegas
2009-10 Record (postseason result): 25-9, 11-5 (NCAA 1st Round)

UNLV made "the Big Dance" for the third time in four seasons after advancing to the championship game of the Mountain West Conference Tournament. They'll try to once again establish early-season momentum in an ESPN preseason tournament, as last season they were finalists in the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic. Lon Kruger's Runnin' Rebels led the MWC in assists (16.2 apg), field goal defense (.399) and turnover margin (+4.12). Carrying Kruger’s load will be swingman Chace Stanback (10.7 ppg), who was top-10 in steals and blocks, and Oscar Bellfield, who led the MWC in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.5) and was second in assists (4.8 apg). Anthony Marshall also was among steal leaders (1.3 spg, eighth) for UNLV, which was second in the conference with 7.8 thefts per game.

VIRGINIA TECH
Nickname: Hokies
Conference: ACC
Location: Blacksburg, Va.
2009-10 Record (postseason result): 25-9, 10-6 (NIT Quarterfinals)

Arguably the best team left out of last season's NCAA Tournament, Virginia Tech has something to prove and is happy to use the national stage at the 76 Classic to do so. The Hokies also are happy about the return of All-ACC First-Team forward Malcolm Delaney, the defending conference scoring champion (20.2 ppg). The return of Delaney means Seth Greenberg's club brings back its entire starting lineup from last season's team, which tied for third in the ACC and joined Duke as one of two schools to feature three of the conference's top 20 scorers—Delaney, Dorenzo Hudson (15.5 ppg, 10th) and Jeff Allen (12.0, 18th).

University of Maryland alum Jon Cooper is an Atlanta-based freelance writer.