The Long Beach State men’s basketball team will play in its only nonconference tournament of the regular season this weekend when it joins seven other teams in San Juan, Puerto Rico for the Puerto Rico Tip-Off.
The 49ers (1-3) will face Michigan on Thursday and either Florida State or Virginia Commonwealth on Friday. Sunday’s game will come against Georgetown, Charlotte, Northeastern or Kansas State.
Below is a look at each team participating in this year’s Puerto Rico Tip-Off.
MICHIGAN
• LAST YEAR: The Wolverines advanced to the NCAA tournament finals, where they lost to Louisville for the national championship. Point guard Trey Burke was drafted and now plays for the Utah Jazz.
• THIS YEAR: Key players Mitch McGary, Glenn Robinson III and Nik Stauskas are all back, but the 14th-ranked Wolverines look to be playing in the shadow of in-state rival Michigan State, which is ranked No. 1 in the country.
FLORIDA STATE
• LAST YEAR: The Seminoles finished sixth in the highly-competitive Atlantic Coast Conference and moved on to play in the National Invitational Tournament, where they lost in the first round to Louisiana Tech.
• THIS YEAR: Senior forward Okaro White is back and has scored 16 points per game on his way to leading Florida State to a 3-0 start. The Seminoles were picked to finish ninth in this year’s ACC preseason poll.
VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH
• LAST YEAR: Consistently one of the best mid-major teams in the country, the Rams had another successful 2012-13 campaign. They earned a five-seed in the NCAA tournament, where they lost to Michigan in the third round.
• THIS YEAR: No. 10 VCU has three of its top four scorers back, and after a win over then-No. 25 Virginia, it appears that the Rams are a threat to make a deep NCAA tournament run once again.
NORTHEASTERN
• LAST YEAR: Northeastern won the regular season Colonial Athletic Association title but lost to James Madison in the conference tournament. The Huskies ultimately lost to Alabama in the first round of the NIT.
• THIS YEAR: The Huskies are in a rebuilding year after losing their top two scorers from a year ago. They endured a pair of close losses before earning their first win on Saturday against Central Connecticut State.
GEORGETOWN
• LAST YEAR: The Hoyas earned a two-seed it the NCAA tournament but quickly became the first victim in Florida Gulf Coast’s bracket-busting run to the Sweet 16.
• THIS YEAR: Georgetown is recovering from the loss of Otto Porter, who was selected in this year’s NBA draft. The Hoyas recently went on the nation’s longest road trip to play Oregon on an army base in South Korea. They lost that game, 82-75, to the 19th-ranked Ducks.
CHARLOTTE
• LAST YEAR: The other 49ers finished eighth in the Atlantic 10 but still earned an NIT bid, where they lost to Providence in the first round.
• THIS YEAR: Conference realignment struck, and Charlotte is now in Conference USA. The 49ers also have a new look, as they are playing without their top two scorers from a year ago.
KANSAS STATE
• LAST YEAR: The Wildcats finished first in the regular-season Big 12 standings but were upset by LaSalle in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
• THIS YEAR: Kansas State lost its top two scorers from 2012-13 and was feeling the effects of that during a season-opening loss to Northern Colorado. The Wildcats have since manhandled LBSU, though, winning 71-58 on Sunday.