COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- The University of Maryland men's basketball team will open its challenging 2005-06 regular-season schedule with defending Northeast Conference champion Fairleigh Dickinson on Friday, Nov. 18 at Comcast Center, one of at least 15 matchups with opponents that made the postseason a year ago.

The matchup will be the first of 16 regular-season home games and two exhibition games to be played at Comcast Center, a site that hosted a school-record 299,391 fans at Terrapin basketball games last year.

Maryland will play 14 times on national television in 2005-06, in games that will be broadcast over ESPN, ESPN2, CBS or Fox Sports Net. That list includes a Saturday afternoon non-conference game at Temple on ESPN2 and a Saturday afternoon matchup with Duke at Comcast Center on CBS.

"The schedule, beginning with the Maui Invitational through the always-tough ACC regular season, will be difficult," said head coach Gary Williams, who will coach his alma mater for the 17th season. "However at Maryland, we enjoy the challenge of competing with the top teams in the country. It should be an exciting year for our fans."

Highlights of the schedule include a three-game trip to the Maui Invitational, as Maryland is part of one of the best fields ever in the nationally-televised event. Former national champions Kansas, Arizona, Connecticut, Michigan State, Arkansas and Maryland are in the field, with the Terps facing Gonzaga in the first round on Nov. 21.

Maryland will play at least 15 teams that made postseason appearances last season, including 11 that reached the NCAA Tournament. Five NCAA teams are among the eight-team field in the Maui Invitational, including Maryland's first-round opponent Gonzaga and a potential semifinal matchup with Michigan State.

Another highlight comes with a six-game homestand through most of December into the first week of January, during which Maryland will open its Atlantic Coast Conference schedule by hosting the newest member of the league, Boston College, on national TV on Sunday, Dec. 11.

Maryland plays a pair of exhibition games at home, facing a team from the Basketball Travelers group on Saturday, Nov. 5 and NCAA Division II power Virginia Union on Friday, Nov. 11. Following the season-opener with Farleigh Dickinson, the Terps head to Maui for three games.

Also topping the non-conference schedule are a home game with Minnesota on Nov. 30 in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge, a matchup with George Washington at MCI Center in the BB&T Classic on Dec. 5, a home game with local rival American University on Dec. 23 and the nationally-televised game at Temple on Jan. 28.

Maryland also plays Nicholls State, Western Carolina, Delaware State, VMI and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on its non-conference home schedule.

In its 16-game ACC schedule, Maryland will have home-and-home matchups with its travel partners Virginia and Duke, as well as defending NCAA national champion North Carolina, Georgia Tech and Miami. In conference games at home, the Terps face Boston College, Wake Forest, Virginia Tech once each during the regular season. Maryland will play their only regular-season meetings against ACC foes Florida State, NC State and Clemson on the road.

The 2005-06 Terrapins return five starters from last year's team, which went 19-13 overall and earned a berth in the semifinals of the Postseason NIT. Maryland will be led by seniors Nik Caner-Medley, Chris McCray and Travis Garrison this year.

2005-06 UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND MEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE

Sat., Nov. 5	BASKETBALL TRAVELERS (Exhibition), 2:00	

Fri., Nov. 11	VIRGINIA UNION (Exhibition), 8:00



Fri., Nov. 18	FAIRLEIGH DICKINSON, 9:00 

Mon., Nov. 21	vs. Gonzaga (Maui Invitational), 5:00

Tue., Nov. 22	vs. Michigan St./Chaminade (Maui Invit.), TBA

Wed., Nov. 23	vs. TBA (Maui Invitational), TBA 

Sun., Nov. 27	NICHOLLS STATE, 2:00

Wed., Nov. 30	MINNESOTA (ACC/Big Ten Challenge), 7:30	

Mon., Dec. 5	vs. George Washington (BB&T Classic), 9:00 

Wed., Dec. 7	WESTERN CAROLINA, 8:00

Sun., Dec. 11	BOSTON COLLEGE*, 7:30

Fri., Dec. 23	AMERICAN, 8:00

Wed., Dec. 28	DELAWARE STATE, 8:00

Sat., Dec. 31	VMI, 2:00	

Wed., Jan. 4	TEXAS A&M-CORPUS CHRISTI, 8:00

Sat., Jan. 7	at Miami*, 12:00

Wed., Jan. 11	at Duke*, 9:00

Sun., Jan. 15	WAKE FOREST*, 7:30

Sat., Jan. 21	VIRGINIA TECH*, 8:00

Wed., Jan. 25	at Georgia Tech*, 7:00

Sat., Jan. 28	at Temple, 12:00

Thu., Feb. 2	NORTH CAROLINA*, 7:00

Sun., Feb. 5	at NC State*, 2:00	

Tue., Feb. 7	VIRGINIA*, 7:00

Sat., Feb. 11	DUKE*, 1:00

Tue., Feb. 14	at Clemson*, 8:00

Sat., Feb. 18	GEORGIA TECH*, 4:00	

Wed., Feb. 22	at Florida State*, 9:00

Sun., Feb. 26	at North Carolina*, 5:30 

Wed., Mar. 1	MIAMI*, 9:00

Sun., Mar. 5	at Virginia*, 3:30

March 9-12	at ACC Tournament	

March 16-19	NCAA First & Second Rounds

	   (Sites - Greensboro, Jacksonville, Salt Lake City, San Diego, Dayton, Philadelphia, Dallas, Detroit)

March 23-26	NCAA Regionals

	   (Sites - Atlanta, Oakland, Washington, Minneapolis)

April 1 & 3	NCAA Final Four	Indianapolis, Ind. (RCA Dome)	

* - Atlantic Coast Conference game

All times and dates subject to change; All times Eastern; Home games played at Comcast Center (17,950) listed in BOLD