Five Horizon League teams selected to play in O'Reilly ESPNU BracketBusters TV games
Feb. 4, 2008 Indianapolis, Ind. --
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For the second consecutive year, League-leader Butler University (19-2, 8-2 Horizon League) takes the spotlight in one of the day's marquee match-ups as Missouri Valley Conference front-runner Drake University (20-1, 11-0 Missouri Valley) visits Hinkle Fieldhouse on Saturday, Feb. 23. Butler, which appears in the television package for the third year in a row, fell 68-64 to MVC entry Southern Illinois University in last year's event.
This year's BracketBusters event includes 14 games slated for broadcast to a national audience. Coverage features the addition of a game on ESPN Classic. Six games will be televised on ESPN2, while ESPNU will televise five BracketBusters games and ESPN360.com will offer two and also will simulcast ESPN2's six telecasts. For the first time, ESPN Classic (one game) is included in the package.
Four League teams compete in televised games on Saturday. In addition to the Butler/Drake match-up, the slate features Cleveland State University (14-9, 7-4 Horizon League) hosting Marist University (14-8, 8-3 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference), Valparaiso University (14-7, 5-4 Horizon League) hosting Miami [Ohio]
University (10-10, 4-4 Mid-American Conference) and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (12-10, 7-5 Horizon League) traveling to Bradley University (13-10, 6-5 Missouri Valley).
The weekend concludes Sunday, with the third Horizon League-MVC showdown as Wright State University (14-6, 7-4 Horizon League) visits Illinois State University (16-6, 8-3 MVC). Specific game times and networks will be announced by ESPN next week.
Butler has won 11 of its last 12 games and starts the week ranked 12th in the nation according to the Associated Press and 12th by ESPN/USA Today. The Bulldogs won the title of the prestigious Great Alaska Shootout in November and attempt to duplicate their success from last season, when Butler won a League-record 29 games and reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. Senior guard Mike Green (15.1, points, six rebounds and a League-best 4.86 assists per game) is a semifinalist for both the Wooden Award and the Naismith Award, and leads a squad that also includes freshman forward Matt Howard (14 points and six rebounds per game). Senior forward Pete Campbell contributes 11.1 points per game on 47 percent shooting from three-point range.
Drake owns a school-record 19-game winning streak and sits atop the MVC standings, starting the week ranked 23rd in both national polls. The Bulldogs entered the top 25 for the first time in 33 years---since the final poll of the 1974-75 campaign---last month. Sophomore guard Josh Young paces Drake in scoring, using his 47.7 percent touch from three-point range to compile a 16.1 points-per-game scoring pace, while junior forward Jonathan Cox adds 11.7 points and 8.8 rebounds per outing.
Cleveland State won its first seven League games and already has surpassed last year's totals for victories both overall (10-21) and in the League (3-13). Junior guard Cedric Jackson has sparked the Vikings, as the transfer from St. John's University leads the circuit in steals (2.61 per game) and ranks second in assists (4.81 per outing) and ninth in scoring (14.4 points per game) Junior forward J'Nathan Bullock (13.4 points and 6.2 rebounds per game) bolsters the CSU front line that also includes junior center George Tandy (4.8 rebounds and 1.55 blocked shots per appearance).
Marist has won eight of its last ten games and limits the opposition to 40.1 percent shooting from the field. The Red Foxes feature a balanced scoring attack with five players averaging at least eight points per contest. Freshman guard Jay Gavin and senior guard Louie McCroskey lead that group at 13.3 and 12.4 points per game, respectively.
League newcomer Valparaiso features five players averaging at least nine points per game for veteran coach Homer Drew, led by senior guards Shawn Huff and Jarryd Loyd at 11.6 points per game apiece. Huff and sophomore backliner Samuel Haanpää rate among the national leaders in three-point percentage at 45.2 and 44.9 percent, respectively, with the Crusaders hitting a League-best 9.33 treys per contest.
Miami has won four of its last five games, holding each of its last five opponents under 60 points to lower its season yield to 60.2 points per contest. Senior center Tim Pollitz anchors the front court for the RedHawks, averaging 16.2 points and seven rebounds per game, with junior guard Michael Bramos adding 15.1 points per contest.
Milwaukee has rebounded from a slow start to move into the top half of the League standings, and boasts one of the League's most productive performers in senior forward Paige Paulsen. The 6-7 forward ranks among the League's leaders in scoring (sixth at 14.9 points per game) and rebounding (fifth with 6.6 per contest), while senior forward Marcus Skinner (6.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game) shares the League lead with five double-doubles this season.
Bradley boasts a high-powered perimeter attack, averaging more than nine three-pointers per game. Senior guard Jeremy Crouch ranks among the nation's most prolific shooters behind the arc, averaging 13.9 points per game to edge fellow senior Daniel Ruffin (13.8) for team scoring honors.
Defending League champion Wright State has won five consecutive games by a combined 17 points. Sophomore guards Vaughn Duggins (14.7 points per outing) and Todd Brown (14.0) comprise the top-scoring backcourt in the League. Their play has enabled WSU to post a 12-4 record in games decided by nine points or fewer this season. Up front, senior forward Jordan Pleiman leads the circuit in field-goal percentage (.609) with fellow senior Scottie Wilson adding seven rebounds per contest.
Illinois State has won 11 of its last 14 games and features one of the nation's stingiest defenses---allowing only 59.8 points per game while holding oppooents to 39.9 percent shooting from the field. The Redbirds are led by sophomore guard Osiris Eldridge (15.2 points per game), while senior guard Boo Richardson boasts a 2.90 assist-to-turnover ratio.
The Horizon League and Missouri Valley Conference boast the most BracketBusters selections with five apiece, followed the Mid-American Conference (four). The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and Western Athletic Conference each have three teams among the 28 selected for national exposure.
The Horizon League produced the nation's best record in the event last year, posting a 7-2 ledger including Wright State's 77-62 victory over California State University at Fullerton, which aired on ESPN360, and Butler's loss to Southern Illinois. In other games involving Horizon League teams, Cleveland State defeated California State University at Northridge, 85-76; the University of Detroit Mercy outlasted the University at Buffalo, 92-84 in overtime; the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay slipped past Northern Illinois University, 82-76, Loyola University Chicago raced past Eastern Illinois University, 66-43; the University of Illinois at Chicago defeated Central Michigan University, 84-62; and Youngstown State University edged Eastern Kentucky University, 66-61, while Milwaukee fell at Drake, 84-76.
In its inaugural year in 2003, two of the three participating Horizon League teams won their BracketBusters games as Detroit won at the University of California-Santa Barbara 75-59 and UIC defeated Bowling Green State University 83-72 at home, while Milwaukee lost at Southern Illinois 66-64. In 2004, UWM's Panthers lost at home to Manhattan College 83-76 in the League's lone nationally televised game. In addition to UWM's win at Hawai'i in 2005, Green Bay fell to Illinois State at home 79-69. UWM also appeared on the national scene in BracketBusters action in 2005, losing to Missouri State University, 72-63.
Now in its sixth year, the event's success has produced a steadily-increasing field of schools. This year's BracketBusters includes 100 teams from 16 conferences. BracketBusters, named because of the success of the teams in NCAA Tournament play in recent years, will provide the 28 televised teams an opportunity to play other top non-conference opponents three weeks prior to Selection Sunday (March 16). The 72 teams not selected for the televised contests will compete against each other during the weekend of Feb. 22-24. Those match-ups will be announced Monday evening.
This year's BracketBusters event features teams with 74 appearances in the last five NCAA Tournaments, including a team in the Final Four (George Mason, 2006) and seven Sweet Sixteen squads. The Horizon League boasts three of those Sweet 16 entries in Butler (2003 and 2007) and Milwaukee (2005), with Southern Illinois (2007), Bradley and Wichita State (2006), Nevada (2004) also in that group.
Sixth Annual O'Reilly ESPNU BracketBusters TV Games:
Friday, February 22
UC Santa Barbara (16-5, 5-3 Big West) at Utah State (16-6, 6-1 Western Athletic) -- Logan, Utah
Davidson (15-6, 13-0 Southern) at Winthrop (14-8, 5-2 Big South) -- Rock Hill, S.C.
Saturday, February 23
Drake (20-1, 11-0 Missouri Valley) at Butler (19-2, 8-2 Horizon League) -- Indianapolis, Ind.
Marist (14-8, 8-3 Metro Atlantic Athletic) at Cleveland State (14-9, 7-4 Horizon League) -- Cleveland, Ohio
Miami [Ohio] (10-10, 4-4 Mid-American) at Valparaiso (14-7, 5-4 Horizon League) -- Valparaiso, Ind.
Milwaukee (12-10, 7-5 Horizon League) at Bradley (13-10, 6-5 Missouri Valley) -- Peoria, Ill.
Creighton (15-6, 6-5 Missouri Valley) at Oral Roberts (15-5, 10-0 Summit League) --Tulsa, Okla.
George Mason (16-6, 8-3 Colonial) at Ohio (15-6, 6-2 Mid-American) -- Athens, Ohio
Kent State (17-5, 6-2 Mid-American) at Saint Mary's [Calif.] (18-3, 5-1 West Coast) -- Moraga, Calif.
Nevada (13-8, 5-3 Western Athletic) at Southern Illinois (11-11, 6-5 Missouri Valley) -- Carbondale, Ill.
Rider (17-6, 10-2 Metro Atlantic Athletic) at Cal State Northridge (15-5, 7-1 Big West) -- Northridge, Calif.
Siena (13-8, 8-3 Metro Atlantic Athletic) at Boise State (16-5, 7-2 Western Athletic) -- Boise, Idaho
Virginia Commonwealth (16-5, 9-2 Colonial) at Akron (16-5, 6-2 Mid-American) -- Akron, Ohio
Sunday, February 24
Wright State (14-6, 7-4 Horizon League) at Illinois State (16-6, 8-3 Missouri Valley) -- Normal, Ill.
Bold italics indicate games involving Horizon League teams
Note: Game times and networks will be announced next week.
