Column: Showcase time for the league during BracketBusters
Dan Cusack / Columnist
Issue date: 2/4/09 Section: Sports
The ESPN family of networks' made-for-sub-par-TV event, the ESPNU BracketBusters games, were announced on Monday night on ESPNU.
The Eastern men' basketball team will play Western Michigan on Feb. 21 in Kalamazoo, Mich., and in return, will receive a home game for next year's set of games.
The games are selected from a pool of 102 teams from 17 conferences with half of them designated as away teams and half home teams.
The teams are then put together with 12 of the games airing nationally on ESPN 2, ESPNU and ESPN 360.
This is the fourth time the Panthers have played in the BracketBuster games and Eastern got a pretty good match-up.
Most of the Ohio Valley Conference match-ups, including Eastern's, will be against the Mid-American Conference as eight of the 10 match-ups will be between these two conferences.
On the surface, Western Michigan (7-13, 4-3 MAC) do not look too tough, but the Broncos are good in their conference and will pose a threat for the Panthers.
This will be the third MAC team the Panthers will play this season (10-11, 7-4 OVC).
Eastern has lost to Bowling Green and Ball State.
But the Broncos have also lost Ball State and a common opponent, Indiana-Purdue-Indianapolis. All 10 Ohio Valley Conference teams will be in action in the BracketBuster games, although none will be played on the ESPN's family of networks.
Austin Peay (12-9) at Drake (14-9) will one of the showcase games for the OVC.
The Govs have the conference's second best record at 8-3 in conference and have competed in the most BracketBuster games. They will take on a Bulldog team that has been average in the Missouri Valley Conference with a record of 5-6, but overall is still 10-4. Drake won its conference a year ago and was a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
The two top teams in the conference were paired together as Morehead State (13-10, 9-2 in OVC) will take on the MAC's top team in the West Division, Ball State (10-9, 5-2 MAC). Ball State has played two OVC teams so far this season, including a 72-59 win earlier this season against Eastern Illinois, and a 71-58 loss against Eastern Kentucky. The OVC will not play any televised games this season, but this is still an opportunity for the conference to showcase itself nationally.
These games come at a weird time as teams are battling for a conference championship, but have to take time out of their schedule for a glorified exhibition.
Although the OVC will primarily be playing the MAC, a conference similar in size and nationally recognition, a number of favorable match-ups the OVC's way it could be a good Feb. 21 for the OVC.
Breakout:
ESPNU BracketBuster games
^ = Mid-American Conference games
* = Ohio Valley Conference games
*Austin Peay at Drake
*Eastern Illinois @ ^Western Michigan
^Ohio @ *Eastern Kentucky
*Jacksonville State @ Georgia Southern
*Morehead State @ ^Kent State
Louisiana Tech @ *Murray State
Northern Illinois @ *Southeast Missouri
Detroit @ *Tennessee State
*Tennessee Tech @ ^Ball State
Missouri State @ *Tennessee Martin
Dan Cusack can be reached at 581-7944 or at dscusack@eiu.edu.
The Eastern men' basketball team will play Western Michigan on Feb. 21 in Kalamazoo, Mich., and in return, will receive a home game for next year's set of games.
The games are selected from a pool of 102 teams from 17 conferences with half of them designated as away teams and half home teams.
The teams are then put together with 12 of the games airing nationally on ESPN 2, ESPNU and ESPN 360.
This is the fourth time the Panthers have played in the BracketBuster games and Eastern got a pretty good match-up.
Most of the Ohio Valley Conference match-ups, including Eastern's, will be against the Mid-American Conference as eight of the 10 match-ups will be between these two conferences.
On the surface, Western Michigan (7-13, 4-3 MAC) do not look too tough, but the Broncos are good in their conference and will pose a threat for the Panthers.
This will be the third MAC team the Panthers will play this season (10-11, 7-4 OVC).
Eastern has lost to Bowling Green and Ball State.
But the Broncos have also lost Ball State and a common opponent, Indiana-Purdue-Indianapolis. All 10 Ohio Valley Conference teams will be in action in the BracketBuster games, although none will be played on the ESPN's family of networks.
Austin Peay (12-9) at Drake (14-9) will one of the showcase games for the OVC.
The Govs have the conference's second best record at 8-3 in conference and have competed in the most BracketBuster games. They will take on a Bulldog team that has been average in the Missouri Valley Conference with a record of 5-6, but overall is still 10-4. Drake won its conference a year ago and was a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
The two top teams in the conference were paired together as Morehead State (13-10, 9-2 in OVC) will take on the MAC's top team in the West Division, Ball State (10-9, 5-2 MAC). Ball State has played two OVC teams so far this season, including a 72-59 win earlier this season against Eastern Illinois, and a 71-58 loss against Eastern Kentucky. The OVC will not play any televised games this season, but this is still an opportunity for the conference to showcase itself nationally.
These games come at a weird time as teams are battling for a conference championship, but have to take time out of their schedule for a glorified exhibition.
Although the OVC will primarily be playing the MAC, a conference similar in size and nationally recognition, a number of favorable match-ups the OVC's way it could be a good Feb. 21 for the OVC.
Breakout:
ESPNU BracketBuster games
^ = Mid-American Conference games
* = Ohio Valley Conference games
*Austin Peay at Drake
*Eastern Illinois @ ^Western Michigan
^Ohio @ *Eastern Kentucky
*Jacksonville State @ Georgia Southern
*Morehead State @ ^Kent State
Louisiana Tech @ *Murray State
Northern Illinois @ *Southeast Missouri
Detroit @ *Tennessee State
*Tennessee Tech @ ^Ball State
Missouri State @ *Tennessee Martin
Dan Cusack can be reached at 581-7944 or at dscusack@eiu.edu.
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