 ESPN has released the complete list of games involving teams in this year's O'Reilly Auto Parts ESPNU Bracketbuster event and four teams from the Mid-American Conference are among those chosen to have their games nationally televised.
Two MAC squads will host televised Bracketbuster games with all four televised contests slated to take place on Saturday, February 23.
The televised pairings involving MAC teams, as released by ESPN are as follows:
--VCU (16-5, 9-2 Colonial, RPI: 59) at Akron (16-5, 6-2 MAC, RPI: 75)
--George Mason (16-6, 8-3 Colonial, RPI: 52) at Ohio (156, 6-2 MAC, RPI: 51)
--Kent State (17-5, 6-2 MAC, RPI: 48) at St. Mary's (17-3, 5-1 West Coast, RPI: 23)
--Miami (10-10, 4-4 MAC, RPI: 76) at Valparaiso (12-7, 5-4 Horizon, RPI: 86)
Game times and network assignments will be announced Monday, February 11, 2008. In total 28 teams will compete on either ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN Classic or ESPN360 from February 22-24, 2008.
The rest of the MAC's matchups were also announced by ESPN. Below is the list of non-televised Bracketbuster games involving teams from the MAC. Game times will be announced at a later date with most or all of the games below being played on February 23, 2008:
--Ball State (3-17, 2-6 MAC, RPI: 295) at Eastern Kentucky (9-10, 8-5 OVC, RPI: 221)
--Bowling Green (10-10, 5-3 MAC, RPI: 191) at Detroit (4-16, 1-10 Horizon, RPI: 277)
--Youngstown State (5-15, 3-9 Horizon, RPI: 200) at Buffalo (6-14, 0-8 MAC, RPI: 259)
--Central Michigan (9-11, 4-4 MAC, RPI: 174) at Missouri State (10-12, 4-7 MVC, RPI: 145)
--SE Missouri State (10-12, 7-7 OVC, RPI: 258) at Eastern Michigan (7-13, 3-5 MAC, RPI: 247)
--Tennessee State (8-13, 7-7 OVC, RPI: 267) at Northern Illinois (5-15, 2-6 MAC, RPI: 276)
--Delaware (9-12, 6-5, Colonial, RPI: 179) at Toledo (7-13, 4-4 MAC, RPI: 186)
--Western Michigan (12-9, 6-2 MAC, RPI: 163) at Wisconsin-Green Bay (12-9, 6-5 Horizon, RPI: 102)
The MAC has compiled an overall record of 51-53 in non-televised Bracketbuster and return games while posting a 10-12 mark in televised Bracketbuster contests.
"We are thrilled with the matchups," MAC Associate Commissioner Rick Boyages stated in a release from the Mid-American Conference following the announcment of the pairings by ESPN.
Below is the full list of games scheduled to be televised in this year's edition of the Bracketbuster:
|
Friday, February 22
|
|
Marist at Cleveland State
|
|
Davidson at Winthrop
|
|
Saturday, February 23
|
|
VCU at Akron
|
|
Siena at Boise State
|
|
UW-Milwaukee at Bradley
|
|
Drake at Butler
|
|
Rider at Cal State-Northridge
|
|
George Mason at Ohio
|
|
Creighton at Oral Roberts
|
|
Kent State at St. Mary's
|
|
Nevada at Southern Illinois
|
|
UC-Santa Barbara at Utah State
|
|
Miami at Valparaiso
|
|
Sunday, February 24
|
|
Wright State at Illinois State
|
|
