UWM Headed To Bradley For O'Reilly BracketBusters
Feb. 4, 2008
MILWAUKEE - The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men's basketball team will take on Bradley University in an O'Reilly ESPNU BracketBusters game, ESPN officials announced today. The game will be played Sat. Feb. 23 at Carver Arena in Peoria, Ill. Game time and the ESPN network that will televise the game will be announced next week. Contests in the event will be spread out over ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN Classic and ESPN360. The Panthers (12-10) have won nine of their last 12 games to move into a position to be selected for a televised game in the BracketBusters event. That stretch followed a six-game losing and has come with Milwaukee's active roster trimmed to 11 players. The Braves (13-10), meanwhile, have positioned themselves for a run at the postseason. In fact, after suffering through a six-game losing streak with top performer Daniel Ruffin injured, Bradley has bounced back to win its last five games. "We are excited about the opportunity to take on a team with a strong tradition from a great conference," UWM head coach Rob Jeter said. "Bradley has had success in the NCAA Tournament in recent years and has really been playing some good basketball of late. It is definitely going to be a challenge, but we are looking forward to that challenge." UWM's inclusion into the televised portion of BracketBusters marks the sixth time in the last seven years the Panthers will play on national TV in the event. It is also the fourth time Milwaukee has drawn a team from the Missouri Valley Conference. "It is an honor to be selected for a televised game," Jeter said. "It is the kind of thing this team has been working toward over the last few months, and I think it is nice to see the hard work of our players be recognized in this way. It is an accomplishment to be selected to play in this kind of game, but now we will set out to try and accomplish more things over the last month of the regular season."
UWM is one of five Horizon League schools selected for a televised game in the BracketBusters event. Butler will host Drake, Cleveland State hosts Marist, Valparaiso entertains Miami (Ohio) and Wright State plays at Illinois State. The BracketBusters event also includes a return game by Bradley to the U.S. Cellular Arena next season. BracketBuster Notables • UWM's roster is officially down to 13 players, with 10 of them active for the rest of the season. Since the start of the year, the Panthers have lost five scholarship players. Those that have departed include Avery Smith (dismissed Nov. 7); Torre Johnson (dismissed Dec. 18); Roman Gentry (left team Dec. 18); Kevin Johnson (left team Dec. 20 - officially dropped from roster Jan. 18); and Tim Flowers (left team Dec. 20 - officially dropped from roster Jan. 23). Of the 13 on the roster, Joe Allen and Zach Holt are both sidelined for the season by injury while Brad Carroll is redshirting this season, though he does dress for games. Walk-ons Deion James and Jason Averkamp are also part of the active roster. • The trimmed roster has helped turn the Panthers' season around. Since taking the court with its 11 current active players (including Brad Carroll) Dec. 19, Milwaukee has gone 9-3. • Milwaukee is part of a cluster of six teams in the Horizon League with either four or five league losses. The Panthers are currently in fourth place in the league but do not play again until Feb. 12. • The BracketBusters contest is one of just two regular season road games remaining for UWM. • Bradley will be the third Missouri Valley Conference foe UWM's schedule this year. The Panthers have lost eight-straight to teams from the MVC, including defeats against Northern Iowa and Drake this season. Milwaukee's last wins over teams from the Valley came in 2002-03, when the Panthers knocked off both Indiana State and Missouri State. • Milwaukee's recent history includes three NCAA Tournament trips (2003, 2005, 2006), including a trip to the Sweet 16 in 2005 and the second round of the tourney in 2006. • UWM's Horizon League record over the last seven seasons is 76-32, the best of all league teams. Butler is second with a 73-33 mark in league play. • UWM has participated in all six previous BracketBusters events, appearing on national television five of those years. |
