Jan. 30, 2006
On Saturday afternoon, after a dominating win against Old Dominion, George Mason men's basketball coach Jim Larranaga expressed a desire to face a team rated in the top 25 of the RPI as part of ESPN's BracketBusters presented by eBay. He'll get his wish as the team will travel to Wichita State on either Friday or Saturday Feb. 17 or 18th. Game times and network assignments will be announced on Feb. 7. The 26-team field includes 14 schools that played in the postseason last year, including nine NCAA Tournament teams.
"The ESPN BracketBusters is the premier television event for teams looking to add to their resume for the NCAA Tournament selection committee to review," said Head Coach Jim Larranaga. "The exposure for some teams is better in one game than they get all season. We are excited to be a part of it and looking forward to our game with Wichita State."
Wichita State is currently 17-5, with a pair of losses coming at the hands of impressive non-conference foes. The Shockers faced two of last year's Final Four teams, losing at nationally runner-up Illinois, 55-54, and falling at Michigan State, 83-64. Wichita State is currently 22nd in the RPI. Mason is 35th, moving up several spots after beating the Monarchs.
While Mason is currently tied for first in the Colonial Athletic Association, Wichita State is tied for second in the Missouri Valley, with an 8-3 conference mark. The Shockers have lost on the road to Southern Illinois, a nine-point defeat, at home to Northern Illinois, a 14-point loss, and a two-point loss at Creighton, which is one of the five teams to beat Mason this year.
Wichita State is led by senior Paul Miller, who is scoring 12.9 points and grabbing 6.8 rebounds per game, both team highs. Junior transfer Kyle Wilson, Sean Ogirri and P.J. Couisnard are all scoring 10.7 points per game or better. The MVC had three schools gain bids into the NCAA Tournament last season led by conference tournament champion Creighton, Southern Illinois and Northern Iowa. Wichita State has played in the NIT the past three seasons, winning two home games in the NIT last year before losing to Vanderbilt on the road, 65-63.
The ESPN BracketBusters is in its fourth season. It has grown to 100 teams, representing 18 conferences in a 50-game, one-day event. The concept behind the event is that it provides an opportunity for NCAA Tournament-caliber teams to get both national exposure and a late-season game against comparable teams from an RPI standpoint. The BracketBusters contract also requires teams to reciprocate with a game in the other team's arena; therefore the Shockers will travel to play the Patriots at the Patriot Center next season.
The Patriots are participating in the ESPN BracketBusters for the second straight year. Last year, Mason defeated Manhattan at the Patriot Center. Wichita State also played in the event last year, falling to Miami (Ohio) on ESPN2. Six games will be on ESPN or ESPN2 with five games on ESPNU.
