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News Nuggets, 05.18.05
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Compiled from staff reports and electronic dispatches

League releases beefed up national TV lineup

Conference USA's television slate for the 2005 football campaign will feature more guaranteed national exposures than in any previous season in the league's history.

ESPN and ESPN2, the league's television partners since 2001, and the fledgling College Sports Television Network (CSTV) will collectively carry at least 31 games, the league announced on Tuesday.

CSTV joined the mix when C-USA announced in January a new set of television arrangements to replace the previous contract it had with the twin ESPN cable giants.

The only East Carolina game on the preliminary TV schedule is the Pirates' Sept. 3 opener with Duke in Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. The ECU athletic department announced earlier this month the kickoff time for that game had been advanced from 7 p.m. to 1 p.m. to accommodate a CSTV broadcast.

In addition to the 26-game TV lineup announced on Tuesday, CSTV will defer its selections of weekly games for the final five Saturdays of the season until a 12-day window before each game.

As the season progresses, the selection of additional games for regional or national television exposures is possible, the league indicated in its release.

C-USA, which is undergoing a massive transformation with the departures of five schools and the entrances of six new members, will be split into two divisions for the 2005 season.

East Carolina, Memphis, Southern Mississippi and UAB will combine with new members Central Florida and Marshall to form the East Division, while Houston and Tulane will compete with new members Rice, Southern Methodist, Tulsa and Texas-El Paso in the West Division.

Among the confirmed national television contests will be the league's first-ever title game, which will pit the division champions against each other. That Dec. 3 matchup will be carried by ESPN, which will also televise all five of the postseason bowls with which C-USA is affiliated.

2005 Conference USA football confirmed national TV games:

(All times ET; 26 confirmed games as of May 17)

----- ESPN SCHEDULE (9 games)
Thu Sep 1 Central Florida at South Carolina 7:45 pm
Mon Sep 5 Mississippi at Memphis 4:30 pm
Fri Oct 21 Southern Miss at UAB 8:00 pm
Sat Dec 3 Conference USA Championship Game TBA
Tue Dec 20 Wyndham New Orleans Bowl 8:00 pm
Wed Dec 21 GMAC Bowl 8:00 pm
Fri Dec 23 PlainsCapital Fort Worth Bowl 8:00 pm
Sat Dec 24 Sheraton Hawaii Bowl 7:00 pm
Sat Dec 31 AutoZone Liberty Bowl 1:00 pm

----- ESPN 2 SCHEDULE (7 games)
Thu Sep 1 Oregon at Houston 7:00 pm
Thu Sep 1 Minnesota at Tulsa 10:15 pm
Sun Sep 4 Tulane at Southern Miss 4:00 pm
Sat Sep 10 Kansas State at Marshall TBA
Fri Sep 16 Houston at Texas-El Paso 8:00 pm
Tue Nov 1 UAB at Memphis 7:30 pm
Tue Nov 8 Southern Miss at Marshall 7:30 pm

----- ESPN OR ESPN 2 SCHEDULE (2 games)
Sat Sep 10 Southern Miss at Alabama TBA
Fri Oct 14 Texas-El Paso at Tulane 8:00 pm

----- CSTV (8 games)
Sat Sep 3 Duke at East Carolina 1:00 pm
Sat Sep 10 Texas Christian at SMU 9:30 pm
Sat Sep 17 Mississippi State at Tulane 8:00 pm
Sat Sep 24 New Mexico at Texas-El Paso 9:00 pm
Sat Oct 1 Texas-El Paso at Memphis 8:00 pm
Sat Oct 8 Tulsa at Southern Miss 8:00 pm
Sat Oct 15 UAB at Marshall 5:00 pm
Sat Oct 22 Marshall at Texas-El Paso 9:00 pm

Compiled from staff reports and a Conference USA news release.

Memphis joins loaded field for Preseason NIT

Memphis will join a 2005 Preseason NIT field that will feature Duke and Wisconsin-Milwaukee, both of whom reached the round of 16 in last season's NCAA tournament.

The Blue Devils, who won the 16-team tournament in 1985 and 2000, will host Boston University in one of four opening-round games Nov. 14, the NIT said Tuesday.

Wisconsin-Milwaukee, making its debut in the Preseason NIT, will play the Tigers in Memphis in one of the four first-round games Nov. 15.

The other games on Nov. 14 have Manhattan at Seton Hall, Sam Houston State at Missouri and Drexel at Princeton.

On Nov. 15, Miami (OH) is at Alabama, Army is at Temple and New Mexico State is at UCLA.

The second round will be played Nov. 16 and 17 at campus sites, while the semifinals are at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 23, with the championship game on Nov. 25.

Duke, which has All-America guard J.J. Redick and center Shelden Williams returning to join one of the nation's best recruiting classes, lost to Michigan State in the NCAA's regional semifinals in March.

Wisconsin-Milwaukee stunned Alabama and Boston College before losing to top-ranked Illinois in the round of 16. Coach Bruce Pearl left for Tennessee after the school's most successful season, and Wisconsin assistant Rob Jeter takes over the program.

Another coach making his collegiate debut in the Preseason NIT will be New Mexico State's Reggie Theus, an assistant to Rick Pitino at Louisville. The Cardinals reached the Final Four last season.

Also sure to be under the spotlight when the tournament gets under way is Temple coach John Chaney. The 73-year-old Chaney was suspended for five games at the end of last season for ordering rough play by one of his players in a game against Saint Joseph's.

Wake Forest beat Arizona 63-60 in last year's Preseason NIT championship game.

Frosh guard bolting Louisville for Washington

Promising freshman Lorrenzo Wade has decided to transfer from Louisville to the University of Washington, his former high school coach said.

A 6-foot-6 guard from Cheyenne High of North Las Vegas, NV, Wade also considered Nevada, New Mexico State and Oklahoma.

Wade, who visited Nevada last month, played in 35 games as a freshman in 2004-05 for Louisville, which went 33-5 and reached the Final Four.

After averaging nearly four points and two rebounds a game last season for the Cardinals, he will have to sit out the 2005-06 season and then will have three seasons of eligibility remaining.

News Nuggets are compiled periodically based on material supplied by staff members; data published by ECU, Conference USA and its member schools; and reports from Associated Press and other sources. Copyright 2005 Bonesville.net and other publishers. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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