Eastern Kentucky, Morehead State invited to College Basketball Invitational

Two more Kentucky D-1 schools are still playing basketball. My Alma Matter, Eastern Kentucky, is going for their first ever postseason win in school history at home against Charleston (who beat North Carolina- if that means anything this year). Morehead State, a team that should be in the NIT, also has a home game with Colorado State. I've laughed at bigger schools like Cincinnati that have played in this tournament in the past few years, but it's a very good thing for small schools like EKU that win 20 games and are deserving of a chance at some form of postseason play. EKU and Morehead could have quite the advantage in this tournament on their home courts because unlike some of the teams from bigger conferences, this tournament actually means something to them and their fans.

The field also includes Oregon State from the PAC 10 and St. Louis-the biggest NIT snub in the country. The Billicans finished 4th (behind Temple, Richmond, and Xavier) in a very good A-10 this year and were even on the NCAA bubble for most of the season. I'd say that both Morehead, St. Louis, and several other teams in this tournament are more deserving of playing in the NIT than a barely over .500 North Carolina team. I can't believe I did this...but in honor of my Colonels making the CBI, I actually filled out a CBI Bracket. Here's my picks:

• EKU over Charleston in round 1.
• EKU over VCU to advance to the Final Four!
• Morehead over Colorado State at home
• Morehead over Oregon State on the road.
• Final Four of Princeton, Morehead, St. Louis, and EKU.
• EKU falls to St. Louis, Morehead defeats Princeton.
• 2010 CBI Champs: Morehead State wins 2 games to 1 in a three game series with St. Louis.

(Although I am really hoping for it to end with a 3 game series between EKU and Morehead- that would actually be really cool)

St. Louis is probably the best team, but Morehead will want it more and will have a nice home court advantage. Nobody in St. Louis will care and the Eagles will bring Kentucky another basketball championship!

Shout out to the Colonels!

Let me give a much deserved shout out to my Alma Matter: the Eastern Kentucky Colonels. The EKU Men's Basketball team has had a very impressive start (definitely more impressive than a certain school 65 miles west of Lexington), and if you get the chance, you should go see them play.

After losing Adam Leonard a few years ago and now losing Mike Rose last year, the Colonels were not expected to do much in the OVC this year. Especially since OVC Defending Champion, Morehead State, returned all key players from their NCAA Tournament team from last year. It also didn't look good for the Colonels when Murray State opened up at #12 California and only lost by 5 points.

But the Colonels have started off with a 7-3 record, including a pair of hard fought 11 point losses at Pittsburgh and at Maryland. The Colonels also fought hard on the road in a 2 point loss to Murray State on the road. EKU is undefeated at home, including a 14 point win over Isiah Thomas' Florida International squad. Justin Stommes has led the way so far for the Colonels with 15.1 ppg. Make no mistake, the Colonels have withstood the departures of key players over the last few years and will remain a contender for an OVC Championship this spring in Nashville. The Colonels will try to defeat the Ohio Bobcats for the 2nd straight year in Athens on Saturday.