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IU visit a highlight of WSU basketball schedule

Raiders will pay visit to Hoosiers this season as part of challenging nonconference contests.

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By Kyle Nagel, Staff Writer 9:45 PM Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Although securing an opponent can be a long, arduous process, Wright State men’s basketball coach Billy Donlon had little problem with Indiana.

“We were looking at some other possible opponents,” Donlon said of the final spot on the Raiders’ schedule, which was released Wednesday, Aug. 4. “Then I made a phone call or two. Within 24 hours, we had a verbal agreement, and within 48 hours we had a contract sent to us.”

A visit to Indiana’s Assembly Hall is one of the highlights of a WSU schedule that also includes up to six opponents who finished in the top 100 of last season’s Ratings Percentage Index.

WSU will host two Division II programs, Northwood and Tusculum, as part of a home schedule that includes Southern and Oakland (in the Chicago Invitational Challenge), Air Force, Miami University and a BracketBusters game, whose opponent will be determined two weeks before the game.

At the Chicago Invitational event, WSU will host the two games before playing Richmond at Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates, Ill., on Friday, Nov. 26. The winner of that game will play the winner of Purdue and Southern Illinois, and the losers of the two games will play, both the next day.

WSU’s road highlights include Cincinnati and Charlotte, but the matchup with Indiana — because of the proximity, the Hoosiers’ history and the teams’ previous matchup in the 1993 NCAA tournament — has gained much of the fans’ attention. The Raiders will receive a $72,000 payment for the one-way game.

“It’s special in a lot of ways,” said WSU Athletic Director Bob Grant.

Donlon, WSU’s first-year coach, said the Raiders landed some of the bigger-name opponents likely as much for his inexperience as a head coach as the team’s four consecutive 20-win seasons.

“I can’t say this as a 100-percent fact, but I would be surprised if ever Wright State played a more challenging nonconference schedule,” Donlon said.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-7389 or knagel@DaytonDailyNews.com.

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