Butler-Wright State Contest Selected As ESPN Wildcard Game

Butler basketball and Hinkle Fieldhouse will be showcased to a national television audience, again.  Butler’s home game against Wright State on Saturday, Feb. 6, has been selected as the Horizon League’s ESPN “Wildcard” game and will be televised on ESPN2.

The decision to nationally-televise the key Horizon League game will necessitate a change in start time.  The contest, originally scheduled to be played at 2 p.m. (ET), now will tip at 8 p.m.

Butler and Wright State were tabbed as the top two teams in the league’s preseason poll and both are in contention as the league approaches the midway point of the 2009-10 race.  Butler holds the top spot in the league standings, while Wright State is tied for fourth.  The two teams met in Dayton, Ohio, on Jan. 8, and the Bulldogs emerged with a 77-65 victory.

The Bulldogs have appeared on the ESPN networks six times already this season, and Butler has games scheduled to be televised on ESPNU at Green Bay (Jan. 29) and at Valparaiso (Feb. 26).  The nine appearances matches Butler’s 2007-08 squad for the most regular season games on the ESPN networks.  And this year’s team could pick up a tenth regular season appearance on BracketBuster weekend (Feb. 20).