Tuesday will potentially be the final time five Wright State seniors will take the floor at the Nutter Center as the Raiders host Valpo for the regular season home finale.
Horizon League Tournament seeding implications will be on the line in Tuesday’s contest that will be aired on ESPN3 starting at 7 p.m.
A win over Valpo and at 0-14 UIC Saturday would clinch a berth into the Horizon League quarterfinals March 7 hosted by Green Bay. A loss to Valpo means the Raiders will host a first-round game in the Nutter Center on March 4.
The winner of the Horizon League Championships receives and automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.
With so much to play for, Wright State head coach Billy Donlon hopes to see a large crowd for Tuesday’s game.
“What these five seniors have done as students and as men and add in the basketball, I hope we can get them the biggest crowd of the year,” Donlon said. “Miles Dixon and Jerran Young are junior college transfers. A lot of times, when you transfer from institution to institution, it doesn’t matter what institution, they don’t always take all of your credits so they had to work a little harder, take a few extra classes.”
Donlon pointed out that two of his seniors, Matt Vest and Cole Darling, already graduated and the other three seniors, Young, Dixon, and AJ Pacher, are set to graduate in the spring.
The Raiders were given a chance to control their destiny as far as getting a first-round bye last Thursday after both Valpo and Milwaukee lost their respective contests. The Raiders did their part Friday evening topping Detroit 65-61 in front of over 5,000 fans.
“Anytime you get to control your own destiny to whatever that next highest seed is, that is significant,” Donlon said. “The best teams I have been part of, like last year’s team, that team continually got better from this point through the Horizon League Tournament through the CBI.”
Donlon said today that he considers Young a probable for Tuesday after he missed Friday’s game after sustaining a shoulder injury in practice. Wright State guard Kendall Griffin will miss a fourth consecutive game with a head injury according to Donlon.
