ISU hoops to play at Louisville on Dec. 1

[June 13, 2012]  NORMAL -- Illinois State head coach Dan Muller addressed an upgraded schedule during his introductory press conference and on Tuesday announced that the Redbird men's basketball team has scheduled a Dec. 1 game at Louisville at the Yum! Center. Big East member Louisville is projected by many pontificators to be ranked in the top five nationally in the preseason polls.

"I'm excited that we are able to schedule this game at Louisville, against one of the best programs in the country," Muller said. "In scheduling, I'm looking to prepare my team for tough conference road games, and this (game at Louisville) will definitely do that. It will give us the opportunity to play against one of the best coaches in the country and one of the best teams. When I took the job, scheduling was a priority for me to build this program, and this is a good start."

This will be the second meeting between the Redbirds and the Cardinals. Then-ranked No. 16 Louisville claimed a 117-107 victory over the Redbirds on March 4, 1974, at Freedom Hall.

Louisville was a member of the Missouri Valley Conference from 1963 to 1974. The Redbirds have won their last three games against Big East teams, with a 76-70 win over Rutgers last season, a 65-52 win over Cincinnati during the 2007-08 campaign and a 78-65 victory at St. John's during the 2006-07 season.

[Text from news release received from Todd Kober, associate athletics director,
athletics communications, Illinois State University]