RTC Live is back with another full slate of games tonight. From Ann Arbor to South Bend to Moraga, we’ll be bringing you coverage from around the country as the ESPN 24 Hours of Hoops Marathon tips off this evening. St. Mary’s has been in this 2 AM ET slot for several years now, and it’s always a raucous affair that results in the home team winning; can UNI change the trend — we’ll find out tonight, after the jump.
Game 12: One of our most anticipated games of the new season is always the raucous late-night affair that goes on in McKeon Pavilion at 11 PM local time in the second slot of the ESPN 24 Hours of Hoops Marathon. In 2008, Fresno State and Paul George’s vertical were introduced to the powerful force of the Gaels; the next year it was Steve Fisher’s San Diego State squad getting run out of the place. Last year, Steve Lavin’s burgeoning St. John’s team traveled cross-country to experience the funky but festive environment. This year’s opponent, Northern Iowa, has no doubt studied the tapes of some of the three-point fueled rolls that Randy Bennett’s team can get on in this building after the witching hour. They’d best pay attention to guard Matthew Dellavadova and forward Rob Jones, both of whom are capable of draining threes from distance (although this entire team is plenty capable, honestly). UNI features a team unsure how it will handle the loss of all-MVC guard Kwadzo Ahelegbe, but with Ben Jacobson still on the sideline, you can bet that the Panthers will find a way. Will it be tonight?
