Bradley announced the non-conference portion of the 2007-08 men's basketball schedule over thw weekend, and it looks to be one of the toughest I've seen in a long time. Here's what it looks like:

Sat, Oct 20 RED-WHITE SCRIMMAGE Robertson Memorial Fieldhouse 6:30 p.m.
 Thu, Nov 01  ST. AMBROSE (Exh.)Robertson Memorial Fieldhouse 7:05 p.m.
 Sun, Nov 04  QUINCY (Exh.)Carver Arena 2:05 p.m.
  Sat, Nov 10  Illinois-Chicago at Chicago, Ill. TBA
 Wed, Nov 14  IOWA STATE Carver Arena 7:05 p.m.
 SOUTH PADRE ISLAND TOURNEY:Sun, Nov 18  MARYLAND-EASTERN SHORE Carver Arena 2:05 p.m.
 Tue, Nov 20  FLORIDA GULF COAST Carver Arena 7:05 p.m.
 Fri, Nov 23  Iowa at South Padre Island, Texas TBA
 Sat, Nov 24  Vanderbilt or TBA at South Padre Island, Texas TBA
  Wed, Nov 28  Loyola-Chicago at Chicago, Ill. 7:05 p.m.
 Sat, Dec 01  SOUTHEAST MISSOURI STATE Carver Arena 7:05 p.m.
 Tue, Dec 04  MICHIGAN STATE Carver Arena 7:05 p.m.
 Tue, Dec 11  Wright State at Dayton, Ohio 6:00 p.m.
 Wed, Dec 19  Butler at Indianapolis, Ind. 6:00 p.m.
 Sat, Dec 22  VCU Carver Arena 7:05 p.m.
 BRACKETBUSTER:Sat, Feb 23  TBACarver Arena TBA

Michigan St., Iowa St., and VCU all make trips to Carver this season. The Braves have a long standing history of being one of the tougher home teams in the country to beat, but we also haven't had this many quality teams come into our place all in one season for a long time. It should be interesting. Wins over those three teams will be huge for Bradley, and being at home will certainly help, but there is a risk. Home losses to those good teams would really hurt our chances for an at-large tourney bid.

The road schedule is going to be a tough one too. Butler and Wright State were the top two teams from the Horizon League last year, and both figure to still be strong. Loyola-Chicago and Illinois-Chicago aren't particularly good teams, but neither is a cake-walk on their home floor. The games at South Padre Island should be a good challenge as well. Iowa and Vanderbilt aren't exactly top teams in their respective conferences, but they are still power conference teams, and wins over them will still boost our resume come tourney time.

I have to say, I'm really impressed with the schedule the coaching staff was able to put together. They did a nice job of mixing in some easier games into what will certainly be a tough year. It's definitely a strong schedule, especially for an MVC team. It's hard to say what the 2007-08 season has in store, but there's no doubt it'll at least be interesting.