EA SPORTS Impressed by Clemson and Littlejohn Coliseum in Quest to Find Toughest Places to Play

Feb. 20, 2009

Click here to vote for Littlejohn Coliseum as one of the Toughest Places to Play.

Representatives from EA SPORTS were in attendance on Tuesday night as the 13th-ranked Tiger men’s basketball team defeated Maryland by a score of 93-64. EA SPORTS representative and NCAA Basketball Producer Novell Thomas was impressed by what he witnessed at Littlejohn Coliseum. Read a preview of his blog below.

The next stop on the tour…Clemson University a.k.a. “Death Valley” (for those people who are up on their Clemson football). I didn’t know what to expect coming down to South Carolina. I’ve never been to these parts and I was really impressed with 1) the people and 2) the “greenery” (I’m from the Pacific Northwest so I notice these things and have to call it out). Enough of that, let’s get on with it. After watching the dismantling of a Terrapin squad, I have 5 reasons as to why Clemson could be the Toughest Place to Play in college basketball…

Click here to read the entire blog entry on http://insideblog.easports.com/.

Also, click on the link below to read The Greenville News article by Scott Keepfer on the EA SPORTS visit to Littlejohn on http://www.greenvilleonline.com/.

Greenville News, February 20, 2009 – Video Game Producer Likes Littlejohn’s Energy

In conjunction with the EA Sports visit to campus, on Monday, February 16 and Tuesday, February 17, sixty-four Clemson University students took part in the NCAA Basketball 2009 Tournament Challenge. Clemson University hosted the event as part of the EA Sports Toughest Places to Play quest. Each game was played with five minute halves, which lasted about fifteen minutes to complete a game.

The championship game was played on the video board of Littlejohn Coliseum during pregame of the Clemson vs. Maryland game Tuesday night. Stephen Medearis captured the crown by defeating Anthony Martin by a score of 23-20 and winning an Xbox 360 and six games from EA Sports. Martin did not walk away empty handed though. He will receive six games from EA Sports for his efforts.

BACKGROUND College basketball fans can now vote at http://www.easports.com/ncaabasketball/toughvenues.action to create the official “fans ballot” that will determine the final ranking of the 15 finalists, which, according to fan balloting are:

Clemson University (ACC) Duke University (ACC) Syracuse University (Big East) UCLA (Pac-10) University of Arkansas (SEC) University of Florida (SEC) University of Illinois (Big 10) University of Kansas (Big 12) University of Louisville (Big East) University of Maryland (ACC) University of North Carolina (ACC) University of Pittsburgh (Big East) University of Tennessee (SEC) University of Texas (Big 12) Xavier University (A10)

Producers of the NCAA Basketball franchise will visit the home court of many of the final 15 schools to experience each school’s home environment on game day in order to capture and replicate the experience in game.

“When we visit schools we will pay full attention to the specifics and overall pageantry that make each school’s home court unique,” continued O’Brien. “We will consider the atmosphere, arena, mascot, spirit groups, band and competitiveness of the team to make sure we capture and replicate every detail for this feature.”

To learn more about NCAA Basketball 09 visit www.easports.com/ncaabasketball09.

Developed in Burnaby, B.C., by EA Canada, NCAA Basketball 09 is available for the Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3 and PlayStation 2. It is rated “E” for everyone by the ESRB. Screenshots can be downloaded at http://info.ea.com.