Eastern Kentucky Colonels/Lady Colonels

From Hoopedia

Eastern Kentucky University, commonly referred to as Eastern or by the acronym EKU by local residents, is an undergraduate and graduate teaching and research institution located in Richmond, Kentucky, U.S.A.. EKU is known for nationally prominent programs in criminal justice, education, environmental health, forensic science, the geosciences and homeland security . In addition, EKU offers doctoral programs in the fields of education, geology, and rehabilitation sciences, jointly with University of Kentucky. EKU is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) with extension campus locations in Corbin, Danville, and Manchester, and Lancaster.

Referred to as the "Maroons" until the mid-1960s, Eastern's sports teams are known as the "Colonels." They compete in the NCAA's Division I in the Ohio Valley Conference. In football, they are classified as Division I-AA.

n 2005, Eastern's men's and women's basketball teams won the Ohio Valley Conference tournament championships, earning the men their first bid to the NCAA basketball tournament since 1979. The basketball teams play their home games in McBrayer Arena within Alumni Coliseum, an arena with a vaulted roof and wooden ceiling that uses the Catalan vault as its structural system. The arena was inaugurated in 1962 by then-Vice-President of the United States and future President Lyndon Baines Johnson.

Men's Basketball

Eastern's men's basketball team won the Ohio Valley Conference in 2007. They defeated Austin Peay 63-62 on a last second layup with less than 2 seconds remaining, but lost to the University of North Carolina in the first round of the NCAA tournament.