The Longwood men’s basketball team will play the first nationally-televised game in program history on Dec. 15 when the Lancers take on Oklahoma State on ESPNU.
The Tuesday night primetime matchup in Stillwater, Okla., tips off at 8 p.m. EST in Gallagher-Iba Arena and will air across the nation on ESPN’s college sports-dedicated channel.
In the eight previous seasons at the Division I level, Longwood has made appearances on regional platforms of the MASN and Fox Sports networks, but the Dec. 15 matchup against the Cowboys will mark the first major television outlet to broadcast the Lancers on a national stage.
The primetime exposure aligns with a 2015-16 season for a veteran Lancer team that returns five seniors and four of five starters last year’s Big South semifinalist squad. Among the returners for third-year head coach Jayson Gee’s team are Big South All-Tournament Team selection Shaquille Johnson, Big South steals leader Leron Fisher and redshirt senior Lotanna Nwogbo who averaged 12.9 points and 8.2 rebounds per game before his junior campaign was cut short due to a season-ending thumb injury.
The Lancers are coming off a 2014-15 season that concluded with three wins in the final four games, including a 68-60 upset win over No. 1 seed Charleston Southern in the Big South quarterfinals. The semifinal berth was Longwood’s first in three years as a member of the Big South.
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