ESPN Tip-Off Marathon schedule is here

For the college basketball fan, there aren't many glorious July days, but this one definitely counts: the release of the 2012 ESPN Tip-Off Marathon schedule, set to take place for all 24 hours (and then some) on Tuesday, Nov. 13. I think you're going to like what's being offered.

First things first. The games are as follows (all times ET):

Midnight: West Virginia at Gonzaga
2 a.m.: Davidson at New Mexico
4 a.m.: Houston Baptist at Hawaii
6 a.m.: Stony Brook at Rider
8 a.m.: Northern Illinois at Valparaiso
10 a.m.: Harvard at Massachusetts
12 p.m.: Temple at Kent State
2 p.m.: Detroit at St. John’s
4 p.m.: Butler at Xavier
7 p.m.: Michigan State vs. Kansas (Champions Classic, Georgia Dome, Atlanta)
30 minutes following MSU/KU: Duke vs. Kentucky (Champions Classic)

Here's the thing: If you're a casual college basketball fan, someone who doesn't spend all summer reading College Basketball Nation in heated anticipation of posts like these, you might be somewhat nonplussed.

Davidson at New Mexico might not do anything for you. Harvard at UMass might not tickle your fancy. I get that. But for the college hoops fan -- the kind who knows how cool it will be to see a midnight game at New Mexico's Pit, the kind who recognizes UMass as a sleeper A-10 contender in 2012-13, the kind who knows how good Detroit guard Ray McCallum Jr. is, the kind who realizes what a tough early road test Kent State will be for Temple -- that schedule has a little bit of everything.

Although the Mountaineers-Zags NCAA tourney rematch is a tantalizing opener, the real showstoppers come late in the day. Butler-Xavier is a strange game, considering Butler's early realignment move to the Atlantic 10 this season. The two will actually be playing a nonconference game in the first week of the season before meeting again during league play. You don't see that often. If the basketball gods shine upon us, this will be the game that truly kicks off a heated Midwestern rivalry between two marquee March programs. They've had some good battles in the recent past -- no reason for that to stop now.

And of course, the Champions Classic, now in its second year, is just going to be flat-out awesome: Michigan State will play Kansas just four days (four days!) after opening its season against Connecticut at a U.S. military base in Germany. Last season, the Spartans flew from the Carrier Classic in San Diego to Madison Square Garden four days later. This year, they'll be making a trip from Germany to Georgia in roughly the same time. If Tom Izzo could schedule a game at the International Space Station, he would. The dude will literally play anybody anywhere.

Then there's Duke versus Kentucky. Two bluebloods. Two powerhouses. Two larger-than-life coaches. One unlikely but very deeply felt rivalry. It exists for one reason: March 28, 1992. It's something you notice as a college hoops writer: Both teams' fan bases go out of their way to tweak each other. They are in many ways cultural and basketball antitheses. There is real hate here.

With all this sturm und drang on both sides -- the trolling of opposition message boards is my personal favorite -- it's easy to forget that these two teams don't play, like, ever. The last time they met was Dec. 18, 2001, over a decade ago, at the Jimmy V Classic in New Jersey. Kentucky had Tayshaun Prince and Keith Bogans; Duke had Jason Williams, Mike Dunleavy, Carlos Boozer, Chris Duhon, Dahntay Jones and future Barack Obama body man Reggie Love. The Blue Devils won 95-92 in an overtime classic.

Despite the huge gap in actual basketball competition, Duke and UK fans have only increased their mutual distaste in the Internet age. The run-up to the game -- not to mention the split Georgia Dome -- is going to be certifiably insane.

And there you have it: The early portions of the marathon may not do much for neophytes, but the hard-core fans will have plenty to chew on ... just before the final three games of the evening (hopefully) blow us away. I can't wait to live blog this thing for too many hours. More than anything, I can't wait for basketball. Only a few more months now. Consider that your new mantra.

Source: ESPN, College Basketball Nation Blog

Fun facts about the Final Four schools

By now you may or may not know that the NCAA tourney has dwindled from 65 teams to just four. Unfortunately, the boys in blue. I'm sorry, UK blue, are no longer in there. They were knocked out in the Elite Eight by a very strong West Virginia team.

Anyway, I found these fun facts about the final four teams over on ESPN, and thought that they would be fun to share.

Butler Bulldogs

Location: Indianapolis
Enrollment: 4,512
Colors: Blue and white
School motto says: “Education, Research, Service”
Original name: North Western Christian University, founded in 1855
White House connection: Harry S. New went to Butler and went on to serve as Postmaster General in the Warren G. Harding and Calvin Coolidge cabinets.
Last NBA draft pick: Lynn Mitchem, 1983, ninth round
Mascot trivia: Butler Blue II, a 60-pound English Bulldog, celebrated his sixth birthday last week and even has his own blog. He roams around Hinkle Fieldhouse with a gigantic bone in his mouth during games. Hink is the costumed version of the bulldog.

Duke Blue Devils

Location: Durham, N.C.
Enrollment: 13,662
Colors: Royal blue & white
School motto says: “Knowledge and Faith”
Original name: Union Institute, founded in 1838
White House connection: Reggie Love, the personal aide to President Obama, played basketball and football at Duke and was on the Blue Devils' national championship team in 2001. Oh, and Richard Nixon got his law degree at Duke.
Last NBA draft pick: Gerald Henderson, 2009, first round
Mascot trivia: In the 1920s, nominated mascot possibilities included the Blue Titans, Blue Eagles, Polar Bears, Royal Blazes and Blue Warriors. The student newspaper began using Blue Devils for the sports teams, and it caught on.

Michigan State Spartans

Location: East Lansing, Mich.
Enrollment: 47,278
Colors: Green and white
School motto says: “Advancing Knowledge, Transforming Lives”
Original name: Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, founded in 1855
White House connection: Spencer Abraham, a Michigan State grad, was the Secretary of Energy during George W. Bush’s first term.
Last NBA draft pick: Goran Suton, 2009, second round
Mascot trivia: Sparty the Spartan was named national mascot champion in 2007 after impressing with a skit featuring spoofs of Kiss, Lord of the Dance and Justin Timberlake.

West Virginia Mountaineers

Location: Morgantown, W.Va.
Enrollment: 28,898
Colors: Old Gold and blue
School motto says: “Add to your faith virtue and to virtue knowledge”
Original name: Agricultural College of West Virginia, founded in 1867
White House connection: William Courtney, a West Virginia grad, served as U.S. ambassador to Kazakhstan and Georgia for Bill Clinton.
Last NBA draft pick: Joe Alexander, 2008, first round
Mascot trivia: Rebecca Durst became the second female Mountaineer mascot in school history this year. She carries a rifle and wears buckskin and a coonskin cap. She does not, however, have to grow a beard.

Credits: Diamond Leung, ESPN