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Who needs tape-delayed coverage of Sochi, when you can watch live MAC basketball all day? Five games are on the docket today (four men's, one women's) including a showdown between rivals Miami and Ohio. Four games tip off at 2 p.m., because the MAC still hasn't quite figured out the benefits of a staggered schedule, but I digress.
Kent State vs. EMU at 2 features a pair of middling MAC teams that are still fighting to prove they weren't over-hyped. EMU's dangerous zone-defense takes on a Golden Flashes team that is the epitome of streaky. Also at 2, the MAC leaders, Toledo, take their show on the road to Muncie, Indiana to face the last place Ball State Cardinals. The game should be one to watch on individual matchups alone. Juice Brown vs. Zavier Turner. Nathan Boothe vs. Majok Majok. Rian Pearson vs. Chris Bond. It's unlikely the Cardinals can hang with Toledo, but Ball State has plenty of similar pieces, and could keep things interesting at least.
The Battle of the Bricks renews at 2 p.m. on Time Warner Cable SportsChannel, as two of the East's better teams duke it out in Athens. Ohio's coming off a frustrating loss on the road, so is Miami, but these two teams feature some fantastic athletes who are known for causing matchup problems.
Our lone women's game of the day tips at 2 p.m. and features the red-hot Akron Zips hosting a WMU team that's sitting at .500 in the conference. Our final game of the night is Buffalo at CMU. The Bulls are coming off a 21-point win over Ball State, while CMU just notched its first MAC win on the season, downing Kent State in overtime on Wednesday.
Per usual we'll be brining you updates on the games throughout the day via Twitter, and we'll also be live chatting the action right here in our open thread.