NEWS - Thursday, September 16, 2004
Okafor On NCAA March Madness 2005
REDWOOD CITY, Calif. --(Business Wire)-- Sept. 16, 2004 Electronic Arts (Nasdaq:ERTS) announced today that Emeka Okafor, the University of Connecticut All-American who led the Huskies to the 2004 NCAA(R) Men’s Basketball Championship, will serve as spokesman and cover athlete for NCAA(R) March Madness 2005, scheduled for release this fall under the EA SPORTS(TM) brand. Okafor averaged 17.6 points and 11.5 rebounds per game in leading Connecticut to a 33-6 overall record, the national title, and the Big East Tournament title in 2004. He was named Co-National Player of the Year, a unanimous First-Team All-American, and the Big East Player of the Year following a stellar junior season that also saw him earn his second straight Academic All-America nod. After graduating from UConn this past May in just three years with a 3.8 GPA and a degree in finance, Okafor was the No. 2 overall pick of the June NBA Draft by the Charlotte Bobcats. He also earned a bronze medal last month in Athens, Greece as a member of the 2004 United States Olympic Men’s Basketball Team. "Earning the cover spot on NCAA March Madness 2005 is the perfect way to celebrate my time at UConn," said Okafor, who will appear on all packaging and merchandising for NCAA March Madness 2005. "I’ve been an EA SPORTS fan for as long as I can remember, and to be a part of this game -- where strategy and teamwork is at the core -- is a fitting extension to the incredible experience I had playing college basketball." The most strategic basketball game ever developed, NCAA March Madness 2005 allows users to be the floor general and lead one of more than 320 Division I schools to the Big Dance(R). With the all-new Floor General System -- featuring a new play-calling system and an innovative new timeout menu -- users can take complete control and play college basketball as it was meant to be played. With new mascots, cheerleaders, arenas, crowd chants, fights songs, Arena Pulse, and Dick Vitale and Brad Nessler calling the action, NCAA March Madness 2005 puts you on campus for the deepest and most authentic interactive college hoops experience. Developed in Vancouver, B.C., by EA Canada, the studio which is also home to the popular NBA LIVE and NBA STREET franchises, NCAA March Madness 2005 is scheduled to ship in November on the PlayStation(R)2 computer entertainment system and the Xbox(R) video game system from Microsoft. The game’s official website is http://www.marchmadness2005.com.Source: http://www.easports.com
