Mohegan Sun Newsroom

University of Rhode Island vs. Oklahoma State
Central Connecticut State University vs. Holy Cross

Mohegan Sun Arena will be playing host to an exciting division 1 college basketball doubleheader this winter when the University of Rhode Island takes on Oklahoma State, followed by Central Connecticut State University battling Holy Cross.  The action takes place live on Saturday, January 2nd at 2:00pm beginning with the URI vs. Oklahoma State game followed by the CCSU vs. Holy Cross game at 5:00pm.

Tickets are $75.00, $40.00, $30.00, $15.00 and $10.00 and are on sale now at the Mohegan Sun Box Office and through Ticketmaster.  Ticketmaster customers may log on to ticketmaster.com; call Ticketmaster’s national toll free Charge by Phone number 1.800.745.3000; or visit any Ticketmaster outlet. 

Last season, URI and Oklahoma State faced off in the All-College Classic in Oklahoma City, with the Cowboys edging by the Rams, 86-82.

Rhode Island finished with a 23-12 record a season ago, advancing to the second round of the NIT.  Keith Cothran and Atlantic 10 Sixth “Man of the Year” Delroy James return to spark the Runnin’ Rams’ high-powered offense in 2009-10.

Oklahoma State – picked to finish sixth in the Big 12 Conference – is led by former Massachusetts head coach Travis Ford. The Cowboys compiled a 23-12 record a season ago, advancing to the round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament.

The CCSU Blue Devils enter the 2009-10 season on the heels of a 13-17 record a year ago, but they return with all but one starter from that squad.  Junior Ken Horton, an All-Conference pick a year ago as a sophomore, leads the returners that also includes captains senior Joe Seymore and junior Shemik Thompson.  Sophomore Robby Ptacek was the third leading scorer for Central as a freshman a year ago.  Along with Horton and Thompson, Ptacek averaged more than 10.0 points per game. 

Holy Cross is coming off a 2008-2009 season in which it posted an overall record of 18-14 and finished second in the Patriot League with an 11-3 mark in conference games. The Crusaders return with four starters off of that squad, including junior forward Andrew Keister and sophomore guard R.J. Evans. Keister earned first team All-Patriot League honors last season after averaging 8.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, while shooting a league-best 58.8 percent (104 of 177) from the floor. Evans, the 2009 Patriot League Rookie of the Year, led the team by averaging 13.4 points per game last year, in addition to pulling down 5.2 rebounds per contest.

Mohegan Sun Arena is ranked the 4th best venue by Billboard Magazine and was the 2008 recipient of a Country Music Award for “Casino of The Year.” For more information on concerts and other great events at Mohegan Sun, visit mohegansun.com.  For information on this week’s schedule, call the Entertainment and Special Events hotline at 1.888.226.7711, ext. 27163.

Dinner to honor six will be held November 21st at Mohegan Sun

John Scully, who fought for two world light heavyweight titles, heads the 2009 induction class for the Connecticut Boxing Hall of Fame. Vito Tallarita, Sal DiMartino, Dan Cosgrove, Julie Kogon and Jack Delaney will also be inducted at the fifth annual dinner on Saturday, November 21st in Mohegan Sun’s Uncas Ballroom.  The evening will be hosted by Showtime’s Steve Farhood.

Tickets for the dinner on November 21st are $75.00 and are available now by calling Mike Murtha at Mohegan Sun at 860.862.7586 or Sherman Cain at the Manchester Journal Inquirer at 1.800.237.3606 ext. 321.  The evening will begin with a cocktail hour from 6:00pm – 7:00pm with dinner to follow.
                             
Scully, 42, lost a decision to Henry Maske in Germany in an International Boxing Federation world light heavyweight title fight in 1996. He lost to Drake Thadzi in 1998 in a bout for the International Boxing Organization world title. The lifelong Windsor resident won a New England middleweight crown and was also an Eastern Regional amateur champion.  Scully had a 38-11 record as a pro. Scully currently trains lightweight contender Mike Oliver.
          
Tallarita was the matchmaker for Marlon Starling’s first 20 pro bouts. Tallarita, who lived in Enfield after moving from Italy at age seven, was the matchmaker for all five of Sugar Ray Leonard’s bouts in New England before Leonard became a world champion.  He was inducted into the Enfield Athletic Hall of Fame in 1996 and also did the wildly successful closed-circuit promotions of the first Muhammad Ali-Joe Frazier bout and the Ali-George Foreman fight.    
 
DiMartino, 80 and living in Florida, was the 1952 Connecticut state middleweight champ and won 27 of his first 31 pro bouts. Based in Hartford , DiMartino once beat Vic Cardell, inducted into the CBHOF in 2007. DiMartino retired in 1953 with a record of 38-11-7.                
 
Cosgrove, 91, won 31 of 34 fights between 1934 and 1937. The Branford native had a very successful construction company and had been a prominent figure in politics in the New Haven area.                      
 
Kogon was a popular fighter out of New Haven in the 1930s and 40s. He won the New England lightweight title in 1947. He was ranked the #10 lightweight by Ring Magazine in 1944. Kogon, who died in 1986, had an 83-38-17 professional record.                                                                                        
 
Delaney won a world light heavyweight title in 1926. He relinquished his title without defending it to pursue a career as a heavyweight. He lived in Bridgeport most of his career, compiling pro wins over CBHOF inductees Maxie Rosenbloom and Lou Bogash. Delaney, who died in 1948, finished with a 77-12-1 pro record.                                             

For more information on this and other great events at Mohegan Sun, visit mohegansun.com.  For information on this week’s schedule, call the Entertainment and Special Events hotline at 1.888.226.7711, ext. 27163.

PBR Live in the Arena Friday, October 16th – Sunday, October 18th

The Professional Bull Riders, Inc. (PBR) will bring the world’s best bull riders and bulls to the East Coast for the Mohegan Sun Invitational presented by Cooper Tires, the 31st and final stop in the 2009 season.  The top 40 bull riders will participate in three days of non-stop competition as they all vie for the final Built Ford Tough Series (BFTS) event title of the 2009 regular season.  Mohegan Sun Arena will host the event with the action getting underway on Friday, October 16th at 8:00pm and continuing on Saturday, October 17th at 7:50pm and Sunday, October 18th at 12:00pm.  Each rider is competing for their chance to qualify for the 2009 PBR Built Ford Tough World Finals in Las Vegas where a $1,000,000 bonus will be awarded to the 2009 PBR World Champion. 

Tickets are available for as little as $10.00 and increase to $25.00, $40.00 and $75.00 on Friday, October 16th. On Saturday, October 17th and Sunday, October 18th, tickets will be $15.00, $25.00, $50.00 and $100.00.  Tickets are on sale now at the Mohegan Sun Box Office and through Ticketmaster.  Ticketmaster customers may log on to Ticketmaster.com; call Ticketmaster’s national toll free Charge by Phone number 1.800.745.3000; or visit any Ticketmaster outlet.

The Mohegan Sun Invitational will feature the superstars of professional bull riding including 2008 PBR World Champion Guilherme Marchi (Leme, SP, Brazil); PBR superstars

J.B. Mauney (Mooresville, NC), Kody Lostroh (Longmont, CO), Ryan Dirteater (Hulbert, OK), Zack Brown (Santa Fe, TX), and Ryan McConnel (Colgate, OK.); past World Champions Chris Shivers (Jonesville, LA) – 2000 & 2003 – and Mike Lee (Decatur, TX) – 2004; and PBR fan favorites Matt Bohon (Cole Camp, MO), Wiley Petersen (Fort Hall, ID), Ross Coleman (Molalla, OR), and Luke Snyder (Raymore, MO) who holds the current record for most consecutive BFTS events attended.

The elite event will consist of four rounds of competition with the first three rounds featuring the top 40 bull riders matched against the PBR’s toughest bulls. The scores from the three rides will be combined and the riders with the top 15 scores will advance to the Built Ford Tough Championship Round after intermission on Sunday. In the end, the cowboy with the highest total score on four bulls will be declared the winner of the Mohegan Sun Invitational!

Mohegan Sun Arena is ranked the 4th best venue by Billboard Magazine and was the 2008 recipient of a Country Music Award for “Casino of The Year.” For more information on concerts and other great events at Mohegan Sun, visit mohegansun.com.  For information on this week’s schedule, call the Entertainment and Special Events hotline at 1.888.226.7711, ext. 27163.