NCAA Basketball 09 is not just a new name; it introduces a new way to play college basketball that mirrors real life. A new, strategic gameplay feature challenges gamers to replicate their school’s style of play, set the tempo and win. Whether your school plays up tempo looking to push the ball in transition, runs a half-court offense that utilizes the clock and limits possessions or features a balanced attack that combines transition offense with set plays, NCAA Basketball 09 rewards the strategic gamer and emphasizes team specific styles of play.

NCAA Basketball 09 will feature Division I coaches in-game for the first time. Each coach will provide real time instruction and feedback, helping gamers control the tempo by executing their team’s offense and defense to perfection.

This year on Xbox 360 and PLAYSTATION 3, NCAA Basketball 09 will operate on a new gameplay engine with over 1,000 new animation sequences that deliver a more responsive experience with improved ball physics and more intelligent AI. The new animation system enables gamers to apply pressure defense with new full-court presses and traps. Plus, improved AI and animations enable quicker players to get up and down the floor faster and make better decisions running the lanes and driving to the rim. Animations can be interrupted at any time, enabling you to read and respond to the action on the floor, just like real life.

Love is the first UCLA basketball player to be featured on the cover of the EA SPORTS college basketball game. A student-athlete with a 3.2 grade point average, Love was a first team All-American while leading the Bruins in scoring at 17.5 points per game and rebounding at 10.6 rebounds per game as a true freshman. Named 2008 Pac-10 Freshman and Player of the Year, Love led UCLA to the Men’s Final Four®. He was the fifth pick in the 2008 NBA Draft by the Memphis Grizzlies and later traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

“It is quite an honor to be named cover athlete of NCAA Basketball 09,” Love said. “When you look back at some of the great players who have had this opportunity, it’s exciting to be a part of the EA SPORTS family and contribute to a game I’ve been playing for a long time.”

NCAA Basketball 09 will build upon the authenticity that epitomized the No. 1 selling(a) NCAA® March Madness® franchise by capturing the emotion, intensity, and atmosphere of a real college basketball game. Feel the excitement of game night with the band playing fight songs, the student section leading the cheers and popular ESPN college basketball broadcasters Dick Vitale, Brad Nessler, and Erin Andrews providing the commentary.

NCAA Basketball 09 is in development at EA Canada in Burnaby, B.C. It will ship to stores in fall 2008. The game is not yet rated by the ESRB. To learn more about the game visit www.ncaabasketball09.com. Box art of NCAA Basketball 09 can be downloaded at http://info.ea.com.

(a) Based on total franchise sales in 2007 according to the NPD Group, Inc.

About Electronic Arts

Electronic Arts Inc. (EA), headquartered in Redwood City, California, is the world's leading interactive entertainment software company. Founded in 1982, the company develops, publishes, and distributes interactive software worldwide for video game systems, personal computers, cellular handsets and the Internet. Electronic Arts markets its products under four brand names: EA™, EA SPORTS™, EA SPORTS Freestyle™ and POGO™. In fiscal 2008, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $3.67 billion and had 27 titles that sold more than one million copies. EA's homepage and online game site is www.ea.com. More information about EA's products and full text of press releases can be found on the Internet at http://info.ea.com.

About the NCAA

The NCAA is a membership-led nonprofit association of colleges and universities committed to supporting academic and athletic opportunities for more than 400,000 student-athletes at more than 1,000 member colleges and universities. Each year, more than 54,000 student-athletes compete in NCAA Championships in Division I, II and III sports. For more information, go to www.ncaa.org.

EA, EA SPORTS, EA SPORTS Freestyle and POGO are trademarks or registered trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. All Rights Reserved. All names, logos, team icons, and mascots associated with the NCAA, universities, and conferences are the exclusive property of the respective institutions. NCAA and March Madness are trademarks or registered trademark of the National Collegiate Athletic Association. “PlayStation” and “PLAYSTATION” are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Microsoft, Xbox, and Xbox 360 are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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