By JOHN BOHNENKAMP

Western Illinois’ climb to the top of the Ohio Valley Conference men’s basketball standings has the Leathernecks in line for a national television appearance.

The Leathernecks’ game at Southern Indiana on January 25 will be shown on ESPNU beginning at 8 p.m. CST. It is the first time a WIU team has been on one of the ESPN linear networks since the 2012 Summit League tournament championship game.

It will be the third national TV appearance for the Leathernecks this season — their games at Illinois and Wisconsin during the nonconference portion of the season were telecast on BTN.

The OVC’s TV deal with ESPN includes six regular-season men’s games that will appear on ESPNU. The conference uses a wild-card selection process to determine the broadcasts, with selections determined and announced approximately two weeks before the competition date to ensure the best matchups.

Western Illinois (12-6 overall, 5-0 OVC) has won nine consecutive games. Southern Indiana is 5-13 overall, 2-3 in the conference.

Photo: WIU guard Ryan Myers defends during a December 31 game at SIU-Edwardsville. (Photo courtesy of WIU Athletics)