BTN.com staff, January 4, 2012

BTN?s first original series and its highest rated last year, he Journey: Big Ten Basketball 2012 returns at 8 p.m. ET Sunday.  The Emmy-nominated, documentary-style program takes viewers deep inside Big Ten basketball programs, spending consecutive days with different conference teams to follow the season?s most compelling storylines during the 10-week march toward the Big Ten Tournament.

The season premiere will feature Michigan State senior forward Draymond Green and the connection he shares with his hometown of Saginaw, Mich. The show also will introduce fans to Indiana freshman forward Cody Zeller and highlight a special moment as the 1987 Indiana National Championship Team returns to Bloomington.  The first of the ten-episode series also examines Purdue coach Matt Painter?s Indiana roots, and show how two Ohio State McDonald?s All-Americans, Jared Sullinger and Deshaun Thomas, have taken different paths to success in Columbus.

"Our production staff uses a 'cinema verite' style of storytelling to give Big Ten basketball fans unprecedented access and insight into their favorite teams, coaches and student-athletes," said Bill Friedman, BTN Senior Producer of Studio and Original Programming.

This is The Journey?s fifth season, following Minnesota Basketball, Illinois Football, Big Ten Basketball 2010 and Big Ten Basketball 2011. In 2010, the program was named co-winner of the best sports show/series by CableFAX magazine, along with ESPN?s 30 for 30 and received a Sports Emmy nomination in the category of Outstanding Edited Sports Series/Anthology by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS).

You can follow the producers of The Journey on Twitter @BTNJourney.