Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eagles Return Home for Date With Illinois State
12/3/2007 1:34:36 PM | Men's Basketball
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Eagles Return Home for Date With Illinois State: The Eastern Michigan University men’s basketball team will return home to the Convocation Center for a Tuesday, Dec. 4, 7 p.m. game against the Illinois State University Redbirds. Head coach Charles E. Ramsey’s Eagles are coming off a 76-65 road loss at Notre Dame (Dec. 1) while Illinois State recorded a 73-47 win over a visiting University of Illinois Chicago team Saturday. Senior guard Jesse Bunkley (Detroit, Mich.-CMA-Mott C.C.) continues to lead the Eagles in scoring and three-point shooting. He is averaging 13.8 points a game and has made 45.1 percent of his triples, connecting on 23-of-51.Right behind Bunkley is junior guard Carlos Medlock (Detroit, Mich.-Murray Wright) at 12.6 points a game and 5.1 assists per contest.Sophomore center Justin Dobbins (Cleveland, Ohio-Glenville) has become a major force in the middle, leading EMU with a 6.3 rebound average while also scoring at a 12.1 per-game clip. Dobbins is coming off a career-best 26-point performance at Notre Dame.Illinois State is currently 5-2 on the season under first-year head coach Tim Jankovich. ISU senior center Levi Dyer came off the bench against UIC and scored a career-best 25 points, making 7-of-8 three-point attempts.
FOR THE 111th TIME: The 2007-08 season is the 111th year of men’s intercollegiate basketball at Eastern Michigan University. EMU played its inaugural season in 1897-98 and split games with Detroit, losing a 2-0 decision before coming back for a 4-0 victory. This year will also be the 33rd for the Eagles as a member of the Mid-American Conference. The first year of MAC play for EMU was 1974-75 when the then-Hurons went 12-14 overall and 4-9 in league play. EMU has won three Mid-American Conference titles: 1987-88, 1990-91, and 1995-96, and the Green and White captured MAC Tournament crowns in all three of those years in addition to winning the MAC tourney title in 1997-98.
EAGLES 3-4: The Eagles dropped to 3-4 on the season with a 76-65 loss at Notre Dame Saturday (Dec. 1). The Eagles lost a heartbreaker to a visiting University of Detroit Mercy team Wednesday (Nov. 28), falling, 72-68. Prior to the UDM setback the Eagles won back-to-back road wins in the state of New York. EMU opened its trip to the Empire State with a 61-57 win at Manhattan College (Nov. 21). The Green and White then moved on to western New York (Nov. 24) and notched a 63-60 win at St. Bonaventure in Olean, N.Y. EMU’s other win was a 72-55 decision at home against Radford (Nov. 11). Losses have been at home against Brown, 74-55 (Nov. 9), and UDM, with road defeats at Oakland (Nov. 17) and Notre Dame.
Illinois State is 5-2 on the year with wins over Missouri-St. Louis (70-37), Southeast Missouri State (90-71), UNC-Wilmington (89-73), Chicago State (81-49), and the University of Illinois Chicago (73-49). ISU losses have come at the hands of No. 8 Indiana (70-57) and Kent State (65-59).
DOBBINS SETS A CAREER BEST: Sophomore center Justin Dobbins (Cleveland, Ohio-Glenville) came up with an outstanding effort at Notre Dame (Dec. 1) with a career-best 26 points on 12-of-19 shooting from the field. His previous best was 22 at Manhattan (Nov. 21) earlier this year.
PROBABLE STARTERS: Dec. 4
EMU (3-4)
F 15 Will Cooper (6-6, 180, Fr.-Rs)
W 21 Wendale Farrow (6-7, 210, Jr.)
C 25 Justin Dobbins (6-8, 236, So.)
G 3 Carlos Medlock (6-0, 186, Jr.)
G 23 Jesse Bunkley (6-5, 208, Sr.)
ILLINOIS STATE (5-2)
F 4 Anthony Slack (6-7, 210, Sr.)
F 42 Dinma Odiakosa (6-8, 240, So.)
G 0 Osiris Eldridge (6-3, 190, So.)
G 5 Boo Richardson (5-8, 160, Sr.)
G 10 Dom Johnson (6-0, 185, Sr.)
DOBBINS EARNS MAC AWARD: Sophomore center Justin Dobbins (Cleveland, Ohio-Glenville) was named Mid-American Conference West Division Player of the Week for Nov. 26, after leading the Eagles to two back-to-back wins in the state of New York. Dobbins turned in the first double-double of his career with 22 points and 14 rebounds in EMU’s 61-57 win at Manhattan College (Nov. 21). He followed that up with 13 points and nine rebounds in a 63-60 win at St. Bonaventure (Nov. 24).
THE COACHING STAFF: The Eagles return all but one coach from last year’s staff. Head coach Charles E. Ramsey (EMU, ‘92) returns for his third season as the head coach while assistants Derrick McDowell (Stetson, '83) and Carl Thomas (EMU, '92) are in their third seasons. Rich Marion (Michigan, '96) returns for his third year as the director of basketball operations. The newcomer to the staff is assistant coach Dave Donnelly (Northern Illinois, '97).
QUICK TRANSITION: For the past two seasons, guard Travis Lewis (Kalamazoo, Mich.-Loy Norrix), a starting wide receiver on the football team, has joined the EMU men’s basketball team immediately at the end of the football season. He took it an extra step this time around. Lewis started at wide receiver and caught four passes for 33 yards in a thrilling 48-45 EMU win over West Division champion Central Michigan Friday (Nov. 16) night in Mount Pleasant. That game ended at 10:23 p.m. and Lewis was at the basketball shoot-a-round at 8 a.m. Saturday (Nov. 17) morning at Oakland University. He was called on for reserve duty in the 6 p.m. Oakland game and responded with six points, two rebounds, and four steals in 21 minutes.
CALLING ON FOOTBALL, AGAIN: The EMU staff has called on the football program for a second hoops player. Senior guard Travis Lewis (Kalamazoo, Mich.-Loy Norrix) has joined the basketball team for three straight seasons at the end of the football season. Now, football wide receiver Tyler Jones (Belleville, Mich.-Belleville) has moved on to the hardcourt, beginning with EMU’s New York trip. Jones, No. 8 on the football field, will wear No. 5.
MAC RANKINGS: The Eagles are near the top of the latest Mid-American Conference statistical report in free-throw shooting, three-point shooting and rebounding. Eastern is second in three pointers made (8.14 per game) third in free-throw percentage (.719; 92-of-128), and fourth in rebounding margin (+0.3). Individually, the Eagles’ Jesse Bunkley (Detroit, Mich.-CMA-Mott C.C.) is the leading three-point shooter in the league at 3.83 per game.
CAPTAINS CHOSEN FOR 2007-08: EMU head coach Charles E. Ramsey has announced that seniors Nenad Banjanin (Belgrade, Serbia-Lon Morris (Texas) J.C.) and Jesse Bunkley (Detroit, Mich.-CMA-Mott C.C.) will join junior Carlos Medlock (Detroit, Mich.-Murray Wright) as the captains for the 2007-08 EMU squad.
