Eastern Michigan Hosts Norfolk State for First Round of the CIT

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) - After taking his team to the semifinals of the 2014 Mid-American Conference Men's Basketball Tournament Head Coach Rob Murphy and the Eastern Michigan University men's basektball team accepted a bid to compete in the 2014 CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament. The Eagles (21-14) will host their first round game with Norfolk State University on Tuesday, March 18, at the Convocation Center. Game time with the Spartans is scheduled for 7 p.m. Tickets for the the first round contest will be $10 for adults and $5 for students with a valid EMU ID and children under 12. In addition, there will be floor seats sold for $30 per ticket. For more information, call 734.487.2282 or visit EMUTix.com.

The 2014 CIT is made up of non-BCS programs which have not been selected to participate in the NCAA or NIT, and all 31 games are played on campus sites. In an effort to minimize travel and limit class time missed, the CIT uses the old NIT model, with future round opponents determined by results of the previous round which ensures geographic stability. The CIT began as a 16-team event its first two years in 2009 and 2010, expanded to 24 teams in 2011, and 32 teams in 2012. East Carolina won the 2013 tournament title.

FINDING THE GAME AT HOME: The Eagles' contest with the Spartans will hit the airwaves of 89.1 FM (WEMU). In addition to the WEMU broadcast, fans can watch the game live on a live streaming service provided by CollegeInsider.com.

Veteran "Voice of the Eagles" Chad Bush will serve as EMU's play-by-play announcer for the WEMU broadcast, while Sean Hostetter will join the broadcast as the analyst.

A DIFFERENT KIND OF SPARTAN: The Eagles are used to squaring off with the Spartans. However, typically those are the Spartans from Michigan State. The Tuesday evening contest will be the first time EMU has taken on Norfolk State in the 117-year history of men's basketball at Eastern Michigan.

CLUTCH AT THE LINE: Despite shooting just 20.5 percent from the floor in the MAC Tournament, Mike Talley was second in scoring for the Eagles due in large part to his hot free throw shooting. The junior point guard went 15-of-18 from the the charity stripe, helping him average 8.3 points per game in the tournament. Since Feb. 26, when the Eagles knocked off Central Michigan, Talley has gone 33-for-36 from the charity stripe, good for a 91.7 percent mark.

RILEY NAMED MAC DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Da'Shonte Riley was named the 2013-14 MAC Defensive Player of the Year as announced by the league office, March 11. The senior center earned the honor after the 12 head coaches of the conference voted on the award.

Riley finished the regular season with 87 blocks, while averaging 2.8 rejections per contest, which is the best in the MAC. The senior rejected five-or-more blocks in seven games, and four-or more in10. The Detroit, Mich. native has been an important piece of the 2-3 zone defense, which ranked as the top field goal defense in the country.

The seven-footer's ability to block shots has earned him a spot in the Eastern Michigan record books as well. Currently, he has the second-most rejections in a single season with 88, just eight behind Theron Wilson. He also trails Wilson in career blocks with 188 over the course of two and a half seasons.

WARD EARNS ALL-MAC THIRD TEAM HONORS: Junior forward Karrington Ward earned All-MAC Third Team honors the league office announced, March 10. Ward is the first EMU student-athlete to be named to the All-MAC Third Team since 2012 senior Darrell Lampley earned the honor.

The 6-foot-7 forward led the Eagles in scoring (12.5 ppg) which ranked as the 15th most in the MAC. In addition to his stellar scoring effort, the Lockport, Ill. native also led the Green and White in rebounding (6.4 rpg) which is the 12th best in the league, while also tying as the seventh best defensive rebounder with five per contest. Ward also ranks 12th in both steals (1.5 spg) and three point field goal percentage (36.2 percent).

THE SIXTH POSTSEASON APPEARANCE: In 117 years of varsity men's basketball at EMU, the Green and White has made its way into the postseason on five occasions. The Eagles will make its sixth postseason tournament this year when they take the hardwood to take on Norfolk State, March 18.

OTHER THAN THE NCAA: Eastern is not a stranger to postseason tournaments outside of the NCAA. The Eagles played in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) following the 1994-95 regular season. The Green and White traveled to Bradley for a first round game in which EMU fell, 85-86, in a double overtime thriller.

GETTING DEFENSIVE IN THE TOURNAMENT: The Eagles' defense showed up in the MAC Tournament, holding teams to less than 60 points (57.8 ppg) in the four games. Glenn Bryant and Da'Shonte Riley led that charge, notching a combined 19 blocks. Bryant posted 11 of those, averaging 2.75 blocks per contest in the tournament.

THE BEST IN THE FIELD: According to the NCAA.com Daily RPI Rankings, Eastern Michigan has the best RPI of the teams competing in the 2014 CollegeInsider.com Tournament at 86. There are just six other teams with RPI's under 100.

ONE OF THREE: Eastern Michigan is not the only Mid-American Conference member to play in the 2014 CollegeInsider.com Tournament. The Eagles are joined by Akron and Ohio in the tournament as each of these members post records with 20-or-more wins. The Bobcats come in with a record of 23-10, while the Zips are 21-12 on the year.

THEN THERE WERE FIVE: The Mid-American Conference placed a conference record five teams in postseason play this year. Other than the Eagles, Western Michigan will appear in the NCAA Tournament, Toledo will play in the NIT, while Akron and Ohio join EMU in the CIT.

HOW DOES THAT WORK?: In their run to the semifinal round of the 2014 MAC Tournament, the Eagles won three-straight tournament contest. That number marks the most by any team that participated in the tournament, but how did EMU not win the tournament you ask? The current tournament format sees that the top two seeds start in the semifinals, while the third and fourth seeded teams start their run in the quarterfinal round. The number five through 12 seed must win five games in six days, while the top-four seeds only have two and three games to win to be crowned the MAC Tournament champion.

EASTERN IN THE POSTSEASON: Eastern Michigan has seen the postseason in five years prior to 2014. The Eagles have competed in the NCAA Tournament on four separate occasions and boast a 3-4 record. In addition, the Green and White is just 0-1 in its only NIT appearance back in 1995.

THE COMEBACK KIDS: Eastern Michigan trailed by double-digits in its first two games played at Quicken Loans Arena in the 2014 MAC Tournament presented by Barbasol. In EMU's 53-48 victory over Northern Illinois, Eastern trailed NIU by 11 at the half, but the Eagles' stifling defense held the Huskies to just three field goals and 13 total points in the second half to comeback and take the victory that sent them into the quarterfinal round.

Again, the Eagles trailed Buffalo in their third round game by as many as 10. EMU rallied a second time after holding Javon McCrea, the 2014 MAC Player of the Year, to a season-low seven points, regaining the lead late in the game, securing Eastern's trip to the semifinals.

DOUBLE DIGIT AFFAIRS: Karrington Ward has proven to be one of the most consistent scorers since putting on the EMU jersey. In 35 games played for the Eagles, the Lockport, Ill. native has scored in double figures on 24 different nights, including four games where he has scored 20-or-more points. The junior set a career-high versus Cleveland State, Nov. 18, 2013, with a 28 point outburst.

THE BEST IN HIS TENURE: Head Coach Rob Murphy has quickly shown that he is here to improve the EMU men's basketball program. In his first season, Murphy took over a 9-22 team in 2010-11 and brought a 14-18 finish to Ypsilanti during the 2011-12 season. In year two, that win total jumped by two as the Green and White finished 16-18. With two games left on the regular season schedule, he has guaranteed to have a winning record during the 2013-14 season. With a current record of 18-12, EMU finished the season with a record of 21-14, which marks the most wins since the 1997-98 campaign which saw the Eagles post a 22-5 mark, as well as earning berth into the 1998 NCAA Tournament. The 21 wins is the most in his career as a head coach.

THE BLOCK KING: Da'Shonte Riley's seven blocked shots versus Toledo moved him into second all-time in blocks in Eastern Michigan history. In addition to his 191 career blocks, Riley currently has 95 blocks this season, which is one shy of Theron Wilson's top mark of 96 set during the 1992-93 season.

Eastern Michigan Athletics

Eastern Michigan Hosts Norfolk State for First Round of the CIT

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