Eagles Dismantle Rockets, 85-59, on Senior Night at the Convocation Center

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Highlights.

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University basketball team entered Friday night's contest against the University of Toledo needing a win, a Northern Illinois University victory over Ball State University and a Miami University loss at Ohio University to secure a first round home game in the 2015 Mid-American Conference Tournament. All three of those things happened, as the Eagles (19-12, 8-10 MAC) posted a dominating 85-59 victory over the Rockets (19-12, 11-7 MAC) Friday, March 6, inside the Convocation Center.

The 85 points for EMU is the highest point total against a MAC opponent this season. Also, 54 points in the second half is the highest total in a single half since the Eagles put together a 69-point second half against Marygrove College, Nov. 14, 2008.

Prior to the game, Eastern Michigan honored fourseniors in a pregame ceremony for their time and dedication to the EMU basketball program. The 2015 senior class includes: Mike Talley (Detroit, Mich.-Melvindale ABT (Duquesne)), Anali Okoloji (Brooklyn, N.Y.-Impact Academy (George Mason)), Karrington Ward (Lockport, Ill.-Lockport Township (Morain Valley C.C.)) and Jerome Hunter (Buffalo, N.Y.-Queen City Prep (Alabama A&M)).

Talley was impressive in his final regular season home game for the Green and White, scoring a game-high 23 points on 6-of-15 shooting from the floor including a 10-for-12 clip from the charity stripe. Talley reached the 1,200 career point mark in the contest and recorded three rebounds, five assists and four steals as well. Ward also had a night to remember, pouring in 18 points with 16 of them coming in the second half on "Senior Night." Freshman Tim Bond (Baltimore, Md.-City College High School) played his best game offensively, netting a career-high 15 points on 7-of-9 shooting, while Raven Lee (Detroit, Mich.-Romulus) finished in double-figures for the Eagles, as he scored 17 points.

Toledo was led by J.D. Weatherspoon who recorded his third straight double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Nathan Boone and Julius Brown scored in double-figures as well for the Rockets, finishing with 11 points apiece.

EMU shot 45.6 percent (31-for-68) from the floor, while holding the Rockets to 32.2 percent (19-for-59). The Eagles forced 20 turnovers which turned into 28 points for the home team. UT held the advantage on the glass (45-40), but Eastern outscored the Rockets in the paint by a 44-28 margin.

Talley scored the first five points for Eastern Michigan as the Eagles held an early 5-0 advantage. EMU held Toledo scoreless for the first 3:34 of the contest, however back-to-back triples from Brown and Jonathan Williams gave the Rockets their first lead of the contest, 6-5.

The teams traded buckets until the second media timeout, as the Eagles held onto a slim 14-12 lead with just less than 12 minutes to play in the opening half. Toledo came out of the timeout and scored the next eight points capped by a pair of free throws from Kurt Hall to take a 20-14 lead. Talley split a pair from the line to stop the run, but Weatherspoon scored four straight including an emphatic dunk on an inbounds play to give the Rockets their largest lead of the game, 24-15.

The Green and White took control from there, however, going on a 16-3 run over the next 4:31 to grab a 31-27 lead. Bond scored seven points during the run for EMU. Toledo added a basket as the time expired in the first half, as the teams hit the halftime break with the Eagles leading 31-29.

Lee led all scorers in the first half with 11 points on 5-of-9 shooting. Talley posted nine points, three rebounds, and three assists in the opening 20 minutes for the Green and White. EMU shot 40 percent (12-for-30) in the first half compared to 34.4 percent (11-32) for the Rockets. UT held the advantage on the glass, 24-17 but the Eagles and Rockets both scored 16 points in the paint.

Eastern began the second half just as they finished the first, opening the final 20 minutes with an 18-4 run over the first six minutes to grab a 16-point advantage, 49-33. Ward capped the run with a jumper and three-point basket on consecutive possessions to force Toledo Head Coach Tod Kowalzcyk into calling a timeout at the 14:06 mark.

EMU dominated the second half, outscoring the Rockets 54-30. The Eagles held a 20-point advantage for the final five minutes of the contest and led by as many as 26 points, which was the final margin of victory for the Green and White. Following Talley's basket at the 5:13 mark of the first half, EMU closed the game on a 70-35 run.

The Eagles will now be the eighth seed in the 2015 Mid-American Conference Tournament and host the ninth seeded Miami University RedHawks Monday, March 9. The Eagles and RedHawks split the regular season series, with each team winning at home. If current seedings hold on the women's side of the MAC, the Green and White will be the backend of a doubleheader on Monday. Head Women's Basketball Coach Tory Verdi and his squad would take the floor first at 5 p.m. with the men's tip slated tentatively for 30 minutes after.

2015 MAC Men's Basketball Tournament Pairings

Monday, March 9th, 2015
First Round (High Seed Campus Sites)
Game 1: No. 5 Bowling Green v. No. 12 Ball State, TBA
Game 2: No. 8 Eastern Michigan v. No. 9 Miami, 7 p.m.
Game 3: No. 6 Western Michigan v. No. 11 Ohio, TBA
Game 4: No. 7 Akron v. No. 10 Northern Illinois, TBA

Wednesday, March 11th, 2015
Second Round
Game 5: Game 1 Winner v. Game 2 Winner, 6:30 p.m.
Game 6: Game 3 Winner v. Game 4 Winner*

Thursday, March 12th, 2015
Third Round
Game 7: Winner Game 5 vs. No. 4 Toledo, 6:30 p.m.
Game 8: Winner Game 6 vs. No. 3 Kent State*

Friday, March 13th, 2015
Semifinals
Game 9: Game 7 Winner vs. No. 1 Central Michigan, 6:30 p.m.
Game 10: Game 8 Winner vs. No. 2 Buffalo*

Saturday, March 14th, 2015
MAC Championship
Game 11: Championship Game, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN2)

Eagles Dismantle Rockets, 85-59, on Senior Night at the Convocation Center

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Team Stats

Mike Talley

Karrington Ward

Ray Lee

Tim Bond

Players Mentioned

Tim Bond

Jerome Hunter

Ray Lee

Anali Okoloji

Mike Samuels

Mike Talley

Karrington Ward

Players Mentioned

Tim Bond

Jerome Hunter

Ray Lee

Anali Okoloji

Mike Samuels

Mike Talley

Karrington Ward

Eastern Michigan Athletics