Eastern Set to Close Out 2K Classic Versus IUPUI

Men's Basketball at IUPUI (2K Classic)
Date	Saturday, Nov. 19 \| 1 p.m.
Venue	Indianapolis, Ind. \| Indiana Farmers Coliseum (6,800)
Game Notes	EMU Game Notes \| IUPUI Game Notes
Live Stats	IUPUIJags.com
Watch	ESPN 3
Listen	89.1 FM WEMU
Twitter	@EMUHoops \| @EMUAthletics

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (EMUEagles.com) -- After winning its second-straight contest, the Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team will close out its portion of the 2K Classic Saturday, Nov. 19, when it takes on the subregional host IUPUI at 1 p.m. from the Indiana Farmers Coliseum. In order to play the Jaguars (1-2), the Eagles (2-2) defeated Gardner-Webb Friday afternoon, Nov. 18, 76-68, on a neutral court.

IUPUI comes into the Saturday afternoon matchup following a dominant 77-55 victory over Howard Friday afternoon. The win over Howard advanced the Jaguars to the finals of the subregional versus Eastern.

FINDING THE GAME AT HOME: The Eastern Michigan versus IUPUI matchup will have both audio and video coverage on Saturday afternoon. Fans can dial into 89.1 FM or listen over the internet at WEMU.org to hear the smooth sounds of veteran play-by-play voice, Chad Bush. Joining Bush on the call this season as the analyst will be Assistant Athletic Media Relations Director Sean Hostetter. Coverage on 89.1 WEMU will begin 10 minutes prior to the tip of each game this year.

In addition to the WEMU broadcast, the Eagles' game at Indiana Farmers Coliseum will be broadcast live on ESPN3. The play-by-play man for Saturday's action will be Greg Rakestraw, while Carlos Knox will breakdown the game as the analyst. The game can be streamed live via WatchESPN.com or the WatchESPN app on your mobile devices if you have a television subscription to ESPN.

ALL-TIME VERSUS THE JAGUARS: Saturday's contest with the Jaguars will be the fourth time that IUPUI and Eastern Michigan will square off on the hardwood. The Eagles own a 3-0 edge all-time versus the Indianapolis, Ind.-based institution and look to remain perfect versus the Summit League foe. The last time these two squads met, the Green and White notched a 66-64 victory in Indy during Rob Murphy's first season as the head coach at Eastern Michigan, Nov. 20, 2011.

LIKELY LOOK FOR IUPUI...

#	Name	Pos.	Cl.	Ht.	Wt.	ppg	rpg	apg	Hometown-Previous School
0	Darell Combs	G	Sr.-Sr.	6-2	195	20.3	0.7	2.7	South Holland, Ill.-Eastern Michigan
5	Kellon Thomas	G	Sr.-Sr.	5-11	190	9.3	2.7	2.7	Indianapolis, Ind.-Kent State
15	Matt O'Leary	F	Sr.-Sr.	6-8	225	10.0	6.3	2.3	Terre Haute, Ind.-Loyola
24	Evan Hall	F	So.-So.	6-7	200	3.3	5.7	0.7	Hindman, Ky.-Knott County Central
25	Ron Patterson	G	Jr.-Jr.	6-2	200	9.3	1.0	0.8	Indianapolis, Ind.-Syracuse

LAST TIME OUT: he Eagles won their second-straight game Friday, Nov. 18, when it defated Gardner-Webb, 76-68.

Willie Mangum IV was the hot hand for the Eagles, scoring 28 points on 8-of-10 shooting and 6-of-7 from three-point land. James Thompson IV recorded his second double-double of the season and his second in as many games. Tim Bond was a stat-stuffer, grabbing nine points, six rebounds, six assists, and a steal. The Eagles were outshot by Gardner-Webb, but forced the Runnin' Bulldogs into 24 turnovers, while turning it over just 12 times themselves.

EMU AND THE SUMMIT: Squads from the Summit League aren't all that familiar to Eastern Michigan. Over its 119-year history, the Green and White has taken on members of the Summit League just 39 times. EMU's most common opponent during that period has been Western Illinois. Eastern is 9-19 against WIU and 19-20 overall versus the Summit League.

Head Coach Rob Murphy is currently 3-0 in games versus the Summit League. In the 2011-12 campaign, the Eagles dropped IUPUI, 66-64, Nov. 20, 2011, on the road, before hosting IPFW as part of the 2012 Ice Man Classic. The Green and White topped the Mastodons, 60-47, Nov. 17, 2012. Finally, EMU knocked off Omaha last season, 80-73, Dec. 1, 2015.

PLENTY TO CHOOSE FROM: This 2016-17 EMU men's basketball squad has shown it is very deep from top to bottom, and Rob Murphy will have a lot of options to choose from throughout the course of the season. So far this season, Eastern Michigan has seen its entire active roster take the floor and nine student-athletes are averaging 14-or-more minutes per game.

A FAMILIAR FOE: Although they are quite familiar with him, the EMU coaching staff is, for the first time, on the other side of the court from IUPUI senior Darell Combs who competed for one season under Rob Murphy and his 2013-14 squad. During the 2013-14 season, Combs appeared in 36-of-37 games, averaging 7.5 points per contest. This year, he is the leading scorer for IUPUI averaging just over 20 points per game. EMU senior Ray Lee is the only remaining member of the 2013-14 squad who played with Combs at Eastern.

LASER FROM LONG RANGE: EMU's Willie Mangum IV has been known to spark the Eastern Michigan offense from time to time. He did just that in the Eagles' victory over Gardner-Webb, Nov. 18. With EMU looking at a 14-0 deficit, the senior guard began his offensive onslaught throughout the game. Mangum connected on 8-of-10 shooting overall, while knocking down 6-of-7 three-point field goal attempts. The three-point shooting ranks as the best percentage in a single game with at least seven attempts in EMU history. In total, Mangum racked up 28 points in the victory.

ROAD WARRIORS: Eastern Michigan has four of its first five games away from the Convocation Center this season. The last time the Eagles has been on the road in four of the first five was during the 2010-11 campaign when they were on the road for six of their first seven games of the season. In that stretch, that EMU squad went 1-6.

DOUBLE-DOUBLE MACHINE: EMU sophomore James Thomspon IV has proven to be one of the premier frontcourt players in the Mid-American Conference and country through his short time at Eastern Michigan. The Baton Rouge, La. native have racked up 21 double-doubles in just 37 games donning the Green and White. That number ranks as the seventh-most double-doubles recorded in EMU history.

NATIONALLY SPEAKING: As of the NCAA's most recent statistical update through Nov. 17, the Eagles are near the top of the country in multiple categories. As a team, Eastern Michigan is No. 15 in the nation in total steals (29), while Ray Lee is the 10th active leading scorer in the country. Lee also ranks fourth in the country in free throws made (25) and sits in 11th in free throw attempts (28). Additionally, James Thompson IV is the fifth-best rebounder in the country with 36 total rebounds.

ABOUTH THE 2K CLASSIC: The 2K Classic benefiting Wounded Warrior Project, the nation's premier season-opening college basketball tournament, is celebrating its 21st anniversary this season and returns to Madison Square Garden for the 19th consecutive year. Teams from across the nation will compete with Marquette, Michigan, Pittsburgh and Southern Methodist serving as regional hosts. The remainder of the field includes Eastern Michigan, Garnder-Webb, Howard and IUPUI. IUPUI will host the subregionals, Nov. 18-19, while the Championship Rounds will take place, Nov. 18-20.

CHARITY CHAMPIONS: A season ago, EMU converted 72.1 percent of its free throw attempts, marking the third-best free throw percentage as a team in Eastern Michigan history. Through the first two games of the season, the 2016-17 Eagles are hitting their free throws at an 75 percent clip, which would break the EMU all-time record of 72.9 percent.

In addition, EMU's Ray Lee has continued to show his worth at the free throw line in the early goings of this year. The Detroit, Mich. native ranks 10th overall in EMU history for free throws made (381), while also ranking 10th in career free throw percentage (.785). This season, the 6-foot-3 combo guard connected on his first 19 free throw attempts and is 25-for-28 overall at the charity stripe.

CHASING 100: EMU Head Men's Basketball Coach Rob Murphy begins his sixth season at the helm of the Eagles' men's basketball program. After five seasons and into his sixth, he has amassed a record of 93-82 for Eastern Michigan. Should Murphy and his 2016-17 squad win nine games this season, the Detroit, Mich. native will become just the fourth coach in Eastern Michigan history to cross the 100-win mark.

AMONG THE ELITE IN EMU SCORING HISTORY: EMU redshirt senior guard Ray Lee put together another stellar offensive season during the 2015-16 campaign. Lee, who led the Eagles in scoring last year (15.1 ppg), has scored 1,494 points in his career. That number ranks him as the 10th-most prolific scorer in Eastern Michigan history. Currently, Kennedy McIntosh is the all-time scoring leader with 2,219 and Earl Boykins is second with 2,211. Lee needs to score 726 more points this year to become EMU's all-time leading scorer.

MID-MAJOR SUCCESS: Since taking over the EMU men's basketball program, head coach Rob Murphy has shown sustained success versus other NCAA Division I mid-major programs. Over the last four seasons, Murphy holds a 24-11 record versus mid-majors in non-conference matchups. The last three seasons, Murphy was 16-4 against other mid-major programs outside of the MAC and is currently 1-0 this year.

ON THE HORIZON: Following the conclusion of the 2K Classic for the Eagles, they will take a few days off before playing a Thanksgiving Eve contest with Madonna at the Convocation Center, Nov. 23. Game time is slated for 2 p.m. in Ypsilanti.

Players Mentioned

Tim Bond

Ray Lee

Willie Mangum IV

James Thompson IV

Ty Toney

Eastern Michigan Athletics