Eastern Heads to Detroit for In-State Rivalry with UDM

Men's Basketball at Detroit Mercy
Date	Wednesday, Nov. 30 \| 7 p.m.
Venue	Detroit, Mich. \| Calihan Hall (8,295)
Game Notes	EMU Game Notes \| UDM Game Notes
Live Stats	EMUEagles.com
Watch	ESPN 3
Listen	89.1 FM WEMU
Twitter	@EMUHoops \| @EMUAthletics

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- Riding a two-game winning streak, the Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team hits the road for an in-state battle with the University of Detroit Mercy this Wednesday, Nov. 30. The Eagles (4-3) and Titans (1-5) will square off at venerable Calihan Hall for a 7 p.m. contest in Detroit, Mich. This will be the second straight season that the Green and White will meet with UDM.

Eastern Michigan comes into the contest as winners of two games in a row, most recently taking down Omaha, 94-77, Nov. 26, in a non-conference tilt at the EMU Convocation Center. On the flip side, Detroit Mercy is riding a five-game losing streak with its last victory coming over NCAA Division III foe, Adrian College, Nov. 11, 99-69.

FINDING THE GAME AT HOME: The Eastern Michigan versus Detroit Mercy matchup will have both audio and video on Wednesday. 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 will be analyst 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 Calihan Hall will be broadcast live on ESPN3. The play-by-play man for Wednesday's action will be Dan Dickerson, while Earl Cureton 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 TITANS: Wednesday evening's 7 p.m. contest will be the 81st time that EMU and Detroit Mercy meet on the hardwood. Eastern Michigan has dropped nine of its last 10 games against the Titans, while only defeating Detroit Mercy three times in the last 26 years. The Eagles' last win came a season ago when they topped UDM, 88-73, in overtime, Dec. 28.

In the last dance with the Titans, Brandon Nazione posted a career high in points with 23, while grabbing a team-high seven rebounds and notching a career-high five steals. The other players with double-digit scoring nights were junior Willie Mangum IV with 16, redshirt junior Ray Lee with 15 points, sophomore Tim Bond who had 12, and freshman James Thompson IV, whose double-double streak ended at seven with 10 points and four rebounds.

LIKELY LOOK FOR DETROIT MERCY...

#	Name	Pos.	Cl.	Ht.	Wt.	ppg	rpg	apg	Hometown-Previous School
0	Chris Jenkins	G/F	Sr.-Sr.	6-8	200	11.8	5.7	2.0	Detroit, Mich.-Colorado
1	Corey Allen	G	Fr.-Fr.	6-3	214	8.5	2.5	0.8	Wichita, Kan.-Wichita East
11	Jarod Williams	G	Sr.-Sr.	6-3	220	6.5	3.5	0.8	Ramsey, Minn.-Anoka
21	Jaleel Hogan	F	Jr.-Jr.	6-7	260	13.2	3.2	0.5	Omaha, Neb.-Chipola College
23	Josh McFolley	G	So.-So.	6-1	172	14.5	2.7	2.2	Billings, Mont.-Wright State

LAST TIME OUT: The Eagles' offense rolled in the Green and White's 94-77 victory over Omaha Saturday, Nov. 26. As a team, Eastern had arguably its best offensive performance of the season, which included a season-high of 20 assists. The Eagles shot at a 55.7 percent clip, while knocking down 46.2 percent of their three-point attempts and 80 percent of its shots at the charity stripe. The EMU defense was incredibly disruptive, forcing 24 turnovers and nabbing 16 steals.

James Thompson IV secured his nation-leading fifth double-double in as many games, totaling 21 points and 11 rebounds, seven of them being on the offensive end. Ray Lee had yet another 20-point game, totaling 20 points, including four three-pointers, in addition to six assists. Two more Eagles finished in double figures, as Willie Mangum IV had 18, while Ty Toney nabbed 11. Mangum also finished with a career-high in steals, swiping the ball five times in the game.

CALIHAN CURSE: Eastern Michigan has seen its struggles when traveling to the Motor City for contests with Detroit Mercy. Not only is the overall series in favor of the Titans, 61-19, but the Eagles have not come away victorious at Calihan Hall since the 1988-89 campaign. That EMU squad traveled to Detroit, Mich., Dec. 7, and eventually defeated the Titans, 82-76. Since that game, the Titans have taken down the Green and White at Calihan Hall in six straight games.

HOMETOWN COOKING: EMU and Detroit Mercy both have rosters laden with student-athletes from the state of Michigan. UDM boasts a whopping nine-of-16 players from the Mitten State, including four that hail from the Motor City.

Eastern adds three student-athletes from the Great Lake state, including Ray Lee, who's hometown is Detroit as well. In total, there will be five players in Calihan Hall who will be competing in their hometown, while there will be 13 who are from Detroit and the surrounding areas.

A NORTH AMERICAN AFFAIR: Since Rob Murphy took over as the head coach of the EMU men's basketball program, the Eagles have been known to pull student-athletes from across the United States into Ypsilanti with open arms, including the 2016-17 roster. The Eagles' roster includes player from 11 different states in the U.S. and two different countries, as redshirt junior Nick Madray hails from Missasauga, Ontario, Canada.

THOMPSON EARNS MAC WEEKLY AWARD: James Thompson IV led the EMU men's basketball team to a 2-0 record last week on his way to being named the Mid-American Conference West Player of the Week, the league office announced Monday, Nov. 28. It was the second time that Thompson has earned the award in his career and first for the 2016-17 campaign.

Thompson posted his fourth and fifth double-doubles of the year to lead the Eagles to a perfect 2-0 week, on their way to earning their first winning record of the 2016-17 campaign. In the Eagles 97-60 victory over Madonna, Nov. 23, the 6-foot-10 forward went for 24 points and 10 rebounds, while posting 21 points and 11 rebounds in the Green and White's 94-77 win versus Omaha, Nov. 26. In total, the Baton Rouge, La. native averaged 22.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.5 blocks and 0.5 steals per contest. Additionally, he shot 70.8 percent (17-of-24) from the floor, while connecting on 91.7 percent (11-of-12) of his free throw attempts.

MAKING WAVES: For the third season in EMU history, the Eagles have received national attention via the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major poll. Earning a spot in the top-25 during both the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons, the Green and White are receiving 13 votes by mid-major coaches across the country following their 4-3 start to the season. The Mid-Major Poll is made up of teams from the following conferences: America East, Atlantic Sun, Big Sky, Big South, Big West, Colonial, Horizon, Independents, Ivy, Metro Atlantic, Mid-American, Mid-Eastern, Missouri Valley, Northeast, Ohio Valley, Patriot, Southern, Southland, Southwestern, Summit, Sun Belt, West Coast, Western Athletic.

FILLING IT UP: EMU combo-guard Ray Lee has already posted five 20-or-more point performances this season. A season ago, Lee totaled five 20-plus point games. Currently averaging 19.4 points per contest, the Detroit, Mich. native has the best scoring average by an Eagle since Brandon Bowdry averaged 19.9 points per game during the 2010-11 campaign. Additionally, Lee is on pace to score 617 points through the regular season and one Mid-American Conference Tournament game. That number would be the eighth-most scored in a single season by an Eagle. Should he keep that pace, Lee would finish his career third in Eastern Michigan scoring history.

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 has racked up 24 double-doubles in just 40 games donning the Green and White. That number ranks as the seventh-most double-doubles recorded in EMU history. The 6-foot-10 forward needs just three more to jump up to sixth in the all-time rankings. As of Nov. 28, Thompson's five double-doubles ranked as the second-most in NCAA Division I basketball during the 2016-17 season.

STREAKING AT THE CONVO: In the metaphorical sense, the Eagles have been streaking at the Convo, winning its last 10 contests in their home building. Eastern's home win streak dates back to Feb. 2, 2016, when it posted a 25-point, 94-69, win over Miami. Since that win, the Eagles have a perfect record at home. That number ranks as the NCAA's 15th-best winning streak inside a team's home building, while Kansas leads that category with 44-straight victories at Allen Fieldhouse. Akron is the only Mid-American Conference member that has a longer home winning streak with 20 victories in a row at James A. Rhodes Arena.

TURNING OVER THE COMPETITION: Eastern Michigan has continued its dominance on the defensive end of the floor. The Eagles are forcing an average of 19 turnovers per game. As of Nov. 29, that number ranked 22nd in the country and is first in the Mid-American Conference. The Green and White has forced the opposition into 20-or-more turnovers on two occasions and 15-or-more on four different dates. EMU saw its season-high of 24 in the victory over Gardner-Webb, Nov. 18, in Indianapolis.

ON THE HORIZON: Following their Wednesday evening contest with Detroit Mercy, the Eagles take a well deserved hiatus from competition with 11 days in between the UDM game and the their Dec. 11 contest with Siena Heights. The Green and White will host the Saints for a Sunday afternoon contest at 2 p.m. inside the Convocation Center.

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Players Mentioned

Tim Bond

Ray Lee

Nick Madray

Willie Mangum IV

Brandon Nazione

James Thompson IV

Ty Toney

Eastern Michigan Athletics