Eastern Set for Pre-Holiday Showdown with Marygrove

Men's Basketball vs. Marygrove
Date	Thursday, Dec. 22 \| 2 p.m.
Venue	Ypsilanti, Mich. \| Convocation Center (8,784)
Game Notes	EMU Game Notes
Live Stats	EMUEagles.com
Watch	ESPN 3
Listen	N/A
Twitter	@EMUHoops \| @EMUAthletics

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- After losing two in a row, the Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team returns home and will attempt to right the ship as it squares off with Marygrove College, Thursday, Dec. 22, at the Convocation Center. The Eagles (6-5) and Mustangs (3-12) will hit the court at 2 p.m. for a pre-holiday afternoon matchup.

Eastern is coming off of a tough, 105-57, loss at Syracuse University, Monday, Dec. 19, where it trailed wire to wire at the Carrier Dome. The Green and White struggled offensively in the contest, shooting just 34.8 percent, while the Orange connected at a scorching 58.7 percent clip. Marygrove has also lost its last two games and comes into the Thursday afternoon matinee following an 81-75 setback versus the University of Michigan-Dearborn, Saturday, Dec. 17.

FINDING THE GAME AT HOME: The Eastern Michigan versus Marygrove matchup can only be found on ESPN3 this Thursday. Normally, fans would dial into 89.1 FM or listen over the internet to 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.

The Eagles' game at the Convocation Center will be broadcast live on ESPN 3. The play-by-play man for Thursday's action will be Ryan Wooley, while Hostetter will step aside from the radio broadcast and breakdown the game as the commentator. In addition, the game can be streamed live via the WatchESPN app on your mobile devices if you have a television subscription to ESPN.

ALL-TIME VERSUS THE MUSTANGS: Thursday afternoon's 2 p.m. contest will be the fourth time that EMU and Marygrove meet on the hardwood. Eastern Michigan has won each of its first three contests with the Mustangs. It will also be the third-straight season that the Eagles and Mustangs will have met in a regular season tilt. A year ago, the Green and White wrangled in the Mustangs, 108-64, in a Nov. 25, matchup at the Convo.

In the last dance with Marygrove, James Thompson IV finished with a then-EMU season-best 32 points on 92.8 percent (13-of-14) shooting, as well as grabbing 13 rebounds for his first career double-double. The 32-point outburst tied the sixth-most points scored in a game in Convo history. Brandon Nazione and Willie Mangum IV also finished in double-figures with a career-high 17 for Nazione and 17 for Mangum.

LIKELY LOOK FOR THE MUSTANGS...

#	Name	Pos.	Cl.	Ht.	Wt.	ppg	rpg	apg	Hometown-Previous School
0	Thomas Simmons	G	Jr.-Jr.	6-3	180	4.1	2.5	0.8	Detroit, Mich.-Melvindale ABT
10	T.K. Dixon	G	Jr.-Jr.	6-2	175	11.7	4.5	3.7	Atlanta, Ga.-Logansville
11	Nate Taylor	F	Sr.-Sr.	6-6	200	18.8	9.5	2.7	Battle Creek, Mich.-Kellogg C.C.
22	Isaac Gillum	F	So.-So.	6-1	170	10.9	2.3	1.7	Milwaukee, Wis.-Holy Redeemer
25	Angus Bennett	C	Jr.-Jr.	6-7	260	5.2	3.9	0.5	Jackson, Mich.-Kellogg C.C.

LAST TIME OUT: Eastern Michigan dropped its second in a row Monday, Dec. 19, when it traveled to Syracuse. The Eagles fell, 105-57, on the road, as the Orange were on fire from everywhere on the floor, shooting 58.7 percent from the field, and 53.6 percent from beyond the arc.

Jordan Nobles led the Green and White by posting his first career double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds on 5-of-11 shooting. Quaran Jones and Willie Mangum IV were the only other Eagles in double figures, pouring in 12 and 10 points, respectively. For Jones, the 12 points were a career-best since donning the EMU Green and White. Throughout the game, Eastern shot just 34.8 percent from the floor, while connecting on 19.2 percent of its three-point opportunities.

NOBLES KNOCKING IT OUT: Canton, Mich. native Jordan Nobles has put together back-to-back-to-back career games, notching 13 points in the Eagles' victory over Siena Heights, Dec. 11, before pouring in 14 in the setback at Vermont, Dec. 17. In addition to his career-high in points, the redshirt-sophomore connected on a pair of threes, which is also a career-best for the 6-foot-9 forward. Additionally, Nobles recorded the first double-double of his career when he posted 11 points and 10 rebounds versus Syracuse, Dec. 19.

JONES WITH THE J: Senior Quaran Jones put on a clinic in the final 13 minutes of the Eagles' loss at Syracuse. Jones scored a team-best and career-high 12 points in just 13 minutes of play. The Fargo, N.D. native did so by way of a 5-for-7 performance and two free throw makes.

TURNOVER POINTS NEEDED: The Eagles have won the points off turnover battle in every game this season, except for their loss at Vermont. In the contest in Burlington, Vt., the Green and White had just 11 points off turnovers while the Catamounts grabbed 15 points off of Eastern Michigan miscues to defeat Eastern.

THOMPSON TAKES CHARGE ON THE GLASS: EMU sophomore James Thompson IV put together the best rebounding performance by an Eagle since Kareem Carpenter grabbed 27 rebounds versus Western Michigan, Feb. 8, 1995, by grabbing 21 rebounds in Eastern's 82-74 loss at Vermont, Dec. 17. Of Thompson's 21 rebounds, 11 of them came on the offensive end.

HIGHWAY ROBBERY: Eastern Michigan has become known as one of the most active teams defensively and the numbers back up that claim. The Eagles have racked up a total of 126 steals this season, which ranks as the fifth-most in the NCAA as of Dec. 21. Additionally, their average of 11.5 steals per game are the second-best in the nation.

Individually, the Green and White boast five student-athletes who average one-or-more steal per contest, including Tim Bond, Ray Lee, Willie Mangum IV, Baylee Steele, and Ty Toney. Bond, Lee, Mangum and Toney make up four of the top-six spots in the Mid-American Conference with Bond, Mangum and Toney leading the MAC with 2.2 steals per game.

WINNING THE TURNOVER BATTLE: This season, Eastern Michigan has won the turnover battle in all but three contests. Additionally, the Green and White have forced more than 15 turnovers in eight of the Eagles' 11 games this season. In total, EMU owns a +6.5 turnover margin, good for the fourth-best in the NCAA. As a team, Eastern Michigan turns the ball over just 12.3 times per contest, while forcing the opposition into 18.7 per game.

PLENTY OF OPTIONS: EMU has proven to have plenty of options on the offensive end of the floor this season. In fact, the Eagles are the only team in the Mid-American Conference with three student-athletes averaging 14-or-more points per contest. Willie Mangum IV leads the Green and White with 16.8 points per contest, good for seventh in the MAC, while Ray Lee's 15.9 points per game is 11th in the conference and James Thompson IV's 14.5 is 16th-best in the league.

NATIONALLY SPEAKING: As of Dec. 21, the Eagles are near the top of the country in multiple categories. Ray Lee is the 12th active leading scorer in the country with 1,577 career points scored. Additionally, James Thompson IV is one of the best rebounders in the country with 126 total rebounds, ranking 13th, while his 11.5 per game are good for third in the country. Thompson has seven double-doubles this year, which are the eighth-most in NCAA Division I basketball, and his five offensive rebounds per game ranks third. Tim Bond, Willie Mangum IV, and Ty Toney have emerged as three of the top defensive players in the country as well. The EMU guard trio each average 2.2 swipes per game are tied for the 26th best in NCAA Division I basketball.

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 26 double-doubles in just 43 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 one more to jump up to sixth in the all-time rankings.

EAGLES OFFENSE SOARING: Despite being known for their defensive activity, the Green and White's offense should not be overlooked. Eastern Michigan ranks 42nd in the NCAA and third in the MAC with 82.3 points per game.

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. To this point of the season, the 2016-17 Eagles are hitting their free throws at an 72.9 percent clip, which would tie the EMU all-time record.

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 eighth overall in EMU history for free throws made (394), while also being tied for 10th in career free throw percentage (.785).

ON THE HORIZON: Following their Thursday afternoon contest with Marygrove, the Eagles remain at home for another Thursday afternoon matchup, Dec. 29. The Green and White welcome in Long Beach State University at 2 p.m. at the Convocation Center.

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Players Mentioned

Tim Bond

Quaran Jones

Ray Lee

Willie Mangum IV

Brandon Nazione

Jordan Nobles

Baylee Steele

James Thompson IV

Ty Toney

Eastern Michigan Athletics