Eagles Host Chippewas in Rivalry Rematch

Men's Basketball vs. Central Michigan
Date	Tuesday, Feb. 9 \| 7 p.m.
Venue	Ypsilanti, Mich. \| Convocation Center (8,784)
Game Notes	EMU Notes \| CMU Notes
Live Stats	EMUEagles.com
Watch	ESPN 3
Listen	89.1 FM WEMU
Twitter	@EMUHoops \| @EMUAthletics

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- After dropping six of its last seven games, the Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team returns to the Convocation Center following a loss at the University at Buffalo. EMU is slated to square off with Central Michigan University for the second time this season Tuesday, Feb. 9. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m.

In their last game, despite holding a four-point, 36-32, lead at halftime the Eagles (11-12, 3-7 MAC) were unable to hold on to a victory as Buffalo scratched together 48 second half points to overcome a 15-point first half lead for EMU.

The Chippewas (13-10, 6-4 MAC) have won four of their last five games, but most recently dropped a 92-87 decision on the road at Akron. Central Michigan has has averaged nearly 80 points per game over their last five and score 77.4 per game since the beginning of Mid-American Conference play.

FINDING THE GAME AT HOME: The Eastern Michigan versus Central Michigan matchup will have both audio and video on Tuesday night. 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.

Following the addition of its own brand new mobile television unit, all EMU men's and women's basketball games will be streamed live on ESPN3. Ryan Wooley will provide the play-by-play coverage for the ESPN3 broadcast, while EMU Assistant Athletic Director for Media Relations Greg Steiner will be alongside Wooley for analysis.

ALL-TIME VERSUS CENTRAL MICHIGAN: Tuesday night's 7 p.m. matchup will be the 192nd time that the Eagles and Chippewas square off on the hardwood. The Eagles trail the series, 100-91, but were able to take down the Maroon and Gold on the road earlier this season, 99-80, with a historic offensive showing by EMU.

In their last meeting, the Eagles put on an offensive clinic, defeating the Chippewas, 99-80. The 99 points was the most EMU has scored versus an NCAA Division I opponent since 2003. As a team, the Green and White shot 66 percent (33-of-50) from the floor. The Eagles' overall shooting percentage ranks as the second-best team field goal percentage in a single game in Eastern Michigan history. In addition, EMU connected on 65 percent (13-of-20) three point attempts, good for the best in school laurels.

LIKELY LOOK FOR THE CHIPPEWAS...

#	Name	Pos.	Cl.	Ht.	Wt.	ppg	rpg	apg	Hometown-Previous School
2	Braylon Rayson	G	Jr.-Jr.	5-9	190	16.7	3.4	2.0	Dallas, Texas-West Mesquite
4	Rayshawn Simmons	G	Sr.-Sr.	6-4	185	13.5	4.7	5.3	St. Louis, Mo.-Moberly Area C.C.
15	Chris Fowler	G	Sr.-Sr.	6-1	195	15.7	3.4	6.4	Southfield, Mich.-Detroit Country Day
24	Luke Meyer	F	So.-So.	6-11	225	8.9	5.1	0.2	Addison, Mich.-Addison
34	John Simons	F	Sr.-Sr.	6-8	220	9.8	6.9	0.9	Cadillac, Mich.-Cadillac

BULLS RALLY TOO MUCH FOR EAGLES: Despite leading for more than 35 minutes in their game with Buffalo Saturday, Feb. 6, the Eagles dropped an 80-70 decision to the Bulls who won their fourth-straight game. EMU led by as many as 15 in the game, but was unable to hold off UB as they outscored the Eagles by 14 in the second half.

YOUNG BLOOD: It will not come as a shock to see James Thompson IV as one of the top freshmen in EMU laurels. Posting 14 double-doubles this season, the Baton Rouge, La. native has already made his mark in the Eastern Michigan record books. The 14 double-doubles are seventh-most recorded all-time in EMU history, while his 360 points place him third in the most points scored by a freshman. In addition, Thompson has 254 rebounds this season, which puts him 30 rebounds shy of the top-20 mark in a single season in EMU history. On his current rebounding pace of 11 per game, at the end of the 2015-16 regular season, Thompson would accumulate 342 prior to the MAC Tournament. That rebounding number would give the 6-foot-10 center the fifth-most rebounds in EMU single season history.

STEALING THEIR WAY TO THE TOP: Currently, EMU has 230 steals on the season. That is just 76 shy of the all-time Eastern Michigan single season record. At their current pace (10.0 spg), which would also mark a single season record, the Eagles could surpass the single season steals mark in regular season play. With eight games until the MAC Tournament, the Green and White are on pace to accumulate 310 steals.

HEADING TO THE CHARITY STRIPE: At 594 free throw attempts, the Eagles lead the Mid-American Conference in that category, while also ranking 13th in the nation. In addition, the Green and White is connecting on free throws at a 72.6 percent clip. That number ranks third all-time in a single season at EMU. However, the Eagles free throw percentage has been trending upwards since MAC play started, connecting on 78.7 percent of their free throws since beginning the conference slate.

FRESHMAN PHENOM: EMU's James Thompson IV and is making a push to be considered the Mid-American Conference Freshman of the Year. Thompson is the only freshman in the conference who ranks in the top-20 in scoring, being eighth (15.7 ppg), while he is also leading the conference in rebounds (11 rpg) as the only freshman in the top-20 in that category as well. In addition, the Baton Rouge, La. product is third in the MAC in blocked shots (1.6 bpg) and first in field goal percentage (68.2 percent). On top of those gaudy numbers, he is the only student-athlete in the MAC to average a double-double. Not only is Thompson making waves in the Mid-American Conference, but his statistics have shown up in the national rankings as well. Currently, Thompson is second in the nation in field goal percentage, while he ranks 10th in rebounds per game and 10th in total rebounds (254). His 14 double-doubles rank ninth and his 4.5 offensive rebounds per game are good for second nationally.

NEED THE DEFENSE FOR THE W: Since beginning Mid-American Conference play, the Eagles have allowed a MAC-worst 81 points per game. However, the Green and White has had two games where its held the opposition to under 70 points. In both the EMU win versus Buffalo, Jan. 12, and the victory over Miami, Feb. 2, Eastern Michigan held the opponent to 69 points, fueling the MAC's leading offense to a pair of conference wins.

ONE OF THE COUNTRY'S BEST: Freshman center James Thompson IV has been dominant on the floor for the Eagles, especially on the offensive end. Due in large part to his 26-straight made field goals earlier this season, Thompson is second in the NCAA in field goal percentage. The Baton Rouge, La. native converts on 68.2 percent of his shot attempts. Belmont's Evan Bradds leads the category just ahead of Thompson at 71.7 percent. The next closest freshman in the category is Eastern Kentucky's Nick Mayo, who connects on 61.4 percent of his field goal attempts.

THE DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES: A season ago, senior Brandon Nazione averaged just 3.6 points per game, while pulling down just 3.5 rebounds per contest. In addition, the Howell, Mich. native converted shots at a 39.6 percent clip. EMU was not even half way through the 2015-16 season and Nazione had recorded more field goal makes than a year ago. In addition, he is hitting shots at a 54.5 percent clip, while averaging nearly three times as many points per game (9.0) and twice as many rebounds per contest (6.3).

MAC TOURNAMENT OUTLOOK: With just eight games left in the grueling Mid-American Conference schedule, its time to look ahead to where the Green and White would find itself if the tournament started today. Currently, the Eagles would own the 11th seed and would square off with Kent State on the road in the first round of the Mid-American Conference tournament.

TIC-TAC-TURNOVER: Although Eastern Michigan averages 13 turnovers per game, which ranks 188th in the country, EMU is ninth in the nation in turnover margin at a +4.0 difference. The Green and White force the opposition into 17 turnovers per contest which ranks as the seventh-most of any defense in the country.

KING OF THIEVES: The Eagles not only lead the Mid-American Conference in steals per game (10.0), but the Green and White are second in the NCAA in that category, while also ranking fifth in total steals (230).

CLIMBING THE CHARTS: EMU redshirt junior guard Raven Lee continues to make his way up the all-time Eastern Michigan men's basketball scoring chart. Heading into the 2015-16 campaign, Lee had recorded 1,010 career points. The Detroit, Mich. native has accumulated 267 points during this season, totaling 1,277 for his career. That number puts him at the No. 17 spot in all-time EMU scorers. Lee now trails Jeff Zatkoff (1979-82) for the 16th spot by 24 points.

LEE LIGHTS UP THE CONVO: In a historic performance, EMU redshirt junior guard Raven Lee put together one of the most prolific offensive outputs in Eastern Michigan history in the Eagles' victory over Miami, Feb. 2. The Detroit, MIch. native went for 46 points, which is one point shy of the most in a game by an Eagle, on 11-of-16 shooting, including a scorching 9-for-11 from downtown. The nine triples ties Derrick Dial for the most three-pointers hit in a single game in Eastern Michigan history. His 46 points rank as the most scored by a student-athlete in Convocation Center history, while it also tied Buddy Hield of Oklahoma and A.J. English of Iona for the most points scored in an NCAA game this season. Additionally, he broke the Convo record for three pointers in a game. The 6-foot-3 combo guard did all of the damage in just 24 minutes on the court.

ONE OF THE BEST IN THE MAC: EMU's Raven Lee has made his stamp not only in the Eastern Michigan history books, but he has one of the best careers of any active player in the Mid-American Conference. Currently, the Detroit, Mich. native is third in scoring (1,277 pts) by any active player in the conference. Just Central Michigan's Chris Fowler (1,559) and Toledo's Nathan Boothe (1,325) rank ahead of Eastern's redshirt junior.

A LOOK AT THE CONFERENCE LEADERS: Eastern Michigan has positioned itself near the top of multiple statistical categories in the Mid-American Conference as of Feb. 8. Let's take a look...

MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE RANKINGS as of Feb. 8
Player	Category	Rank	Number
Eastern Michigan	Steals per game	1st	10.0 (second nationally)
Eastern Michigan	Turnovers forces per game	1st	17.0 (seventh nationally)
Eastern Michigan	Total steals	1st	230 (fifth nationally)
James Thompson IV	Rebounds per game	1st	11.0 (10th nationally)
James Thompson IV	Offensive rebounds per game	1st	4.5 (second nationally)
James Thompson IV	Field goal percentage	1st	68.2 (second nationally)

A LOOK AHEAD: Following the Tuesday evening contest with Central Michigan, Feb. 9, the Eagles will continue the Mid-American Conference campaign at home Saturday, Feb. 13, as the Green and White will return to the Convocation Center to square off with MAC East foe, Kent State, for the second time this season. The tipoff for the rematch is slated for noon as the Eagles attempt to get revenge on the Golden Flashes for a 73-58 setback in Kent, Ohio.

THAT DIDN'T TAKE LONG: Head Coach Rob Murphy is in his fifth season at the helm of the Eastern Michigan men's basketball program. Since taking over prior to the 2011-12 season, Murphy has amassed 84 wins which is tied for the fourth-most by an EMU coach.

ALL-TIME COACHING RECORDS

Rank	Coach	Years	Wins/yr.	Record
1.	Ben Braun	1986-96	16.8/yr	185-132 (.570)
2.	Elton J. Rynearson	1917-21; 1925-32 1935-40; 1944-46	8.8/yr	160-129 (.554)
3.	James D. Dutcher	1966-72	21.2/yr	127-49 (.770)
t-4.	Jim Boyce	1979-86	14/yr	84-96 (.467)
t-4.	Rob Murphy	2011-Present	18.3/yr (Four-year total)	84-77 (.522)

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Ray Lee

Brandon Nazione

James Thompson IV

Eastern Michigan Athletics