Eagles Head to Athens for Showdown with Ohio

Men's Basketball at Ohio
Date	Saturday, Jan. 14 \| 3:30 p.m.
Venue	Athens, Ohio \| OU Convocation Center (13,080)
Game Notes	EMU Game Notes
Live Stats	Live Stats
Watch	ESPN 3
Listen	89.1 FM WEMU
Twitter	@EMUHoops \| @EMUAthletics

ATHENS, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) -- Following a dominant performance in its first Mid-American Conference road game, the Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team travels to Athens, Ohio to square off with Ohio University, Saturday, Jan. 14, at 3:30 p.m. at the OU Convocation Center. Currently tied for the lead in the MAC West Division, the Eagles (10-6, 2-1 MAC) look to knock off the Bobcats (11-3, 3-0 MAC), who have yet to drop a conference tilt through the first three games of the MAC slate.

The Green and White come into its fourth league matchup following a commanding 81-53 victory on the road at Bowling Green, Jan. 10. That was the Eagles' first true road win since they defeated Detroit, Nov. 30. For the Bobcats, they have won four straight and six of their last seven contests. Additionally, Ohio is a perfect 9-0 at home, including a pair of MAC wins over Western Michigan, Jan. 3, and Kent State, Jan. 6. Most recently, OU came back from 15-point deficit at Buffalo, Jan. 10, and defeated the Bulls, 74-72.

FINDING THE GAME AT HOME: The Eastern Michigan versus Ohio matchup will have both audio and video 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. Coverage on 89.1 WEMU will begin 10 minutes prior to the tip of each game this year.

For those wishing to watch the Eagles' game live, tune into ESPN3, where Russ Eisenstein will call the OU versus EMU contest. Rob Cornelius will join Eisenstein on the broadcast to provide analysis. Fans can also stream the game on their WatchESPN app as well.

ALL-TIME VERSUS THE BOBCATS: The Eagles trail the all-time series with Ohio by a large 23 game margin, 24-47. EMU dropped its contest a year ago with the Bobcats, 86-64, at the OU Convocation Center, Feb. 16, 2016.

In that game, Willie Mangum IV led Eastern Michigan, pouring in 19 points on 7-of-13 from the floor, while Tim Bond and James Thompson IV added double-digit scoring performances with 14 and 11, respectively. Overall, the Eagles shot 42.3 percent (22-of-52) from the floor, while connecting on just 6-of-18 (33.3 percent) of their three point attempts. Bond led EMU in rebounding with seven, however Eastern was outrebounded, 42-25, in the game. For Ohio, Antonio Campbell posted 33 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Bobcats. OU shot a stout 48.3 percent from the floor while also knocking down 10 three-pointers.

LIKELY LOOK FOR THE BOBCATS...

#	Name	Pos.	Cl.	Ht.	Wt.	ppg	rpg	apg	Hometown-Previous School
2	Jaaron Simmons	G	Sr.-Jr.	6-1	184	12.0	3.4	7.4	Dayton, Ohio-Univ. of Houston
13	Kenny Kaminski	F	Sr.-Sr.	6-8	228	13.8	2.4	0.8	Medina, Ohio-Michigan State
22	Gavin Block	G/F	So.-So.	6-7	209	6.7	4.4	2.4	Lincoln, Ill.-Lincoln Community
33	Antonio Campbell	F	Sr.-Sr.	6-9	244	17.6	9.5	0.8	Cincinnati, Ohio-Holy Cross
35	Jordan Dartis	G	So.-So.	6-3	195	12.4	4.1	2.1	Newark, Ohio-Newark

LAST TIME OUT: Eastern Michigan cruised to its second Mid-American Conference victory Tuesday, Jan. 10, when it knocked off the Falcons from Bowling Green, 81-53 at the Stroh Center, marking EMU's biggest MAC win since they defeated Ohio, 76-40, during the 2014-15 campaign.

As a team, the Green and White shot at a scorching 58.2 percent from the floor, including a 65.2 clip in the second half. Eastern outrebounded Bowling Green, 42-30, while holding the Falcons to a 33.3 shooting percentage and a 31.6 three-point percentage. Additionally, the Eagles forced 18 BGSU turnovers and picked up 10 steals, while blocking five shots and dishing out 14 assists in the win. Eastern Michigan's offense was led by Willie Mangum IV's 19 points on 5-of-8 shooting with three long balls. Mangum also added a perfect 6-for-6 performance from the charity stripe. Both James Thompson IV and Ty Toney added 16 points, respectively. In addition, Thompson grabbed 11 rebounds, posting his ninth double-double of the 2016-17 campaign, while Toney dished out four assists and nabbed two steals. Additionally, Tim Bond posted 14 points, five assists, three rebounds and a block in the Green and White's dominant victory.

A LOOK AT THE CATS: When they hit the floor at the OU Convocation Center, the Eagles will have to deal with reigning MAC Player of the Year, Antonio Campbell, who is putting together another stellar season in his final year as a Bobcat. Campbell leads the OU squad in scoring (17.6 ppg) and rebounding (9.5 rpg). Ohio boasts the best scoring defense in the Mid-American Conference, holding teams to just 66.1 points per contest, while the opposition hits just 39.2 percent of the shots they take from the field. Additionally, the Bobcats are one of the best three-point shooting teams in the MAC, connecting at a 38.6 percent clip, while holding teams to a 31.4 percent mark. The one hitch in Ohio's game so far this season has been its free throw shooting. The Bobcats hit just 67.1 percent of their attempts at the charity stripe. That number ranks dead last in the MAC and is the 239th in the nation.

EFFICIENCY AT ITS FINEST: EMU senior Willie Mangum IV has been the poster boy for offensive efficiency coming off of the bench this season. The Richmond, Va. native is averaging the most points on the team (16.9 ppg), but is playing just 24.8 minutes per contest. The 6-foot-1 sharpshooter is posting a point every 88 seconds.

RETURN OF THE MAC: With MAC play ramping up, so has Eastern Michigan's defensive play. Since beginning conference play, EMU has only allowed 64.3 points per game, which leads the league. Additionally, the Eagles' opponents are shooting just 35.1 percent from the floor and just 26.1 percent from beyond the arc. Both of those numbers also lead the MAC. Eastern is posting 10.7 steals per game over the conference season, which is the league lead as well.

HE'S BAAAACK: After being injured during the Eagles' setback at Vermont, Dec. 17, the Eagles' senior guard Ty Toney sat out for three games before returning to action once Mid-American Conference play began. In the first two games of conference action, Toney combined both contests for just 17 minutes played. In the Green and White's victory over Bowling Green, Jan. 10, the Atlanta, Ga. native played for 30 minutes, scoring 16 points on 7-of-14 shooting while dishing out four assists and picking up a pair of steals.

STEALING THEIR WAY TO THE TOP: Currently, EMU has 182 steals on the season. That is 130 shy of the all-time Eastern Michigan single season record. At their current pace (11.4 spg), which would also mark a single season record, the Eagles would shatter the single season steals mark before the end of the regular season. With 15 games until the end of the regular campaign, the Green and White are on pace to accumulate 353 steals in regular season action. The current EMU record, set by the 2015-16 squad, is 321.

THE MAGIC NUMBER: Eastern Michigan's offense has been dominant this season, averaging 83.6 points per game, good for second in the MAC. On the flip side, Eastern has had its woes defensively in multiple games, despite giving up just 71.9 points per contest. It seems as though 75 has been the magic number for both the Eagles and their oppositon. In all 10 EMU wins, the Green and White has scored at least 75 points. However, in EMU losses, the opponent has scored at least 75 points in each.

OU CONVO CURSE: Eastern Michigan has had its struggles playing at the Ohio Convocation Center. In fact, the Eagles have not won a game in Athens since the the 2002-03 campaign when Eastern knocked off the Bobcats in overtime, 76-73, Feb. 19.

PAINT KILLERS: The Eagles were dominant versus Bowling Green in nearly every facet of the game, but it was the paint play that really was the difference. Eastern was able to outscore the Falcons, 50-12, inside the paint. In fact, the Eagles took just 12 three-point shots out of 55 total field goal attempts. That is just 21.8 percent of their total shot attempts for the game. This season, the Green and White average over 19 three-point attempts per game and they make up over 29 percent of their shot attempts.

A TOUGH TASK AHEAD: Through this point in the 2016-17 campaign, the Eagles are 2-4 in true road games. In addition, the Green and White is looking to win its second conference road game in as many. The last time an EMU squad was able to win more than two games in MAC play on the road came during the 2011-12 campaign when Head Coach Rob Murphy led the Eagles to its first ever Mid-American Conference West Division Championship. That squad won three road games in league action.

SURPASSING THE CENTURY MARK: With the Eagles' 85-63 win over CMU, Jan. 3, Head Coach Rob Murphy picked up his 100th career win as the bench boss at Eastern Michigan. Murphy became just the fourth head coach in EMU history to surpass the 100-win mark and the first since Ben Braun (1986-96) during the 1991-92 season. Braun owns 185 wins, which is the most in Eastern history.

EMU OFFENSE ROLLING: Despite being predicated on the patented 2-3 zone defense, the EMU offense has proven to be something special. Averaging 83.6 points per game, the Green and White have a top-25 scoring offense in the country. Not only is that the best offensive output during the Rob Murphy era, but should that average remain, the 2016-17 Eagles will have the fifth-most efficient offense in EMU history. Additionally, it would be the best scoring average for an Eastern Michigan team since the 1995-96 team posted 83.7 points per game.

SHARING THE SUGAR: With the EMU offense rolling along this season, the Eagles' assist numbers are up as well. Averaging 14.5 assists per game, the Green and White is on its way to posting 450 assists in the regular season alone. That number would tie for ninth all-time by a team in EMU single season history. The last team to post a higher assist per game average than the 2016-17 squad was the 2002-03 team which posted 15.1 helpers per contest.

THAT DIDN'T TAKE LONG: Head Coach Rob Murphy is in his sixth season at the helm of the Eastern Michigan men's basketball program. Since taking over prior to the 2011-12 season, Murphy has amassed 101 wins which is the fourth-most by an EMU coach. Murphy is now 26 wins shy of James D. Dutcher for the third-most in school history.

BEST IN SHOW: Eastern Michigan has become one of the dominant teams in the Mid-American Conference in multiple categories. Find the updated stats on page five on the EMU game notes here.

ON THE HORIZON: Following their Saturday afternoon contest with Ohio, the Eagles continue Mid-American Conference action by returning home, Tuesday, Jan. 17. Eastern Michigan will host in-state and MAC West rival Western Michigan at the EMU Convocation Center, Tuesday night at 7 p.m. The game can be seen live on ESPN3.

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Players Mentioned

Tim Bond

Willie Mangum IV

James Thompson IV

Ty Toney

Eastern Michigan Athletics