EMU Heads to Oxford to Square Off With RedHawks

Men's Basketball at Miami
Date	Saturday, Jan. 28 \| 3:30 p.m.
Venue	Oxford, Ohio \| Millett Hall (6,400)
Game Notes	EMU Game Notes \| Miami Game Notes
Live Stats	MiamiRedHawks .com
Watch	ESPN 3
Listen	89.1 FM WEMU
Twitter	@EMUHoops \| @EMUAthletics

OXFORD, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) -- After dropping two in a row, the Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team looks to right the ship Saturday, Jan. 28, when it travels south to Oxford, Ohio to square off with Miami University at 3:30 p.m. inside Millett Hall. The game between Miami and Eastern Michigan is the only of the 2016-17 campaign.

The Eagles (12-8, 4-3 MAC) come into its eighth league matchup following an 88-80 setback at the Convocation Center versus Ball State, Jan. 24. That was Eastern's third loss in Mid-American Conference play, but the Green and White remain in a four-way tie for first place in the MAC West Division. For the RedHawks (9-11, 2-5 MAC), they head into the contest with EMU following a 75-74 victory at home over Buffalo. The win versus the Bulls was just Miami's second MAC victory, and it broke a five-game losing streak.

FINDING THE GAME AT HOME: The Eastern Michigan versus Miami matchup will have both audio and video on Saturday afternooon. 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.

In addition to the WEMU radio broadcast, EMU fans can watch the nationally broadcasted contest on ESPN3. Steve Baker will handle the play-by-play duties for the broadcast, while Randy Hollowell will join him as the broadcast's analyst.

ALL-TIME VERSUS THE MIAMI: The Eagles trail in the series with Miami, as Eastern looks at a tally of 48-25 in favor of the RedHawks. Recent history shows that the Green and White has the RedHawks' number, winning four of the last seven contests in the series.

Last season, EMU took the only matchup between the two, 94-69, Feb. 2, 2016 at the Convocation Center. In that game, Ray Lee finished 9-of-11 from downtown, as well as 15-of-16 from the charity stripe. His total of 46 points were recorded in just 24 minutes and were just one point shy of tying the all-time program record, held by Gary Tyson. However, he still managed to set a new career high for points in a game, as well as break the Convocation Center record for points in a game. Additionally, he broke the Convo record for three pointers in a game, while tying the EMU all-time record for treys in a game.

LIKELY LOOK FOR THE REDHAWKS...

#	Name	Pos.	Cl.	Ht.	Wt.	ppg	rpg	apg	Hometown-Previous School
2	Rod Mills	F	Jr.-Jr.	6-7	220	8.0	3.4	0.9	Cincinnati, Ohio-St. Xavier
11	Logan McLane	F	Jr.-Jr.	6-9	239	11.7	6.7	1.3	Winterville, N.C.-Greenfield
20	Dion Wade	G	Sr.-Jr.	6-6	185	4.0	4.3	0.7	Antwerp, Belgium-Findlay Prep
22	Marcus Weathers	F	Fr.-Fr.	6-5	195	10.0	5.6	0.6	Roeland Park, Kan.-Shawnee Mission North
24	Michael Weathers	G	Fr.-Fr.	6-2	161	18.1	4.3	5.4	Roeland Park, Kan.-Shawnee Mission North

LAST TIME OUT: Eastern Michigan returned home to square off with Ball State Tuesday, Jan. 24. The Cardinals came into the Convocation Center and knocked off EMU, 88-80, on the heels of great inside play by its two forwards Franko House and Trey Moses.

Ray Lee had a big game, scoring 24 points, and sinking four three pointers. It was the Detroit, Mich. native's eighth game notching 20-or-more points. Tim Bond stuffed the stat sheet by tallying 17 points, five assists, four steals, and a block. Ty Toney kicked in 14 points, four rebounds, four assists, and a pair of thefts, while Baylee Steele was strong defensively, recording a career-best five blocks in the game.

THE REDHAWK REPORT: The Miami RedHawks are tied with the worst record in the league since starting Mid-American Conference play at 2-5. However, they have a pair of big wins under their belt, including a 75-74 victory over Buffalo in their last contest. The RedHawk offense relies heavily on freshman Michael Weathers. Weathers leads the squad in scoring with 18.1 points per game, good for fourth in the conference, while his 5.4 assists per game rank second in the MAC. Weathers' twin brother, Marcus is no slouch for Miami either. The 6-foot-5 forward is averaging 10 points and 5.6 rebounds per contest. Finally, Logan McLane is MU's best forward, scoring 11.7 points per game, while grabbing a team leading 6.7 rebounds per contest.

MILLETT HALL NIGHTMARE: Historically the Eagles have not fared well when playing at Millett Hall. In fact, the Green and White have not entered Oxford, Ohio and walked away victors in over 20 years. Eastern's last victory at Miami came during 1995-96 season when the Green and White knocked off the RedHawks, 73-60, Jan. 24, 1996. The 1995-96 Eastern Michigan squad won the 1996 Mid-American Conference Tournament Championship before knocking off legendary basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski and his Duke Blue Devils in the first round of that season's NCAA Tournament.

LAST TIME IN OXFORD: It was two seasons ago that the Eagles last traveled to Oxford, Ohio for a game at Millett Hall. Things were looking up in the first half, as the Green and White extended its lead to a very comfortable margin. However, despite garnering a 25-point lead in the first half, Eastern dropped the MAC matchup, 82-81, in its second straight overtime contest. It was the 12th game in a row that EMU had lost at Miami.

TANK ATTACK: Affectionately know as "the Tank", Ty Toney has been tearing up the score book since returning from a knee injury. The senior guard is leading the team in scoring over the last five games, putting up 16 points per contest while connecting on shots at a 47.6 percent clip. Additionally, Toney is averaging two steals and 3.4 assists per game over that stretch to go along with 3.6 rebounds and a 71.4 free throw percentage.

STUFF IT: EMU sophomore center Baylee Steele proved to be the right man in the middle of the Eagles' 2-3 zone in the loss to Ball State, Jan. 24. The Norwalk, Iowa native blocked a season-best five shots against the Cardinals. That was the first time an EMU student-athlete stuffed five-or-more since James Thompson IV blocked five versus Siena Heights and the most versus an NCAA Division I opponent since former Eagle Karrington Ward blocked Buffalo five times, Feb. 18, 2015.

SECOND HALF STARS: It has become quite evident that the Eagles have grown into a second half team during the 2016-17 campaign. Since the beginning of Mid-American Conference action, Eastern Michigan is scoring at a much higher rate in the second half. In MAC games, the Green and White averages just 30.4 points in the first half, while shooting just 38.8 percent from the floor. In the second half, the Eagles post 43.3 points and connect on shots at a 50.2 percent mark. Additionally, Eastern Michigan is being outscored by 2.3 points per game in the first half, while besting the opponent by 7.4 points per game in the second 20 minutes of MAC games.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS: Although the Eagles have lost just eight games this season, there have been trends that show why that is the case. In losses, the Eagles are shooting well below their season mark of 45.8 percent. In setbacks, EMU is connecting on its field goal attempts at a 38.6 percent clip. Additionally, the Eagles' 70.9 points per game average is 10.1 points less than the season average. It isn't just the offense that has struggled in the losses, as the Green and White are rebounded at a -5.6 margin in losses and force just 14.1 turnovers compared to the 17.7 turnovers that opponents average overall this year.

RETURN OF THE MAC: With MAC play ramping up, so has Eastern Michigan's defensive play. Since beginning conference play, EMU has only allowed 68.6 points per game, which leads the league. Additionally, the Eagles' opponents are shooting just 39.8 percent from the floor and 30.4 percent from beyond the arc. Eastern is posting a conference best 8.9 steals per game over the MAC season, while also blocking 4.1 shots, which ranks as the second best in the league.

TIMMY B, FOR THREE!: Eastern Michigan junior guard Tim Bond connected on a corner three-point shot with just 9.4 seconds left on the clock in the second half of EMU's victory over Ohio, Jan. 14, sealing the Eagles' win. That was not the first time that Bond has connected on a triple considered to be the game winner. In EMU's 75-71 win on Senior Day last year, March 1, Bond knocked down a three ball with just three seconds on the clock, which sealed the Green and White's victory over Northern Illinois.

SHARING THE SUGAR: With the EMU offense rolling along this season, the Eagles' assist numbers are up as well. Averaging 14.1 assists per game, the Green and White is on its way to posting 436 assists in the regular season alone. That number is just 12 assists shy of making an appearance in the single season record book's top-10.

STEALING THEIR WAY TO THE TOP: Currently, EMU has 212 steals on the season. That is 99 shy of the all-time Eastern Michigan single season record. At their current pace (10.6 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 11 games until the end of the regular campaign, the Green and White are on pace to accumulate 329 steals in regular season action. The current EMU record, set by the 2015-16 squad, is 321.

HOME COOKIN': Since the EMU Convocation Center opened in 1998, the Eastern Michigan men's basketball program has had success playing in Ypsilanti. Overall, the team is 166-106 in home games played at the Convocation Center. Since Head Coach Rob Murphy took over prior to the 2011-12 campaign, the Eagles have enjoyed an extremely high winning percentage, winning 80 percent of its games played in the Convo. Over the last six seasons the Green and White boasts a record of 76-20 in home contests.

ON THE HORIZON: Following their Saturday afternoon contest at Miami, the Eagles continue Mid-American Conference action by returning home, Tuesday, Jan. 31. Eastern Michigan will host MAC East foe Kent State at the Convocation Center. The game with the Golden Flashes will tip-off at 7 p.m. and will be available on ESPN3.

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Players Mentioned

Tim Bond

Ray Lee

Baylee Steele

James Thompson IV

Ty Toney

Eastern Michigan Athletics