Eagles Head to Buffalo for Battle with MAC Leader

Men's Basketball at Buffalo
Date	Tuesday, Jan. 23 \| 7 p.m.
Venue	Buffalo, N.Y. \| Alumni Arena (6,783)
Preview Info	EMU Notes
Live Stats	Fan Stats
Watch	ESPN3
Listen	WEMU (89.1 WEMU-FM) \| TuneIn Radio
Twitter	@EMUHoops \| @EMUAthletics

BUFFALO, N.Y. (EMUEagles.com) -- The Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team hits the road Tuesday, Jan. 23, to square off with the lone undefeated team still remaining in Mid-American Conference play, the University at Buffalo. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside Alumni Arena.
The Eagles (11-8, 2-4 MAC) saw an eight-point lead evaporate in a 72-66 setback to Ohio University at the Convocation Center, Jan. 20. Buffalo comes into the contest red hot, winning its last seven games dating back to Dec. 28. Most recently, the Bulls (14-5, 6-0 MAC) hit the road and topped Western Michigan University, 84-74, behind by a pair 20-point nights from Jeremy Harris and CJ Massinburg, Jan. 19.
Fans can watch Tuesday's game on ESPN3, or listen in to WEMU (89.1 FM) with Chad Bush on the broadcast.

AN UNSTOPPABLE FORCE AND AN IMMOVABLE OBJECT: Tuesday's contest pits the MAC's top scoring offense in UB, with the conference's second-best scoring defense in EMU. The Eagles are holding teams to just 69.5 points per game, while the Bulls are pouring in 83.6 points a contest. UB currently ranks second in the league in turnover margin, however, EMU has forced the second-most turnovers in the conference, while ranking first in both steals (9.2), and blocked shots (5.9).

ELITE COMPANY FOR MR. BOND: With Tim Bond's first steal against Ohio, Jan. 20, he became just the second player in EMU history to tally 200 steals in their career. Bond trails only Earl Boykins, who racked up 220 steals during his incredible career as an Eagle.
Bond currently has 47 steals on the year with an average of 2.5 per game, which ranks second in the conference. The tally also puts him on pace for 80 to surpass Lorenzo Neely, who holds the EMU single-season record for steals with 78 in the 1988-89 season.

ALL-TIME VS BUFFALO: The Eagles trail the all-time series with Buffalo, 14-11. However, the Bulls have defended their home court exceptionally well, as EMU has not tasted victory inside Alumni Arena since the 2003-04 campaign.
The two sides met just once last year in the opening game of MAC play in Ypsilanti, as the Bulls posted a 77-68 victory inside the Convocation Center, Jan. 7, 2017. In a game where the lead changed hands 11 times, Willie Mangum IV led the way for EMU with 17 points.

EMU's LAST WIN IN ALUMNI ARENA: Eastern Michigan will be out to break a six-game losing skid inside Buffalo's Alumni Arena dating back to the 2003-04 campaign. EMU's last road in the series occurred Feb. 4, 2004, with a 77-66 victory. Center John Bowler recorded a double-double in the contest with 15 points and 12 rebounds, while Ohio State transfer JaQuan Hart poured in 12 points for then-Head Coach Jim Boone's squad. UB was paced by 20 point output by Turner Battle.

ROAD WOES: The Eagles have struggled on the road thus far, amassing a record of 2-6 while falling in both away MAC contests this season. EMU is averaging 10 points less on the road than at home, notching an average of just 69.2 points per game while wearing the green jerseys.
Surprisingly, the last time Eastern started its season 2-6 on the road was the 2014-15 campaign, which was also the last time EMU qualified for postseason play with an invite to the College Basketball Invitational.

CLOSING IN ON 1,000: Two Eagles are closing in on coveted thresholds, as junior James Thompson IV is just 69 rebounds away from 1,000, while senior Tim Bond is 86 points away from becoming the 31st player to don the Green and White and join the 1,000 point club.
Thompson became the 30th Eagle to eclipse the 1,000 point threshold earlier this season, and would become just the third player all-time to join the exclusive 1,000 point, 1,000 rebound club. Only all-time leading scorer Kennedy McIntosh (1967-71) and Brandon Bowdry (2006-11) hold spots in both 1,000 clubs.

#DEFENDTHENEST: Eastern Michigan's defense has been one of the keys components to its success this season, with the Eagles swiping 174 steals and blocking 113 shots (both totals lead the MAC). EMU is second in the league in both defensive field goal percentage (.418) and scoring defense (69.5 points per game), and also ranks fourth in the conference with a +1.8 turnover margin.

LAST TIME OUT: EMU led by as many as eight in the opening half, but Ohio used eight second-half threes to hand the Eagles a 72-66 defeat inside the Convocation Center, Jan. 20.
The Eagles (11-8, 2-4 MAC) finished a respectable 46.9 percent from the field, converting 24-of-52 field goal attempts. The Bobcats (9-9, 2-4 MAC) shot slightly better at 48.9 percent (23-of-47), but connected on 10-of-18 three-point attempts. EMU out-rebounded the Bobcats, 32-28, and scored 32 points in the paint compared to Ohio's total of 22.
Junior James Thompson IV led the Green and White with 21 points on 7-of-7 shooting to go with a team-high 14 rebounds for his 13th double-double of the campaign. Redshirt freshman Ty Groce tallied 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting, making 4-of-5 attempts from beyond the arc. Redshirt junior Paul Jackson contributed 12 points and a team-best three assists, while senior Tim Bond added 11 points, three rebounds, and two helpers off the bench.

AMONG THE LEADING LEADERS: Eastern Michigan leads the Mid-American Conference in steals per game (9.2), and blocks per game (5.9). EMU is the only team in the NCAA that is ranked in the top nine in both categories.
The Eagles are also in the top three in team field goal percentage (2nd - .471) defensive field goal percentage (2nd - .418), and scoring defense (2nd - 69.5).
Individually, James Thompson IV leads five categories (double-doubles, defensive rebound avg., offensive rebound avg., total rebound avg., and field goal percentage), while also being in the top four in blocks per game. Redshirt junior Elijah Minnie currently ranks sixth in scoring with an average of 16.5 per game, and is third in the MAC in free throw shooting with a 85.5 percentage, and second in blocked shots per game with a 1.7 average. Fellow redshirt junior Paul Jackson is second in assists per game (4.5) and 11th in scoring (15.7).

DISHING IT OUT: Redshirt junior Paul Jackson has established himself as one of the top point guards in the Mid-American Conference, currently sitting in second in the league with a 4.5 assists per game average. The Stone Mountain, Ga. native has had four or more assists in 14 of Eastern's 19 games, has poured in double-digit scoring efforts in 17 of the 19 EMU contests, and is also 11th in the conference with a 15.7 points per game average.

JAMES THOMPSON IV IS GOOD: Junior James Thompson IV, who comes into the game averaging 15.6 points and 11.6 rebounds per contest, picked up his Mid-American Conference-leading 13th double-double of the season with a 21-point, 14-rebound performance in the Eagles' loss to Ohio. Jan 20.

LIKE, REALLY, REALLY GOOD: Thompson is among the upper-echelon of big men in all of college basketball. Not only does he rank fifth in rebounds per game (11.6), he's also sixth in double-doubles (13), and is fifth in field goal percentage (68.5).
The Baton Rouge, La. native is second nationally in rebound average for a career (11.1 rebounds per game), and is fifth in NCAA Division I in career rebounds (931), trailing four seniors.

ON THE HORIZON: The Eagles remain on the road Saturday, Jan. 27, with a trip to Oxford, Ohio, for a meeting against Miami University. Game time is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. in Millett Hall.

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Players Mentioned

Tim Bond

Ty Groce

Paul Jackson

Elijah Minnie

James Thompson IV

Eastern Michigan Athletics