Eastern Michigan Athletics
Saturday, January 27
Oxford, Ohio
3:30 p.m.
Eastern Michigan University
12-9 (3-5MAC)
58
at
48
Miami
11-10 (4-4MAC)
1
2
F
Eastern Michigan
29
29
58
Miami
30
18
48
Eagles Pick Up Crucial Road Win at Miami
1/27/2018 5:34:00 PM | Men's Basketball
EMU held Miami to a conference opponent low 48 points
OXFORD, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team prevailed in a defensive showdown, and got a much-needed Mid-American Conference win over Miami University, 58-48, Saturday afternoon, Jan. 27, at Millett Hall. The 48 points were the fewest given up by the Eagles (12-9, 3-5 MAC) in conference play this season, as well as tied for the second-fewest overall.
It was the second time Eastern has held a MAC opponent to under 50 points this season, as Miami (11-10, 3-4 MAC) shot just 30 percent (17-of-56) from the field, to EMU's 49 percent (25-of-51). The Eagles dominated the paint, outscoring the RedHawks, 32-12, down low, while registering six blocks.
Junior James Thompson IV (Baton Rouge, La.-Parkview Baptist) led the way with his 14th double-double of the season and 53rd of his career, finishing with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Redshirt junior Paul Jackson (Stone Mountain, Ga.-Martin Luther King Jr. (Eastern Kentucky)) led EMU in scoring with 15, while fellow redshirt junior Elijah Minnie (Pittsburgh, Pa.-Lincoln Park (Robert Morris)) finished with 12 points coming off the bench for the first time this season.
Both teams went back and forth early in the first half, as Thompson scored eight of EMU's first 12 points, but nine from Miami's Dalonte Brown kept it close, 12-9, at the first media. Eastern then went about three minutes with no points, allowing Miami to take a 16-12 advantage, but a redshirt junior Jordan Nobles (Canton, Mich.-Canton) corner three broke the streak, and kept things tight.
The action then went fast and furious as there were no stoppages for the next seven minutes, up until right before the last media timeout. In that time frame, Eastern got scoring from five different players, but Miami had the answers, keeping it tied at 24.
Over the last four minutes of the first frame, both teams struggled to find the bottom of the net, but Miami was able to hit a three right before the buzzer, making it 30-29 RedHawks into the break.
The scoring droughts carried over into the second half, as neither team could score in the first three minutes. Miami broke the streak with two free throws, but other than that, EMU's defense was suffocating, holding them without a field goal. On the offensive end, Eastern turned the defense into a 6-0 run to retake the lead, 35-32, early in the second.
Eastern's run extended to 9-0 on a Bond three ball, as Miami was still held scoreless from the field at the 15 minute mark. The lead extended to 10 soon after, 42-32, as EMU's run went to 13-0, and Miami was 0-for-10 from the field. They finally hit a three pointer at the 12 minute mark to cut it to seven at the under-12.
Miami was sparked out of the break, going on an 8-3 run to cut the Eastern lead to just two points, 45-43, with 8:23 to play. Scoring was sparse over the next four minutes, but EMU maintained its lead, 50-45, with just three minutes to go.
Down the stretch, Miami got to within three, but a huge Minnie three pointer put the Eagles back up six with a minute to play. Following a missed three pointer from Miami, Minnie took a flying pass from Jackson, and slammed it home to effectively put the game away. EMU went on to seal the deal with the 10-point victory, 58-48.
Eastern returns to the Convocation Center next week, Tuesday, Jan. 30, for a battle with MAC rival Western Michigan University. Tip-off against the Broncos is set for 7 p.m.
It was the second time Eastern has held a MAC opponent to under 50 points this season, as Miami (11-10, 3-4 MAC) shot just 30 percent (17-of-56) from the field, to EMU's 49 percent (25-of-51). The Eagles dominated the paint, outscoring the RedHawks, 32-12, down low, while registering six blocks.
Junior James Thompson IV (Baton Rouge, La.-Parkview Baptist) led the way with his 14th double-double of the season and 53rd of his career, finishing with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Redshirt junior Paul Jackson (Stone Mountain, Ga.-Martin Luther King Jr. (Eastern Kentucky)) led EMU in scoring with 15, while fellow redshirt junior Elijah Minnie (Pittsburgh, Pa.-Lincoln Park (Robert Morris)) finished with 12 points coming off the bench for the first time this season.
Both teams went back and forth early in the first half, as Thompson scored eight of EMU's first 12 points, but nine from Miami's Dalonte Brown kept it close, 12-9, at the first media. Eastern then went about three minutes with no points, allowing Miami to take a 16-12 advantage, but a redshirt junior Jordan Nobles (Canton, Mich.-Canton) corner three broke the streak, and kept things tight.
The action then went fast and furious as there were no stoppages for the next seven minutes, up until right before the last media timeout. In that time frame, Eastern got scoring from five different players, but Miami had the answers, keeping it tied at 24.
Over the last four minutes of the first frame, both teams struggled to find the bottom of the net, but Miami was able to hit a three right before the buzzer, making it 30-29 RedHawks into the break.
The scoring droughts carried over into the second half, as neither team could score in the first three minutes. Miami broke the streak with two free throws, but other than that, EMU's defense was suffocating, holding them without a field goal. On the offensive end, Eastern turned the defense into a 6-0 run to retake the lead, 35-32, early in the second.
Eastern's run extended to 9-0 on a Bond three ball, as Miami was still held scoreless from the field at the 15 minute mark. The lead extended to 10 soon after, 42-32, as EMU's run went to 13-0, and Miami was 0-for-10 from the field. They finally hit a three pointer at the 12 minute mark to cut it to seven at the under-12.
Miami was sparked out of the break, going on an 8-3 run to cut the Eastern lead to just two points, 45-43, with 8:23 to play. Scoring was sparse over the next four minutes, but EMU maintained its lead, 50-45, with just three minutes to go.
Down the stretch, Miami got to within three, but a huge Minnie three pointer put the Eagles back up six with a minute to play. Following a missed three pointer from Miami, Minnie took a flying pass from Jackson, and slammed it home to effectively put the game away. EMU went on to seal the deal with the 10-point victory, 58-48.
Eastern returns to the Convocation Center next week, Tuesday, Jan. 30, for a battle with MAC rival Western Michigan University. Tip-off against the Broncos is set for 7 p.m.
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Team Stats
EMU
MIAMI
FG%
.490
.304
3FG%
.357
.320
FT%
.500
.545
RB
33
34
TO
12
13
STL
8
8
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
15
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
12
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
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