Men's Hoops Wraps Regular Season at Toledo Friday

Men's Basketball at Toledo
Date	Friday, March 8 \| 7 p.m.
Venue	Toledo, Ohio \| Savage Arena (7,014)
Preview Info	EMU Notes
Live Stats	Fan Stats \| Media Stats
Watch	ESPN+
Listen	WEMU 89.1 FM
Twitter	@EMUHoops \| @EMUAthletics

TOLEDO, Ohio (EMUEagles.com) - The Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team wraps up the 2018-19 regular season on the road at Mid-American Conference West Division foe University of Toledo Friday, March 8, with a 7 p.m. start inside Savage Arena.
   EMU (15-15, 9-8 MAC) defeated Ball State University on Senior Night, 68-61, March 5, cementing a first round home game against a still to-be-determined opponent. Meanwhile, UT (24-6, 12-5 MAC) took care of Western Michigan University at home, 76-57, March 5.
   The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Mason Lowry on play-by-play and Jay Gast providing analysis. Eastern fans can also tune in to 89.1 WEMU to listen to Chad Bush and Matt Dery on the call. Additional coverage can be found by following @EMUHoops on Twitter, and through live stats at EMUEagles.com.

EASTERN'S NEW REBOUND KING: Senior James Thompson IV delivered a record-breaking performance against Ball State, March 5, pulling down 23 rebounds on the way to surpassing EMU Hall of Famer Kennedy McIntosh (1967-71) for the career rebound record.
   Not only did Thompson become Eastern's all-time leading rebounder against the Cardinals, but his 23-carom performance also marked a new personal high as well as set a new top mark in Convocation Center history. The forward is the NCAA's active leader in both rebounding (1,432) and double-doubles (73), and is EMU's leader in career field goal percentage (63.3 percent).

SENIOR NIGHT SPECTACULAR: In a night in which EMU honored its four seniors, Isaiah Green, Paul Jackson, Elijah Minnie, and James Thompson IV, each one contributed to Eastern's win over Ball State, March 5.
   After the Eagles were held without a basket for nearly the first two minutes of the game, Green lifted the lid with a jumper to get the Green and White off the schnide. Thompson had a double-double by halftime and finished the game with his second 20-20 performance of his career, scoring 20 points and pulling down 23 boards. Jackson continued his run of scoring 15-or-more points when he poured in 17, and Minnie chipped in 13 while adding a career-best four steals.
HOW SWEEP IT IS: With its win over Ball State, Eastern Michigan solidified its season sweep over the Cardinals for the first time since the 2013-14 season. It marked the third time that EMU has swept BSU during the Rob Murphy era, having also accomplished the feat in 2011-12.

MILESTONE WATCH: Now that senior James Thompson IV has become EMU's all-time rebound leader, attention is turned to two other Eagles playing in their final seasons in the Green and White.
   Eastern has a pair of redshirt seniors trying to become members of the 1,000 point club, as both Paul Jackson and Elijah Minnie are within striking distance of the milestone. Jackson needs 50 points, or an average of 25.0 over the final two games, to reach the mark. Minnie has slightly less ground to cover, needing 32 points, or an average of 16.0 points per game, in that stretch.

DOING WORK: Redshirt senior Paul Jackson continued his torrid scoring pace with a 17-point performance against Ball State, March 5, and has now scored 15-or-more points in 12 of the last 18 games. The guard was 6-of-15 from the floor and knocked down 5-of-8 free throws in the Eagles' win.

A WIN WOULD: Eastern Michigan currently sits in a tie for fifth place with Central Michigan in the Mid-American Conference standings. The Eagles are already cemented in hosting a tournament game Monday, March 11 at 7 p.m., but Friday's results play a large factor in who is coming to Ypsilanti. With a win, EMU will finish no lower than No. 6 in the standings, while a loss could drop it to No. 7.

MURPHY'S 13: With Tuesday, March 5 being Eastern's Senior Night, head coach Rob Murphy used his 13th starting lineup of the season, inserting senior Isaiah Green into the first five for his first career start. Joining Green were redshirt seniors Paul Jackson and Elijah Minnie, senior James Thompson IV, and sophomore Kevin McAdoo.

ALL-TIME VS. TOLEDO: Eastern Michigan and Toledo have played 106 times in program history, with the series tied up at 53 all. The Eagles have won three of the last four meetings with the Rockets, and six-of-nine.
   EMU won the first-ever meeting with UT in 1918, and then went on to lose 15-straight meetings. The Green and White would get their revenge, however, winning 31-of-38 contests between 1985 and 2000.

AGAINST TOLEDO IN THE MURPHY ERA: Since Rob Murphy took over as Eastern Michigan's head coach before the 2011-12 season, he has gone 9-10 against Toledo overall and holds a 2-5 mark in Savage Arena.

LAST SEASON IN THE GLASS CITY: Down two with just eight seconds to play, Eastern's Paul Jackson connected on a layup and completed the and-one opportunity to give the Eagles a road win over Toledo, 71-69, in the regular season finle at Savage Arena.
   Elijah Minnie had 25 points and eight rebounds to lead the Eagles, while Jackson finished the night with 16. James Thompson IV was the only other member of the Green and White to finish in double figures, as he added 13 points to an eight-rebound performance.

EARLIER THIS SEASON: Eastern Michigan rallied to a 76-69 victory behind the sharp shooting of redshirt seniors Elijah Minnie and Paul Jackson, who scored 23 and 19 points, respectively, to lead the Eagles' comeback win over the Rockets.
   The second half comeback of 12 points against Toledo, Feb. 19, is the largest of the 2018-19 season for Eastern, and the most in a regular season game since coming back from a 10-point deficit at Central Michigan University, Feb. 17, 2018.

KEEPING THE STREAK ALIVE: Eastern Michigan and Toledo have played one another in the regular season finale each season since the 2011-12 campaign. The Eagles and Rockets have won three contests apiece, while EMU holds a 2-1 mark while playing in Savage Arena.

TOUGHEST IN THE MAC: The Eagles' record of 15-15 comes against the 63rd-hardest schedule in the country (according to KenPom), including three games against Associated Press Top-25 teams and two against opponents in the top-10. Ohio has the next-hardest strength of schedule with the 73rd-ranked difficulty in the country.
   Diving deeper into the numbers shows that Eastern has also played more games against Quadrant One and Two opponents (11; five Q1, six Q2) than any other conference foe, with a record of 2-9. Western Michigan and Miami are the next closest with 10 (five Q1, five Q2; five Q1, five Q2) games. Toledo has played just six games (four Q1, five Q2) against top-tiered opponents, and is 4-2 in those games.

ON THE RISE: Senior James Thompson IV has seen his scoring take a turn for the better over the past seven games, as the forward has scored double-digits in six of the last seven games and upped his season average to 11.3 points per game after sitting at 10.3 over through the first 23 games.

LEADING THE LEAGUE: Eastern Michigan leads the league in offensive rebounds per game (12.7), thanks in large part to senior James Thompson IV. The forward leads the league in offensive rebounding (4.2) this season and is now second in the NCAA. He has also grabbed the MAC's overall rebounding average lead (11.0) with one game to go, has the top rebounding mark in MAC-only action pulling down 11.9 boards per contest, and is second in overall field goal percentage at 64.9 percent. Redshirt junior Boubacar Toure is the league's leader in shooting percentage, turning in a 66.5 clip.

WELCOME TO THE BLOCK PARTY: The Eagles have slowly climbed to the top of the MAC when it comes to blocked shots this season. Now sitting at second in the league with 4.6 blocks per contest, EMU also has three players are inside the top eight: Boubacar Toure, 4th - 1.4; Eljiah Minnie, 7th - 1.2; James Thompson IV, 8th - 1.0. No other team has more than two players in the top 15.

#MACTION JACKSON: After redshirt senior Paul Jackson's 13-game double-digit scoring streak was snapped at Kent State, Feb. 16, the Stone Mountain, Ga. native has scored 17-or-more points in five straight games. The redshirt senior has averaged 15.4 points since MAC play began, and has also averaged 5.4 assists, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.7 steals per contest.
   The 13-game streak streak falls one short of Jackson's best of 14 that he rattled off from Nov. 12 to Jan. 6 last season.

ON THE HORIZON: Eastern Michigan's next game will be a Mid-American Conference Tournament game, but there is plenty left to determine going into the final regular season game. The Eagles will play at home Monday, March 11 at 7 p.m. and their opponent is yet to be determined.

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Players Mentioned

Isaiah Green

Paul Jackson

Kevin McAdoo

Elijah Minnie

James Thompson IV

Boubacar Toure

Eastern Michigan Athletics