Men's Hoops Hosts Ball State in MAC Tournament Opener Monday

Men's Basketball vs. Ball State - MAC Tournament First Round
Date	Monday, March 11 \| 7 p.m.
Venue	Ypsilanti, Mich. \| Convocation Center (8,754)
Preview Info	EMU Notes
Live Stats	Fan Stats \| Media Stats
Watch	ESPN+
Listen	WEMU 89.1 FM
Twitter	@EMUHoops \| @EMUAthletics
Tickets	Order Tickets Online or call 734.487.3669

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) - Its Mid-American Conference Tournament time in the Convocation Center, as the No. 6 seeded Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team hosts MAC West Division foe and No. 11 seed Ball State University Monday, March 11, with a 7 p.m. tip time.
   EMU (15-16, 9-9 MAC) fell in its regular season finale at the University of Toledo, 64-58, March 8, while BSU (15-16, 6-12 MAC) was tripped up on its senior night, 64-57, by Northern Illinois University, March 8.
   The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Ryan Wooley on play-by-play and Greg Steiner 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.

Tickets for Monday's contest are available online HERE, or you can call 734.487.3669 during business hours. Save $3 on gameday prices by securing your $12 ticket in advance.

MAC TOURNAMENT HISTORY: EMU has an all-time record of 30-33 in the MAC Tournament, dating back to the 1979-80 season. The Eagles have won the championship and automatic NCAA bid four times, most recently in 1997-98.
   The Green and White are 9-7 under Rob Murphy during his tenure in Ypsilanti, with its best finish a trip to the 2013-14 semi-finals, where the Eagles fell 59-44 to the second seed University of Toledo.

TOURNAMENT HISTORY VS BALL STATE: Eastern has held a firm advantage against Ball State in its MAC Tournament history, posting an overall record of 5-3 and having won five straight. The Eagles and Cardinals have not played one another in the postseason since the 2007-08 season.

MAC TOURNAMENT IN YPSILANTI: Monday marks the ninth Mid-American Conference Tournament game to be played in the Convocation Center, with Eastern holding an all-time record of 6-2. The Eagles have played Northern Illinois University four times (3-1), Miami University twice (1-1), and both Central Michigan University (1-0), and the University of Toledo (1-0) once.
   EMU's rank at No. 6 is tied for its thir-best mark in Convo MAC Tournament games. The Eagles earned the No. 5 seed in Head Coach Rob Murphy's first season of 2011-12, and have been ranked sixth two other times (2010, 2014).

HOW SWEEP IT IS: With its win over Ball State March 5, Eastern Michigan solidified its regular 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.
   In order to complete the full sweep, the Eagles will have to defeat the Cardinals for third time Monday night. Eastern has three three-game sweeps over Ball State all-time, having done so in the 1995-96, 1997-98, and 2006-07 campaigns.

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 33 points to reach the mark while Minnie has slightly less ground to cover, needing just 17.

DOING WORK: Redshirt senior Paul Jackson continued his torrid scoring pace with a 17-point performance at Toledo, March 8, and has now scored 15-or-more points in 13 of the last 19 games. The guard was 6-of-15 from the floor and knocked down 5-of-8 free throws in the Eagles' win.

MURPHY'S 13: Eastern Michigan head coach Rob Murphy returned to his most trusted starting lineup of the season against the University of Toledo, March 8, re-inserting redshirt junior Boubacar Toure into the first five. Joining Toure were redshirt seniors Paul Jackson and Elijah Minnie, senior James Thompson IV, and sophomore Kevin McAdoo.

ALL-TIME VS. BALL STATE: Eastern Michigan and Ball State have a long history against one another, with the Cardinals holding a 62-44 edge over the Eagles all-time. The two teams met on the hardwood for the first time Feb. 9, 1947, with BSU winning that game, 73-32, as well as the next eight matchups.
   Earlier this season, EMU came away with a thrilling 84-82 victory in double overtime in Muncie. Redshirt senior Elijah Minnie scored 25 points, while James Thompson IV scored 18 points and pulled down a then-season-high 19 boards. The Eagles' and Cardinals' rematch came just six days before Monday's MAC Tournament opener, with the Green and White coming away with a 68-61 win, March 5.

AGAINST BALL STATE IN THE MURPHY ERA: Since head coach Rob Murphy became the bench boss at Eastern Michigan in the 2011-12 season, he has accumulated an overall record of 9-7 against Ball State, and is 4-4 inside the friendly confines of the Convocation Center.

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 68-61 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.

LAST SEASON IN YPSI: Eastern put together a thoroughly dominant performance to take down Ball State, 58-41, Feb. 3, 2018 in the Convocation Center. The Eagles led the game for all but 44 seconds and held the Cardinals to their lowest point total since the 2010 season, while also limiting the visitors to a season-low 26.7 percent (16-of-60) from the floor.

ON THE RISE: Senior James Thompson IV has seen his scoring take a turn for the better over the past eight games, as the forward has scored double-digits in six of the last eight games and upped his season average to 11.2 points per game after sitting at 10.3 over through the first 23 games.

LEADING THE LEAGUE: Eastern Michigan is second in the Mid-American Conference in offensive rebounds per game (12.5), 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 also grabbed the MAC's overall rebounding average lead (11.0) on the final night of the regular season, has the top rebounding mark in MAC-only action pulling down 11.8 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 4.5 blocks per contest, EMU also has three players are inside the top eight: Boubacar Toure, 4th - 1.3; 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 six straight games. The redshirt senior has averaged 15.5 points since MAC play began, and has also averaged 5.3 assists, 2.0 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: Should Eastern Michigan come out victorious in Monday's MAC Tournament opener, the Eagles will then play No. 3-ranked Bowling Green State University in the MAC Tournament quarterfinal Thursday, March 14 approximately 30 minutes after the conclusion of the 6:30 p.m. quarterfinal.

Men's Hoops Hosts Ball State in MAC Tournament Opener Monday

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Players Mentioned

Isaiah Green

Paul Jackson

Kevin McAdoo

Elijah Minnie

James Thompson IV

Boubacar Toure

Eastern Michigan Athletics