Eastern Michigan Athletics
Saturday, January 23
Convocation Center
5:30 p.m.
Eastern Michigan University
4-7,1-6MAC
63
vs
85
Miami
7-4,4-2MAC
1
2
F
Miami (OH)
42
43
85
Eastern Mich.
23
40
63
Men's Basketball Falls to Miami, 85-63
1/23/2021 8:37:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Derek Ballard Jr. sets a career-high with 8 points
Press Conference | Photo Gallery
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team dropped their third consecutive game to Mid-American Conference opponent Miami University, 85-63, Saturday, Jan. 23, inside the Convocation Center. The Eagles (4-7, 1-6 MAC) were unable to take control, as the RedHawks (7-4, 4-2 MAC) retained the lead for the entire contest.
The Eagles put new meaning to the word teamwork, as each Eagles' player that appeared in the matchup notched at least one basket and one rebound. One bright spot in Eastern's lineup was sophomore Drew Lowder (Jackson, Mich.-Ann Arbor Pioneer (Holy Cross)) who led the Eagles' offense, notching 11 points. The Jackson product posted consistent numbers across the board adding three rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Senior Yeikson Montero (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic-Redemption Christian (Pensacola State)) and classmate Noah Morgan (Mount Vernon, N.Y.-Mount Vernon (Northwest Florida State)) contributed nine points each, while redshirt junior Derek Ballard Jr. (Southfield, Mich.-Southfield-Lathrup) produced a career-high eight points in addition to six rebounds, respectively.
The Eagles got off to a sluggish start, failing to generate any points within the first three minutes of the contest, permitting the RedHawks to quickly establish a 9-0 advantage. The offense desperately needed a spark, which came courtesy of redshirt junior Miles Gibson (Richmond, Va.-Milwood (Northwest Kansas Tech)). The Virginia native powered through the paint to draw a foul, which he was able to convert into two points. Soon after, he hit a contested jumper, pinning the score at 14-4, with 15:29 on the clock. Eastern remained stagnant over the next few minutes, until senior Darion Spottsville (Phoenix, Ariz.-Shadow Mountain (South Mountain C.C.)) drove his way through the paint for a layup, showcasing his athleticism. Morgan quickly succeeded his basket with a jumper of his own, tallying the score at 18-8, with 13:44 remaining. Eastern found themselves in the midst of another scoring drought, as Miami posted a 10-1 run over a four-minute span, creating a 28-11 RedHawk edge. With less than six minutes remaining in the first half, the Green and White established some momentum, creating an 8-0 run, courtesy of triples from both Lowder and Morgan. The effort was valiant, but Miami quickly responded with another 10-0 run, concluding the first 20 minutes shooting with 46.9 percent efficiency from the field. The Green and White retreated to the locker room trailing the RedHawks, 42-23.
Eastern emerged from the locker room in search of momentum in an effort to chip away at the 19-point deficit. One minute into the half, senior Axel Okongo (Saacy-Sur-Marne, France- Thetford Prep Academy (Quebec)) wrangled in a hard fought rebound and kicked it out to Lowder who drained his second triple of the contest, leaving the scoreboard at 45-26. The two teams exchanged baskets over the next stretch of time, with the RedHawks inflating the score to 59-40 with 12:45 on the clock. The Eagles were able to piece together a 6-0 run over a span of two minutes, highlighted by a Ballard put back, anchoring the score at 59-44, with 11 minutes left. Moments later, the Southfield native muscled in his eighth point of the contest, surpassing his career-high. This decreased the RedHawks' advantage to 13, as the scoreboard read 63-50 with nine minutes remaining. Although the Green and White proved persistent through the final minutes of the game, they were unable to recover from the first half deficit (19). Ultimately, the Eagles dropped their third consecutive game to Miami, 85-63.
The Eagles registered a 33.3 field goal percentage (21-of-63), and struggled from deep shooting 20.8 percent (5-of-24). The RedHawks fared better in both areas, posting efficiencies of 50.9 percent (28-of-55) and 42.1 percent (8-of-19), respectively. Eastern outdid Miami in steals (7-3) and bench points (23-21). However, the RedHawks outpaced the Eagles in fast break points (18-9) and rebounds (39-32).
Eastern Michigan will head south to Akron, Ohio Wednesday, Jan. 26, to face Mid-American Conference opponent, the University of Akron. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m on ESPN3. In their previous meeting this season, the Eagles bested the Zips, 71-59, Jan. 9.
For more information on Eastern Michigan men's basketball, visit EMUEagles.com or follow the team's official Twitter at Twitter.com/EMU_MBB, on Facebook at Facebook.com/EMUMBB, or on Instagram at Instgram.com/emumbb.
The Eagles put new meaning to the word teamwork, as each Eagles' player that appeared in the matchup notched at least one basket and one rebound. One bright spot in Eastern's lineup was sophomore Drew Lowder (Jackson, Mich.-Ann Arbor Pioneer (Holy Cross)) who led the Eagles' offense, notching 11 points. The Jackson product posted consistent numbers across the board adding three rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Senior Yeikson Montero (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic-Redemption Christian (Pensacola State)) and classmate Noah Morgan (Mount Vernon, N.Y.-Mount Vernon (Northwest Florida State)) contributed nine points each, while redshirt junior Derek Ballard Jr. (Southfield, Mich.-Southfield-Lathrup) produced a career-high eight points in addition to six rebounds, respectively.
The Eagles got off to a sluggish start, failing to generate any points within the first three minutes of the contest, permitting the RedHawks to quickly establish a 9-0 advantage. The offense desperately needed a spark, which came courtesy of redshirt junior Miles Gibson (Richmond, Va.-Milwood (Northwest Kansas Tech)). The Virginia native powered through the paint to draw a foul, which he was able to convert into two points. Soon after, he hit a contested jumper, pinning the score at 14-4, with 15:29 on the clock. Eastern remained stagnant over the next few minutes, until senior Darion Spottsville (Phoenix, Ariz.-Shadow Mountain (South Mountain C.C.)) drove his way through the paint for a layup, showcasing his athleticism. Morgan quickly succeeded his basket with a jumper of his own, tallying the score at 18-8, with 13:44 remaining. Eastern found themselves in the midst of another scoring drought, as Miami posted a 10-1 run over a four-minute span, creating a 28-11 RedHawk edge. With less than six minutes remaining in the first half, the Green and White established some momentum, creating an 8-0 run, courtesy of triples from both Lowder and Morgan. The effort was valiant, but Miami quickly responded with another 10-0 run, concluding the first 20 minutes shooting with 46.9 percent efficiency from the field. The Green and White retreated to the locker room trailing the RedHawks, 42-23.
Eastern emerged from the locker room in search of momentum in an effort to chip away at the 19-point deficit. One minute into the half, senior Axel Okongo (Saacy-Sur-Marne, France- Thetford Prep Academy (Quebec)) wrangled in a hard fought rebound and kicked it out to Lowder who drained his second triple of the contest, leaving the scoreboard at 45-26. The two teams exchanged baskets over the next stretch of time, with the RedHawks inflating the score to 59-40 with 12:45 on the clock. The Eagles were able to piece together a 6-0 run over a span of two minutes, highlighted by a Ballard put back, anchoring the score at 59-44, with 11 minutes left. Moments later, the Southfield native muscled in his eighth point of the contest, surpassing his career-high. This decreased the RedHawks' advantage to 13, as the scoreboard read 63-50 with nine minutes remaining. Although the Green and White proved persistent through the final minutes of the game, they were unable to recover from the first half deficit (19). Ultimately, the Eagles dropped their third consecutive game to Miami, 85-63.
The Eagles registered a 33.3 field goal percentage (21-of-63), and struggled from deep shooting 20.8 percent (5-of-24). The RedHawks fared better in both areas, posting efficiencies of 50.9 percent (28-of-55) and 42.1 percent (8-of-19), respectively. Eastern outdid Miami in steals (7-3) and bench points (23-21). However, the RedHawks outpaced the Eagles in fast break points (18-9) and rebounds (39-32).
Eastern Michigan will head south to Akron, Ohio Wednesday, Jan. 26, to face Mid-American Conference opponent, the University of Akron. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m on ESPN3. In their previous meeting this season, the Eagles bested the Zips, 71-59, Jan. 9.
For more information on Eastern Michigan men's basketball, visit EMUEagles.com or follow the team's official Twitter at Twitter.com/EMU_MBB, on Facebook at Facebook.com/EMUMBB, or on Instagram at Instgram.com/emumbb.
Team Stats
Miami
EMU
FG%
.509
.333
3FG%
.421
.208
FT%
.840
.842
RB
39
32
TO
13
12
STL
3
7
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
3
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Basketball
G/F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
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