Men's Basketball Back Home Saturday to Host Miami

Men's Basketball vs. Miami
Date	Saturday, Jan. 29 \| 3 p.m.
Venue	Ypsilanti, Mich. \| George Gervin GameAbove Center
Preview Info	EMU Notes \| Media Guide.
Live Stats	Fan Stats \| Media Stats
Watch	ESPN3
Listen	WEMU (89.1 WEMU-FM) \| The Varsity Network App \| Eastern Insider Podcast
Twitter	@EMU_MBB \| @EMUAthletics

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team concludes its January slate of games Saturday, Jan. 29, by welcoming Miami University into the George Gervin GameAbove Center. The Mid-American Conference contest is slated for a 3 p.m. tipoff.
   Eastern (7-11, 2-5 MAC) has dropped four consecutive games following an 85-71 road setback to Bowling Green State University, Jan. 25. Meanwhile, the RedHawks (9-9, 3-4 MAC) are also trying to get back in the win column after an 81-64 loss at Ball State University, Jan. 25.
   The game will be broadcast on ESPN3 with Ryan Wooley (pxp), Justin Rose (analyst), and Lexi Ayala (sideline) on the call. Fans can also listen to the game on WEMU (89.1 FM) and the Varsity Network app with Tom Helmer.

FAN APPRECIATION DAY!: Eastern men's basketball is celebrating its season ticket holders at the game this Saturday, Jan. 29. Loyal season ticket holders will be able to pick up a voucher for a hot dog, bratwurst, pretzel, or nachos with a side of popcorn or candy and a 24 oz. drink.

HOME TEAM SUCCESS: Protecting home court is key, but this season MAC road teams have had more success than normal. League-wide, the home team has posted just a 23-21 record through the first 44 games.

SPREADING THE WEALTH: EMU is one of five MAC teams to have three players ranked inside the league's top 22 for scoring. The Eagles join Buffalo, Miami, Ohio, and Toledo in accomplishing the feat. Noah Farrakhan is eighth with 16.2 points per game, Monty Scott is 16th at 13.6 pgg, and Bryce McBride ranks 21st at 12.6 points a contest.

WE WANT IT MORE!: After leading NCAA Division I basketball the last three weeks, Eastern Michigan now ranks seventh nationally with an average of 76.5 possessions per game. The Eagles have pushed that average to 82.4 at home this season.
    Last season, EMU averaged 71.3 possessions per game, ranking 164th in Division I.

GETTING THE ROTATION BACK: With the national uptick in COVID, combined with usual bumps and bruises from gameplay, EMU has not had its full rotation of student-athletes dressed for a game in more than 55 days. The last such occurrence was against Northwood, Dec. 5, when 13 players saw action in the 79-57 non-conference victory.

YOU ONLY GET ONE SHOT: EMU is averaging 26.8 defensive rebounds per game, which ranks fourth in the Mid-American Conference and 89th nationally. Eastern grabbed 20 defensive boards in its most recent game, at Bowling Green, Jan. 25.

SWAT TEAM: Eastern Michigan currently ranks fourth in the Mid-American Conference in blocks per game (3.56), and fifth in total blocks (64). EMU is led by freshman Mo Njie, who has 16 total blocks this season. Njie's 1.1 blocks per game is seventh in the conference.

NEARING RARE AIR: Freshman Noah Farrakhan needs just 40 points to crack the top-10 in freshman scoring at EMU. Calvin Warner currently sits 10th with 267 points in 1998-99.

MIGHTY, MIGHTY GOLSON: Freshman Colin Golson Jr. finished the game at BGSU with 16 points to notch his eighth double-digit outing of the season and tie his career-best effort. He has scored 16 points in four games this season. The performance was Golson's fifth individual double-digit half this season, and his fifth time leading the team in scoring.

BRYCE'S DOZEN: Junior Bryce McBride now has 12 double-digit performances this season. The junior finished the contest at Bowling Green, Jan. 25, with 15 points on 6-of-12 shooting, as a starter. Additionally, the game marked his third in-a-row with 10+ points. McBride now has three separate stretches of three-straight double-digit scoring efforts this season.

STRUGGLES FROM BEYOND: Eastern Michigan shot 20 percent (2-of-10) from three at Bowling Green, Jan. 25. Additionally, EMU has not shot well from deep in its last three contests where it has averaged 17.5 percent: at Kent State, 12.5 percent (3-of-24), at Akron, 20 percent (3-for-15), at BGSU, 20 percent (2-of-10).

TAKE THE FREEBEES: Eastern currently ranks fifth in free throw attempts (353), and makes (253), while sitting sixth in free throw percentage (.717) in the Mid-American Conference. Junior Bryce McBride leads the team, shooting 79.5 percent (66-of-83), which ranks 10th in the conference. The junior most recently hit 3-of-5 at BGSU, Jan. 25.

MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU: The Eagles' opponents average 14.2 turnovers per game, which ranks fourth in the Mid-American Conference. Most recently, Eastern pressured BGSU into 10 turnovers, Jan. 25. Furthermore, EMU has forced teams into 20-or-more turnovers twice this season: Illinois State, Nov. 12 – 22, and FIU, Dec. 11 – 25.

LAST TIME AGAINST MIAMI: Eastern Michigan last saw Miami in Ypsilanti on Jan. 23, 2021, in an 85-63 loss. 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 Drew Lowder who led the Eagles' offense, scoring 11 points. The Jackson, Mich. product posted consistent numbers across the board adding three rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Yeikson Montero and Noah Morgan contributed nine points each, while Derek Ballard Jr. produced a career-high eight points in addition to six rebounds, respectively.

LAST WIN AGAINST THE REDHAWKS: The Eagles last bested the RedHawks on Jan. 27, 2018, in Oxford, Ohio, 58-48. In the win, Miami shot just 30 percent (17-of-56) from the field to EMU's 49 percent (25-of-51). Eastern dominated the paint, outscoring the RedHawks, 32-12, down low while registering six blocks. James Thompson IV led the way with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Paul Jackson led EMU in scoring with 15, while Elijah Minnie finished with 12 points coming off the bench for the first time this season.

LAST HOME WIN OVER MIAMI: It has been almost six years since Eastern Michigan has defeated Miami at home, with the last occurrence coming Feb. 2, 2016. The Eagles topped the RedHawks, 94-69, in a contest that saw Raven Lee score 46 points. Lee finished the game 9-of-11 from downtown, as well as 15-of-16 from the charity stripe. His total of 46 points was recorded in just 24 minutes and was one point shy of tying the single-game scoring program record. James Thompson IV and Ty Toney posted 15 and 14, respectively.

BUCKEYE STATE BONANZA: Eastern Michigan continues to get to know the state of Ohio extremely well over the next few weeks. The Eagles are currently in a stretch of games that features the squad playing seven consecutive contests against teams from the Buckeye State.

ON THE HORIZON: Eastern welcomes Toledo to the George Gervin GameAbove Center in its lone game against the Rockets this season Tuesday, Feb. 1. The game will be broadcast on ESPN3 and WEMU (89.1 FM) with tipoff slated for 7 p.m.
   The game will be the annual glow night celebration. Get your neon gear ready and join the party, complete with student performances, light-up giveaways, and more.

UPCOMING PROMOTIONS: Don't miss Superhero Day at the George Gervin GameAbove Center on Saturday, Feb. 12. It's an Eastern basketball doubleheader as the Eagles are joined by some of your favorite Superhero characters. Pickup a free Block E cape for your junior Eagle and be sure to visit Swoop's Hero Training Obstacle Course in the atrium pregame.
   Beerfest is back on Saturday, Feb. 19, against Akron. Purchase the exclusive Beerfest ticket package and receive a commemorative glass plus two complimentary beers from the EMU Concessions as you cheer on men's basketball against the Zips.
   Get your tickets now at EMUEagles.com/tickets.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Derek Ballard Jr.

Noah Farrakhan

Colin Golson Jr.

Drew Lowder

Bryce McBride

Yeikson Montero

Noah Morgan

Mo Njie

Monty Scott

Eastern Michigan Athletics