Eastern Returns to the Road Wednesday at FIU

Men's Basketball at Florida International
Date	Wednesday, Nov. 30 \| 7 p.m.
Venue	Miami, Fla. \| Ocean Bank Convocation Center
Preview Info	EMU Notes (PDF) \| Media Guide (PDF) \| Digital Game Programs
Live Stats	Fan Stats \| Media Stats
Watch	ESPN+
Listen	WEMU (89.1 WEMU-FM) \| The Varsity Network App \| Eastern Insider Podcast
Twitter	@EMU_MBB \| @EMUAthletics

MIAMI, Fla . (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team returns to the road this week as the Eagles will fly south once again, this time to Miami, Fla., for a 7 p.m. tip with Florida International University Wednesday, Nov. 30, inside the Ocean Bank Convocation Center on the FIU campus. The Eagles (1-6) will be looking to snap a six-game skid and pick up their first road victory of the season while the Panthers (4-2) will try to move to 5-1 on their home court.
    The game will air on ESPN+ with AJ Ricketts and Matt McCall on the call. Tom Helmer, the Voice of the Eagles, and Greg Steiner will have the radio call on WEMU (89.1 FM) and the Varsity Network app.

OPENING TIPS:
» The game at Florida International, Nov. 30, will be the sixth game Eastern has played away from home in the month of November, tying for the most non-home games played in the opening month of the season with the 2008-09 team (four road, two neutral).
» Emoni Bates is coming off his first collegiate double-double as the sophomore netted 17 points and collected a career-high 13 rebounds in the game with UC San Diego, Nov. 27.
» Bates' 13 rebounds against the Tritons, Nov. 27, stand as the fifth-most in a single game by any player in the Mid-American Conference this year and is the most in a game for an EMU player since Yeikson Montero pulled down 14 at Central Michigan University, Jan. 16, 2021.
» In the latest statistical update from the MAC (Nov. 28), Bates currently ranks third in scoring (19.5) and 24th in rebounds (6.4), making him the only player in the conference to rank in the top five in scoring and top 25 in rebounding so far this year.
» Tyson Acuff continues to shine as the sophomore transfer has tallied at least three assists in four of the seven games he has played this year after doing so just three times in 48 games over the past two seasons playing at Duquesne University.
» Eastern returns to Florida for the first time since the 2017-18 season when it split games at the University of South Florida (W) and the University of North Florida (L).

SUNSHINE STATE VISIT: The Eagles are set to play in the Sunshine State for the first time since the 2017-18 season when they split a pair of games in Florida. The trip opened with Eastern grabbing a 65-47 win over South Florida in Tampa, Nov. 26, 2017, before dropping an 84-81 decision at North Florida in Jacksonville, Nov. 29, 2017.

SCOUTING FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL: Head Coach Jeremy Ballard's Panthers enter the game with a 4-2 record after sweeping their own FIU MTE event with wins over visiting Stony Brook University, 83-50, and Eastern Washington University, 90-79, Nov. 23 and Nov. 27, respectively. Through six games played, a trio of Panthers have averaged double figures with Denver Jones leading the way at 19.7 points per game with 3.8 rebounds per contest. Arturo Dean (13.7) and Javaunte Hawkins (10.0) also are scoring 10-or-more points per game with Dean pacing the team with 3.2 assists off the bench. On the glass, Nick Guadarrama leads the way with a team-high 4.8 rebounds per game with eight different players pulling down at least two rebounds each per game on the year.

IN THE SERIES WITH FIU:
» Eastern leads the all-time series, 1-0, after taking the initial meetings, 92-88, in four overtimes, Dec. 11, 2021, on George Gervin Day in Ypsilanti.
» The game Wednesday will be the first played between the two sides in Miami.

FOUR-EVER: The four-overtime contest against Florida International, Dec. 11, 2021, stands as the longest game played in program history. The last time Eastern Michigan played a 3OT game was Jan. 8, 2000, against Ball State, when Eastern defeated the Cardinals, 98-93. Additionally, the four-overtime game was only the 13th in the last five seasons in all of Division I basketball and was only the second Division I basketball game to go to four overtimes during the 2021-22 season. Furthermore, EMU finished with season-highs in field goal attempts (79), three-point field goal attempts (27), rebounds (58), assists (14), and steals (14).

ON THE ROAD AGAIN: When the Eagles take on the Panthers, Nov. 30, in Miami, Fla., it will mark the sixth game Eastern has played away from him in the month of November, tying for the most such games with the 2008-09 team. The game at FIU will be the third road contest played this month with three other games taking place at neutral locations, including one at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit and two at the Cancun Challenge in Cancun, Mexico. The month of November during the 2008-09 season saw the Eagles face Purdue University, Nov. 17, and Georgia, Nov. 18, in the NIT Season Tip-Off in West Lafayette, Ind., before playing at the University of Detroit Mercy. From there, Eastern ventured to Jamaica, N.Y., for games with St. John's University and Cornell University, Nov. 24 and Nov. 25, respectively, in the NIT Season Tip-Off before closing out the trip at Brown University, Nov. 29, in Providence, Rhode Island.

QUICK REVIEW • UC SAN DIEGO: Emoni Bates collected his first collegiate double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds as Eastern fell to UC San Diego, 66-63, inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center, Nov. 27. With the loss, the Eagles fell to 1-6 on the season.
    In addition to Bates' double-double, the Green and White were led by Tyson Acuff, who totaled 16 points and five assists. Noah Farrakhan also added nine points, six rebounds, three assists, one steal, and one block.
    Eastern Michigan forced 15 Tritons turnovers while committing just nine themselves, tying for the fewest miscues the Eagles have committed this year. EMU turned those takeaways into 16 points on the other end of the floor. Jalin Billingsley and Luka Savicevic led the way individually with two steals each, both of which tied their respective career highs.

Game Notes
» Bates recorded his first career double-double as the sophomore netted a team-high 17 points and collected 13 rebounds, the most by an EMU player since Yeikson Montero pulled down 14 at Central Michigan, Jan. 16, 2021. Bates, who previously held a career-high rebound total of seven that he recorded last year for Memphis in a game at UCF, Jan. 12, 2022, also drained a pair of threes to extend his streak to six games in a row with at least two made. With his 17 points, Bates also has now tallied at least 15 points in all six of the games he has played for EMU.
» Acuff played another solid game on offense for Eastern Michigan as he dished out a career-high five assists and scored 16 points for the Eagles. It is the third time this season the transfer sophomore has scored 15-or-more points and gives him 41 points in his last two games after registering a career-high 25 against Winthrop, Nov. 23, at the Cancun Challenge. Additionally, it is the fourth time in the 2022-23 campaign Acuff has totaled double-digit points in a contest.
» Farrakhan tallied three assists for the 22nd time in his career and fifth time in the 2022-23 season. The New Jersey native has had multiple assists every game this season.
» EMU registered five steals in the first half. It was the most robberies in the first 20 minutes of play since the team tallied seven in the season premiere against Wayne State University, Nov. 7. The Eagles finished the game with eight thefts overall, marking the fourth time in seven games this year Eastern has stolen the ball at least eight times from its foe.
» Orlando Lovejoy continued his torrid pace at the charity stripe, connecting on both of his free throw attempts today, moving his season free throw percentage to 90.9, the fifth-best mark in the Mid-American Conference and 47th in the nation.
» EMU had a total of eight players score at least one basket. It is the fourth time the Eagles have had at least that many players make at least one field goal in a game in the young season.

DOUBLING UP: Emoni Bates recorded his first collegiate double-double against UC San Diego, Nov. 27, as the sophomore scored 17 points while also ripping down 13 rebounds. Bates, who is averaging 19.5 points per game this season, pulled down the most rebounds in his career, surpassing the seven he recorded for the University of Memphis in a Jan. 21, 2022, game at the University of Central Florida. Bates is the second Eastern player to record a double-double this season, which has happened in back-to-back games after Legend Geeter scored 12 points and rebounded 10 shots in the Cancun Challenge finale with Winthrop University, Nov. 23.

BIG BOARDS: With his 13 boards, Emoni Bates posted the most rebounds by an Eastern player this season and the fifth-most by any player in the Mid-American Conference. Legend Geeter is the only other Eagle to record double-digit rebounds after recording 10 against Winthrop, Nov. 23, at the Cancun Challenge. Bates' rebound total also is the most by an Eastern player since Jan. 16, 2021, when Yeikson Montero recorded 14 at Central Michigan.

EARLY RANKINGS: Through games played Nov. 28, Emoni Bates is the lone player in the MAC that ranks among the top 5 in scoring and the top 25 in rebounding across the league. Bates' 19.5 points currently ranks third overall while his 6.4 rebounds per game stands 24th. Additionally, he is one of just three players to rank in the top 10 in scoring and top 25 in rebounds with Leon Ayers III of Bowling Green State University (eighth at 17.5 points, 23rd at 5.0 rebounds) and Setric Miller Jr., of the University of Toledo (10th with 16.2 points, 12th with 6.5 rebounds) being the others to joining the list.

GOING DEEP: Emoni Bates has continued to find success from behind the arc as he currently ranks sixth in the MAC in three-point field goal percentage as he is connecting at a 42.9-percent clip. Bates is scoring 3.5 treys per game so far this year, which ranks second in the league while also placing him 13th nationally. As a team, the Eagles currently rank second in the MAC in three-point field goal percentage as the team is hitting 36.4 percent from deep.

MORE THAN AVERAGE: Emoni Bates is currently averaging 19.5 points per game. Although the season is just getting underway, if he is able to remain near this pace, he could be the first Eastern player to average more than 20 points per contest for the season since the 2005-06 campaign when both John Bowler and Carlos Medlock accomplished the feat.

FOR THREE: As a team, the Eagles are hitting at a 36.4 percent clip from three. If the season were to end today, that percentage would rank sixth all-time in program history. The last team to add its name to the list was the 2007-08 team that ranks tied for seventh at 35.9 percent.

CONTINUAL GROWTH: In the three games played last week, including two at the Cancun Challenge and home against UC San Diego, Tyson Acuff continued to lead the way as he posted a team-high 16.3 points per game average while also tying for the lead with 1.3 steals and second in assists at 2.7 per game. The floor general tallied eight total assists, including a career-best five against the Tritons, Nov. 27. Those five assists marked the fourth time this year Acuff has recorded at least three helpers in a game, one more than he accumulated during the 48 games he played for Duquesne during the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons. Overall, his 2.9 dishes per game ranks him 10th in the MAC so far this year.

TURNING OVER: Eastern Michigan currently ranks fourth in the MAC in turnover margin at +1.3 while also ranking fifth in steals at 7.4 forced per game. On an individual basis, Noah Farrakhan is averaging a team-best 3.0 assists per game to rank eighth in the MAC while he ranks ninth in assist-to-turnover margin at +1.2. On the theft front, two Eagles rank among the top 20 in the MAC for steals per game with Orlando Lovejoy ranking 17th with 1.4 per game and Legend Geeter sitting 19th at 1.3 per contest.

FREE TO THROW: "True" freshman Orlando Lovejoy has been shooting well at the free throw line as the rookie is hitting on 90.9 percent of his attempts so far this year. The team's leader in both makes and attempts from the charity stripe with 20 and 22, respectively, Lovejoy ranks tied for fifth in the MAC based on free throw percentage and also ranks 35th nationally. If Lovejoy maintains this pace, he would become the first Eastern player to hit over 90 percent of his visits to the charity stripe.

MAKING BASKETS: Both Jalin Billingsley and Colin Golson Jr. have been faring well from the floor as both players rank among the top 10 in field goal percentage in the MAC. Billingsley, following a 5-of-5 performance against Purdue University Fort Wayne, Nov. 22, at the Cancun Challenge, is currently ranked second in the conference as he is converting 63.6 percent of his shots while Golson stands sixth with a conversion rate of 57.4 percent. As it stands today, Billingsley's 63.6 percent shooting would rank sixth all-time in EMU's single-season laurels.

UP NEXT: Eastern returns home Sunday, Dec. 4, to play host to the Owls of Florida Atlantic University with the battle of the birds set to tip at 2:30 p.m. inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center. The game, which will be broadcast live in ESPN+ and WEMU (89.1 FM), will be the second half of a doubleheader with the EMU women playing host to the University of North Dakota in a noon tip with the Coyotes.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Tyson Acuff

Emoni Bates

Jalin Billingsley

Noah Farrakhan

Legend Geeter

Colin Golson Jr.

Orlando Lovejoy

Luka Savicevic

Eastern Michigan Athletics