Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
7-21,4-11MAC
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Western Michigan
7-21,3-12MAC
Eagles Earn 66-59 Victory Over Western Michigan
2/21/2023 9:17:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Bates paces the Eagles with 17 with Farrakhan (15) and Golson Jr. (10) chipping in double digits
Post Game Press Conference
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) - The Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team put in a strong defensive effort to battle back from a double-digit deficit to defeat visiting Western Michigan University, 66-59, inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center, Feb. 21. The win snapped a five-game losing streak for the Eagles (7-21, 4-11 MAC) and kept their hopes of reaching the 2023 Mid-American Conference Tournament in Cleveland, Ohio.
The Eagles had three players score in double figures, led by Emoni Bates (Ypsilanti, Mich.-Ypsi Prep-Memphis), who recorded 17 points and seven rebounds. Noah Farrakhan (Hillside, N.J.-The Patrick School-East Carolina) added 15 points while Colin Golson Jr. (Detroit, Mich.-Ferndale-Siena) helped out with 10 points and six rebounds from the bench, reaching double figures for the first time since scoring 10 against Winthrop University, Nov. 23, in the Cancun Challenge.
The Eastern Michigan defense held WMU shooters to just 39.7 percent from the field, including 28.6 percent from three-point range. The Eagles also kept Bronco standout Tray Maddox Jr. to 5-of-17 shooting in the game while limiting Lamar Norman Jr., to 18 points after he scored 35 last year, March 1, 2022, in Ypsilanti.
How It Happened
After falling behind, 24-14, Eastern Michigan went on a 7-0 run with 4:49 left in the first half to narrow its deficit to 24-21. The Eagles continued to narrow the gap and tied the game at 28-28 heading into halftime. The Green and White got the job done in the paint in the first half, scoring 14 of its 28 points close to the basket.
Western Michigan then snagged a 31-28 advantage before EMU responded by going on an 8-0 run, finished off by a Bates' triple, to seize a 36-31 lead with 17:38 to go in the contest. The Eagles kept expanding their margin and coasted the rest of the way for the 66-59 win.
Game Notes
» Emoni Bates finished with 17 points, reaching double-figures for the 23rd time this season. Bates finished with two made triples, the most he has connected on in his last four games and hitting at least two three-point baskets in a game for the 19th time this season.
» Bates brought his season total to 533 points, placing him fifth on the sophomore season scoring list at Eastern. He is 45 points away from tying Ricky Cottrill, who scored 582 points in the 2001-02 season. Bates also is now among the top 100 scorers in program history, ranking 99th all-time in Eastern history.
» Noah Farrakhan tallied 15 points against the Broncos to bring his career total to 786 points and moved into 55th place in program history. Those points propelled him past both Walt Jones (1972-76) and Charles Crickmore (1955-59), who scored 774 and 778 points, respectively, in their EMU careers. Farrakhan is now five points from tying Gary Clark (1960-64) for 54th with 791 points and 14 points away from scoring 800 points for the Eagles.
» Colin Golson Jr., had a big night in the paint as he collected a team-high four offensive rebounds on his way to scoring 10 points. His points mark the fourth time this year he has reached double digits and the first time since he collected 10 against Winthrop, Nov. 23, at the Cancun Challenge.
» As a team, the Eagles finished the game shooting 16-of-17 from the free throw line, which is a conversion rate of 94.1 percent, their highest of the season and one of the best in program history in a single game. One of the top free throw shooting teams in the league, the Eagles' 94.1 percent shooting ranks tied for the fourth-best shooting performance, equaling the 94.1 percent shooting at Buffalo, Jan. 21, 2021. The shooting also ranks as the second-best percentage of any game played inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center, trailing only Bowling Green, who was a perfect 25-of-25 against the Eagles, March 6, 2004. The previous best for Eastern inside the facility came Nov. 22, 2014, when EMU finished 17-of-19 (89.5 percent).
» Eastern committed just eight turnovers in the game, which ties for the second-fewest in any game this year and the ninth time the Eagles have had single-digit turnovers in a game. The eight miscues also are the fewest in a home game since committing eight against Florida Atlantic, Dec. 4.
» Jalin Billingsley stepped out and connected on a three, his first since going 1-of-2 at Akron, Jan. 13, with 12:11 remaining in the opening stanza to keep the Eagles' streak going as Eastern has now hit at least one triple in 579 games. Eastern, who finished 4-of-15 in three-point attempts in the game, last failed to score from downtown Jan. 24, 2004, when Miami held the Eagles to 0-of-7 from behind the arc.
» The Eagles trailed Western Michigan by 10 points with 4:54 remaining in the first half before closing the half on a 14-4 run to tie the game at 28-28 before eventually winning, 66-59. With the victory, the Eagles have now come back from double-digit deficits four times this year, the most recent coming at Miami, Jan. 28, when the Eagles turned an 11-point deficit into a five-point win, 74-69. The other two instances saw Eastern come back from 14 down to Central Michigan, Jan. 7 (W, 62-56) and at Florida International, Nov. 30 (W, 80-68).
» Eastern, who has the second-most starting lineups in the nation this year with 15 different combinations, sent the same starting five to the court for the fourth game in a row. The quintet, which featured Noah Farrakhan, Tyson Acuff, Orlando Lovejoy, Emoni Bates, and Legend Geeter, has started together fives times this year and holds a 2-3 record after the win over Western Michigan.
Historical Notes
» With the victory, the Eagles improved to 55-64 in their all-time series with the Broncos and split the season series after as both teams defended their respective home courts. The win for Eastern snapped Western Michigan's two-game winning streak in the series.
» When playing in Ypsilanti, the Eagles moved to 34-18 all-time against the Broncos with both teams having traded wins in each of the last two games.
Up Next
The Eagles will close out the home portion of their regular season schedule in the second half of an Eastern women's-men's doubleheader Saturday, Feb. 25, as the Eagles welcome Ball State to the George Gervin GameAbove Center for a 3:30 p.m. tip. The EMU women will open the day at 1 p.m. with their home finale against Kent State. Both games will be streamed live on ESPN3 with Ryan Wooley (pxp) and Justin Rose (color) on the call for the men's game and Dannie Rogers reporting from the sideline. Tom Helmer, the Voice of the Eagles, will have the call on the WEMU (89.1 FM) and the Varsity Network app.
