Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
8-6,1-1MAC
Kent State
8-6,1-1MAC
EMU Overcomes 17-Point Second-Half Deficit, Lovejoy Hits Game-Winner to Top Kent State
1/6/2024 6:04:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Eagles stun MAC’s 2022-23 tournament champions
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YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University men's basketball overcame a 17-point second-half deficit to upend Kent State University, 71-69, in overtime as sophomore Orlando Lovejoy hit the game-winner with two seconds to play, Saturday, Jan. 6, inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center.
Lovejoy (Detroit, Mich./Summit Academy North) scored 16 points to lead EMU while freshman Arne Osojnik (Ljubljana, Slovenia/Dream City Christian) drilled a triple to send the game to overtime.
How It Happened
Eastern was within two at 25-23 with five minutes to go in the opening half before the Golden Flashes closed strong to lead 38-26 at the break.
KSU extended its advantage to as many as 17 with 13:24 remaining in regulation.
EMU battled back to within two points just five minutes later but was unable to tie or take the lead until Osojnik tied the game with a three-pointer with seven seconds to go in regulation.
After redshirt junior Connor Serven (Prairie City, Ill./St. Rita/Illinois) tied the game at 69-69 with his third dunk of the game at the 3:03 mark, the teams went scoreless for the next three minutes before Lovejoy knocked down a driving floater to secure the win.
Game Notes
» Eastern moved to 8-6 overall and 1-1 in MAC play while Kent State moved to 8-6 overall and 1-1 in the MAC.
» Eastern Michigan was 28-of-59 (47.5%) from the floor and 6-of-20 (30.0%) from three-point range while Kent State was 26-of-56 (46.4%) from the floor and 8-of-22 (36.4%) from three-point range.
» Lovejoy has five-straight games with 14-plus points.
» Lovejoy matched his career high with three steals, last doing so against the University of Toledo, Feb. 11, 2023. Lovejoy has at least one steal in four-straight games.
» Lovejoy played a career-high 41 minutes, topping his previous mark of 40 minutes played against Bowling Green State University, Jan. 2.
» Serven scored a career-high 15 points, more than doubling his previous high of seven points, most recently achieved at BGSU, Jan. 2.
» Serven hauled in a career-high eight rebounds, besting his old mark of six rebounds set at the University of Detroit Mercy, Nov. 21.
» Serven played a career-high 36 minutes, topping his previous mark of 23 minutes against the University of North Dakota, Nov. 26.
» Junior Jalin Billingsley (Cleveland, Ohio/Lutheran East/Georgetown) blocked two shots for the second time this season. He also had two rejections against Northwood University, Dec. 30. Five different Eagles have had multiple blocks in a game this season.
» Junior Tyson Acuff (Detroit, Mich./Cass Technical/Duquesne) is approaching 1,000 career points and sits at 962 career points after his 11-point performance. Acuff netted 239 points in his two seasons at Duquesne.
» Acuff dished out a career-high seven assists. He topped his previous mark of six, which most recently occurred at Ohio University, Jan. 31, 2023.
» Redshirt sophomore Legend Geeter (River Rouge, Mich./River Rouge/Providence) tallied a career-high seven assists, topping his previous mark of four at the University at Buffalo, Feb. 7, 2023.
» Geeter nailed his first three-pointer of the season with to cut the Eagle deficit to one point with 5:34 to play.
» Geeter also recorded a +25 plus-minus rating, 12 points higher than Osojnik's +13 rating for the game's top mark.
» With Acuff and Geeter each recording six-plus assists, the Eagles had two players with at least five assists for the second time this year after Julius Ellerbe (Fort Washington, Md./Virginia Beach Sports Academy/East Central CC) and Acuff each had five assists.
» Eastern's 17 assists are its most since posting 17 at Buffalo, Feb. 7, 2023.
» EMU had three players (Lovejoy, 16; Serven, 15; Acuff, 11) in double-digit points for the seventh time this season.
» EMU's Jan. 2 game at BGSU went to overtime. Eastern last played back-to-back games that went to overtime, Jan. 7 and 10, 2015. The Eagles fell, 60-59, against Ball State University and 82-81 at Miami University, respectively.
» EMU last won a game when trailing by 17 with a 19-point comeback against Akron University, March 8, 2018. The Eagles were trailing 47-28 with 12:30 to play before coming back to win 67-58 in the opening round of the MAC Tournament.
» Eastern, which hit six threes against Kent State, has now hit at least one triple in 596-straight games. EMU last failed to score from downtown Jan. 24, 2004, when Miami held the Eagles to 0-of-7 from behind the arc.
Historical Notes
» Eastern Michigan trails in the series against Kent State, 36-49, snapping a six-game losing streak. The Eagles hold a 26-14 advantage when playing at home.
» The 3,058 attendance is the 18th-highest for a MAC game in EMU history.
Next Up
Eastern Michigan is scheduled to host Central Michigan University Tuesday, Jan. 9, in a 7 p.m. tip inside the George Gervin GameAbove.
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