Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
4-2,0-0MAC
Houston Christian
2-4,0-0Southland
Eastern Edges Houston Christian, 74-73
11/25/2024 10:20:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Eagles survive furious second-half comeback
HOUSTON, Texas (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team survived a furious comeback, edging Houston Christian University, 74-73, Monday, Nov. 25, at Sharp Gymnasium as part of the Houston Christian MTE.
Eastern led by 16 with eight minutes to play before the Huskies rallied to take a two-point lead as Christian Henry (Chicago, Ill./The Skill Factory/Panola College) scored the game-winning basket with 45 seconds to go.
Four Eagles reached double figures for the second time this season, highlighted by Da'Sean Nelson's (Toledo, Ohio/Robert S. Rogers/Kilgore College/DePaul) 19 points, Jalen Terry (Flint, Mich./Beecher/Oregon/DePaul) scored 18, Jalin Billingsley (Cleveland, Ohio/Lutheran East/Georgetown) netted 13, and Henry added 12.
How it Happened
Helped by an 18-5 run, EMU led, 33-21, with five minutes to go in the first half prior to HCU cutting the lead back to three. The Eagles settled for a 40-31 lead after Henry netted a lay-up with three seconds left and Terry swiped the in-bounds pass and put in a lay-up at the horn.
Eastern led by as many as 16 points with 7:59 remaining before HCU launched a 22-4 run to lead by two at 69-67 with 2:15 to go.
Henry put the Eagles back ahead with a lay-up with 45 seconds to play before Terry added two free throws.
A last-ditch attempt at the buzzer by HCU sailed wide as EMU secured the win.
Game Notes
» Eastern moved to 4-2 overall while Houston Christian moved to 2-4 overall.
» Eastern Michigan was 29-of-51 (56.9%) from the floor and 5-of-15 (33.3%) from three-point range while Houston Christian was 28-of-55 (50.9%) from the field and 9-of-20 (45.0%) from deep.
» Nelson's 19 points are a season-high as he shot an efficient 9-of-14 from the floor, equaling his career-high in made field goals. Nelson last scored at least 19 points with DePaul, netting 20 at Villanova, Jan. 12, 2024.
» Billingsley, who ranked inside the top-20 of the MAC in field goal percentage entering the day, was an impressive 6-of-7 from the floor, including hitting his lone three-point attempt.
» Arne Osojnik's (Ljubljana, Slovenia/Dream City Christian) posted a career-high four steals, topping his previous mark of three, set at Akron, March 5, 2024. Osojnik also set a career-high in assists with three.
» Terry matched his career-high mark with three steals, last done at IU Indy, Nov. 14, 2024.
» Led by Osojnik's four steals, Eastern tallied 11 steals for the first time since Jan. 28, 2023, at Miami.
» Godslove Nwabude (Anambra State, Nigeria/Mt. Zion Prep) recorded two blocks for the second time this season as he also had a pair against Siena Heights, Nov. 8.
» EMU, the MAC's second-leading offensive rebounding team entering the day, recorded a season-low seven offensive boards, marking its first game this season without double-digit offensive rebounds after opening the first six games by doing so for the first time since at least the 2002-03 season.
» The Eagles, which outrebounded the Huskies, 28-25, moved to 3-1 when outrebounding their opponent. Despite the season low in rebounds, every Eagle that played had at least one for the second time this season.
» Eastern controlled the paint, outscoring HCU, 48-34 in the lane.
Historical Notes
» EMU moved to 1-0 against Houston Christian as Monday's game was the first-ever meeting between the teams.
» With other road wins at IU Indy, Nov. 14, and at Oakland, Nov. 21, the Eagles have three non-conference true road wins for the first time since the 1996-97 season.
» Eastern, which hit five threes against Houston Christian, has now hit at least one triple in 619-straight games. EMU last failed to score from downtown Jan. 24, 2004, when Miami University held the Eagles to 0-of-7 from behind the arc. The Eagles have converted multiple three-pointers in 41-straight contests, not having done so most recently in a 1-for-15 performance against Akron, Feb.14, 2023.
Next Up
Eastern Michigan will return to Sharp Gymnasium Tuesday, Nov. 26, to take on Northern Arizona. The game is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET. Houston Christian women's basketball is hosting Tarleton State at 7 p.m. ET.
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