Eastern Michigan Athletics
Saturday, February 8
Ypsilanti, Mich.
2 p.m.
Eastern Michigan University
11-12,4-6MAC
76
vs
70
Old Dominion
11-14,7-5Sun Belt
1
2
F
Old Dominion
26
44
70
Eastern Mich.
29
47
76
Photo by: Alex Paslawski
Nelson Leads Eastern Over Old Dominion, 76-70
2/8/2025 4:42:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Nelson’s 22-point effort helps Eagles to MAC-SBC Challenge victory
Cinematic Highlights | Postgame Interview
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – Senior Da'Sean Nelson scored 22 points to lead the Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team over Old Dominion, 76-70, Saturday, Feb. 8, inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center in the second leg of the Mid-American Conference-Sun Belt Conference Challenge.
Nelson (Toledo, Ohio/Robert S. Rogers/Kilgore College/DePaul) and the Eagles led for more than 33 minutes in a game that featured nine lead changes.
How it Happened
John Shanu II (Houston, Texas/Sam Houston/Old Dominion/UTRGV) won the tip against his former school as Yusuf Jihad (Farmington Hills, Mich./North Farmington/Oakland) netted Eastern's first basket.
A triple from Arne Osojnik (Ljubljana, Slovenia/Dream City Christian) pushed the Eagle advantage to 15-7, EMU's largest lead of the opening half.
After ODU cut it to 25-23, EMU scored the next four points, before the Monarchs drilled a three at the first half's buzzer to bring ODU to within three at 29-26.
The teams traded buckets in the first 10 minutes of the second half before a 12-2 Eastern spurt gave the hosts a 59-51 lead with 7:11 left.
ODU drew within four with four minutes left prior to Eastern earning its largest of the game at 73-63 with 35 seconds to go as the Eagles knocked in seven free throws in the game's final minute.
Game Notes
» Eastern moved to 11-12 overall while Old Dominion moved to 11-14 overall.
» Eastern Michigan was 25-of-50 (50.0%) from the floor and 5-of-18 (27.8%) from three-point range while Old Dominion was 22-of-52 (42.3%) from the field and 7-of-24 (29.2%) from deep.
» Nelson's 22 points marked his seventh game with at least 20 points this season and 10th time in his career.
» Nelson has 973 career points as a Division I player (245 at EMU, 628 at DePaul).
» Nelson, who averages 6.1 fouls drawn per game, drew seven fouls.
» Jalin Billingsley (Cleveland, Ohio Lutheran East Georgetown) posted 12 points on a perfect 4-for-4 showing from the field. Billingsley, who entered the day as the MAC's fourth-most efficient shooter entering the day, improved his shooting percentage to .559.
» Jalen Terry (Flint, Mich./Beecher/Oregon/DePaul) scored 18 points, including a trio of three-pointers in the game's final 11 minutes. The senior made four three-pointers, marking the seventh time this season he has made at least four three-pointers this season and 16th time in his career.
» Terry, the MAC leader in minutes at 36.8 minutes per game entering Saturday, played 37 minutes.
» Christian Henry (Chicago, Ill./The Skill Factory/Panola College) had his streak of 17 games with at least one made three-pointer snapped, going 0-for-3 from deep.
» Henry, who scored 13 points, has 11-consecutive games with at least 10 points.
» Dillon Tingler (Hurricane, W. Va./Huntington Expression Prep) equaled his career-high with a trio of steals, matching his mark set against Northern Illinois, Jan. 4. Tingler also posted five rebounds, his third game with at least five rebounds this season.
» Eastern recorded one block, marking 18-straight games with at least one block, the team's longest streak since blocking at least one shot in every game during the 2021-22 season.
» The Eagles scored 47 points in the second half, their sixth-highest scoring half of the season.
» Eastern's bench outscored ODU's, 34-10, led by Nelson's 22 points off the bench.
» EMU got to the line 30 times, converting 21 shots from the charity stripe. The 30 free throw attempts are Eastern's most since Jan. 21, 2023, going 18-for-30 against Northern Illinois.
Historical Notes
» EMU moved to 2-0 against Old Dominion.
» The Eagles improved to 2-0 in the MAC-SBC Challenge at home and 2-2 overall while ODU moved to 0-4.
» Eastern, which hit five threes against Old Dominion, has now hit at least one triple in 636-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 58-straight contests, not having done so most recently in a 1-for-15 performance against Akron, Feb.14, 2023.
Next Up
Eastern Michigan travels to Ball State for a 7 p.m. game Tuesday, Feb. 11, for a pivotal MAC game.
Follow Us
For the most up-to-date information on the Eagles, continue to visit EMUEagles.com. Fans can also follow the team on social media, including Twitter (@EMU_MBB) and Instagram (@EMUMBB).
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – Senior Da'Sean Nelson scored 22 points to lead the Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team over Old Dominion, 76-70, Saturday, Feb. 8, inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center in the second leg of the Mid-American Conference-Sun Belt Conference Challenge.
Nelson (Toledo, Ohio/Robert S. Rogers/Kilgore College/DePaul) and the Eagles led for more than 33 minutes in a game that featured nine lead changes.
How it Happened
John Shanu II (Houston, Texas/Sam Houston/Old Dominion/UTRGV) won the tip against his former school as Yusuf Jihad (Farmington Hills, Mich./North Farmington/Oakland) netted Eastern's first basket.
A triple from Arne Osojnik (Ljubljana, Slovenia/Dream City Christian) pushed the Eagle advantage to 15-7, EMU's largest lead of the opening half.
After ODU cut it to 25-23, EMU scored the next four points, before the Monarchs drilled a three at the first half's buzzer to bring ODU to within three at 29-26.
The teams traded buckets in the first 10 minutes of the second half before a 12-2 Eastern spurt gave the hosts a 59-51 lead with 7:11 left.
ODU drew within four with four minutes left prior to Eastern earning its largest of the game at 73-63 with 35 seconds to go as the Eagles knocked in seven free throws in the game's final minute.
Game Notes
» Eastern moved to 11-12 overall while Old Dominion moved to 11-14 overall.
» Eastern Michigan was 25-of-50 (50.0%) from the floor and 5-of-18 (27.8%) from three-point range while Old Dominion was 22-of-52 (42.3%) from the field and 7-of-24 (29.2%) from deep.
» Nelson's 22 points marked his seventh game with at least 20 points this season and 10th time in his career.
» Nelson has 973 career points as a Division I player (245 at EMU, 628 at DePaul).
» Nelson, who averages 6.1 fouls drawn per game, drew seven fouls.
» Jalin Billingsley (Cleveland, Ohio Lutheran East Georgetown) posted 12 points on a perfect 4-for-4 showing from the field. Billingsley, who entered the day as the MAC's fourth-most efficient shooter entering the day, improved his shooting percentage to .559.
» Jalen Terry (Flint, Mich./Beecher/Oregon/DePaul) scored 18 points, including a trio of three-pointers in the game's final 11 minutes. The senior made four three-pointers, marking the seventh time this season he has made at least four three-pointers this season and 16th time in his career.
» Terry, the MAC leader in minutes at 36.8 minutes per game entering Saturday, played 37 minutes.
» Christian Henry (Chicago, Ill./The Skill Factory/Panola College) had his streak of 17 games with at least one made three-pointer snapped, going 0-for-3 from deep.
» Henry, who scored 13 points, has 11-consecutive games with at least 10 points.
» Dillon Tingler (Hurricane, W. Va./Huntington Expression Prep) equaled his career-high with a trio of steals, matching his mark set against Northern Illinois, Jan. 4. Tingler also posted five rebounds, his third game with at least five rebounds this season.
» Eastern recorded one block, marking 18-straight games with at least one block, the team's longest streak since blocking at least one shot in every game during the 2021-22 season.
» The Eagles scored 47 points in the second half, their sixth-highest scoring half of the season.
» Eastern's bench outscored ODU's, 34-10, led by Nelson's 22 points off the bench.
» EMU got to the line 30 times, converting 21 shots from the charity stripe. The 30 free throw attempts are Eastern's most since Jan. 21, 2023, going 18-for-30 against Northern Illinois.
Historical Notes
» EMU moved to 2-0 against Old Dominion.
» The Eagles improved to 2-0 in the MAC-SBC Challenge at home and 2-2 overall while ODU moved to 0-4.
» Eastern, which hit five threes against Old Dominion, has now hit at least one triple in 636-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 58-straight contests, not having done so most recently in a 1-for-15 performance against Akron, Feb.14, 2023.
Next Up
Eastern Michigan travels to Ball State for a 7 p.m. game Tuesday, Feb. 11, for a pivotal MAC game.
Follow Us
For the most up-to-date information on the Eagles, continue to visit EMUEagles.com. Fans can also follow the team on social media, including Twitter (@EMU_MBB) and Instagram (@EMUMBB).
Team Stats
ODU
EMU
FG%
.423
.500
3FG%
.292
.278
FT%
.950
.700
RB
29
31
TO
13
12
STL
6
6
Game Leaders
Pts
22
FGM
8
3FGM
0
FTM
6
Pts
18
FGM
5
3FGM
4
FTM
4
Pts
13
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
7
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
C
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
G
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