MBB Returns Home to Face Ohio Tuesday Night

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – Coming off a strong performance in a road victory over the weekend, the Eastern Michigan University men’s basketball team returns to its home court Tuesday, Jan. 31, when the Bobcats of Ohio University come to town for a 7 p.m. contest inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center. The Eagles (5-16, 2-6 MAC) used a 74-69 win at Miami University, Jan. 28, to snap a five-game losing streak and will look for their first back-to-back wins since December 2021 when the Bobcats (11-10, 3-5 MAC) come calling.
   The game will be streamed live on ESPN+ with Ryan Wooley and Justin Rose 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:
»  A full team effort helped the Eagles secure a 74-69 road win at Miami, Jan. 28, to snap a five-game losing streak. With a win against Ohio, Jan. 31, the Eagles would win back-to-back contests for the first time since winning three in a row to close out the non-conference slate last year (December 2021).
»  The Eagles forced Miami into 19 turnovers, 11 of which were steals by Eastern. The 11 steals are the most in a road game this year and the third-most overall behind the 15 steals from Central Michigan, Jan. 7, and 12 from Detroit Mercy, Dec. 18.
»  Emoni Bates has scored 60 points in the last two games, the second-highest total in back-to-back contests since Raven Lee scored 71 during the 2016-17 season. Bates moved past current teammate Noah Farrakhan, who was second on the list with 58 points scored last year.
»  Emoni Bates would need 18 points against Ohio, Jan. 31, to move into the top-10 charts for three-game scoring and join Noah Farrakhan, who scored 79 points in three consecutive games last season.
»  Noah Farrakhan recorded three assists at Miami, Jan. 28, to run his streak to 21 games this year and 33 overall with at least one helper. Since 1998-99, he ranks tied for fifth with Tim Bond next on the list at 44.
»  The Eagles finished the game at Miami with four made three-pointers to extend their streak to 572 consecutive games with at least one made triple.
 
SCOUTING OHIO: The Bobcats enter Tuesday’s game with an 11-10 overall record and stand 3-5 in MAC play following their 83-77 loss at Akron, Jan. 28, that snapped a two-game winning streak that saw them defeat Central Michigan and Western Michigan. Ohio, who is 0-4 in road MAC games and 2-8 in all road contests, share two common non-conference opponents with the Eagles, falling at Detroit Mercy, 88-74, Nov. 16, before losing a 70-66 decision at then-No. 20 Michigan, Nov. 20.
   Individually, four Bobcats are averaging double-digit points with Dwight Wilson leading the way with 15.5 points per game and a team-high 9.7 rebounds. Miles Brown (10.8), AJ Brown (10.6), and Jaylin Hunter (10.5) are each averaging in double-figures with Hunter leading the team with 4.3 assists per game.
 
IN THE SERIES WITH OHIO:
»  The Bobcats lead the all-time series, 54-26, and have won five in a row overall.
»  Ohio holds a slim lead when the series is played in Ypsilanti, 19-18, and has won the last four meetings.
»  The last time the two teams met was also the last time the game was played in Ypsilanti with the Bobcats leaving town with a 74-56 decision, Feb. 12, 2022.
»  Ohio also won the first of two games last year, 81-68, in Athens, Feb. 3, 2022.
 
ALMA MATER MEETINGS: The game with Ohio marks the fourth time this year both teams’ head coach is leading his alma mater with Stan Heath and Jeff Boals guiding their respective sides. The Eagles have played in three such games earlier this year as Heath and his Eagles have faced Bryan Smothers and Wayne State, Nov. 7, Juwan Howard and Michigan, Nov. 11, and Michael Huger and Bowling Green, Jan. 3. The Eagles are slated for a rematch with Huger and BGSU, Feb. 28, in the penultimate game of the regular season.
 
QUICK REVIEW • MIAMI: The Eastern Michigan University men’s basketball team saw a 23-point performance from the bench on the way to a 74-69 victory against the Miami University RedHawks on the road Saturday, Jan. 28, to snap a five-game skid. Noah Farrakhan paced the Eagles with 20 points while Emoni Bates added 17 and Tyson Acuff scored 12 in the victory.
   The Eagles forced 19 Miami turnovers while committing 11 themselves in Saturday’s game. The Eagles turned those takeaways into 21 points on the offensive end of the floor. Acuff’s four steals led the way for Eastern Michigan. The Eagles finished with 11 steals in the game, their third-highest total of the season and the most they have recorded in a road game in 2022-23.
   After falling behind 15-4, Eastern Michigan went on an 11-0 run with 14:52 left in the first half to tie the game at 15. The Eagles then proceeded to grab a 40-38 lead heading into halftime. Eastern Michigan did most of its first half damage in the paint, scoring 22 of its 40 points close to the basket.
   Eastern Michigan kept its lead intact before going on a 7-0 run to grow the lead to 67-59 with 5:01 to go in the contest. The RedHawks narrowed the margin somewhat before the game was over, but the Eagles still held on for the 74-69 win. Eastern Michigan capitalized on 10 Miami turnovers in the period, collecting 10 points off those turnovers.
 
QUICK NOTES • MIAMI GAME:
» Noah Farrakhan finished the game with a team-high 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting, including 5-of-5 from the line, to go along with six rebounds, three assists, and one steal. The 20 points marked his fourth 20+ game this season and the 14th of his career. He also has 709 points for his EMU career, which ranks 66th on the program’s all-time scoring ledger. He moved past five former Eagles on the day with Howard Chambers (1987-89) sitting 65th with 710 points.
» With three assists, Jan. 28, Farrakhan extended his streak to recording at least one helper in 21 contests and has dropped at least one dime in 33 consecutive games dating back to last season. In fact, in his two seasons with the Eagles, Farrakhan has recorded at least one assist in 43-of-46 games played (93.5 percent) for Eastern and, when including his one season with East Carolina (2020-21), he has done so in 50-of-58 career games (86.2 percent)
» Emoni Bates, who celebrated his birthday with a victory, scored 17 points on the game and tied both Farrakhan and Kevin-David Rice with a team-high six rebounds. With those 17 points and his 43 at Toledo, Jan. 24, Bates is the first Eagle to score 60+ points in back-to-back games since Raven Lee did so in the 2016-17 season. Lee opened his two-game stretch with 21 points in a home game against Northern Illinois, Feb. 25, 2017, before scoring his program-record 50 points at Central Michigan, Feb. 28, 2017.
» With his 17 points, Bates has now scored 407 points on the year and has reached double figures for the 17th time in 20 games played. He also scored 15-or-more for the 16th time this year.
» Bates’ four assists led the team at Miami and stand a season-high, surpassing the three he tallied twice this year, most recently at Western Michigan, Jan. 10. His career high is six that he recorded with Memphis against Cincinnati, Jan. 9, 2022.
» Rice pulled down a career-high six rebounds to share the game lead with both Bates and Farrakhan. His previous career-best was five boards at Illinois State, Dec. 7, 2022. Rice finished with six points, including 4-of-4 from the line in the waning minutes of the game, and added one block.
» Farrakhan connected on a three-point shot with 14:40 remaining in the opening half to help the Eagles extend their consecutive games streak to 572 in a row with at least one made triple. Eastern finished the day shooting 4-of-24 from three. The last time Eastern failed to hit a three-point basket in a game came Jan. 24, 2004, when the Eagles were 0-of-7 at Miami.
 
TEN OR MORE: In all but three games so far this season, Emoni Bates has scored in double figures as the sophomore is making his case for one of the top scorers in the MAC and the NCAA. With his 17 points at Miami, Jan. 28, Bates reached double-figure points for the 17th time in the 20 games he has played while scoring at least 15 points for the 16th time.
 
BACK-TO-BACK: In the past two games, Emoni Bates has combined to score 60 points after he posted a career-high 43 at Toledo, Jan. 24, and 17 at Miami, Jan. 28. Since the 1998-99 season, Bates’ 60 points rank as the second-most in consecutive games for the Eagles with only Raven Lee‘s 71 points ranking higher. Lee scored 21 at home against Northern Illinois, Feb. 25, 2017, before recording his school-record 50 points at Central Michigan, Feb. 28, 2017. Before Bates’ scoring burst, Noah Farrakhan formerly held the second position with 58…