Eastern Completes Opening Homestand with UT Arlington

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) - After a hot 4-0 start to the 2013-14 season, the Eastern Michigan University men's basketball team will have one more home contest Saturday, Nov. 23, versus UT Arlington at the Convocation Center at 7 p.m. This will be the final home game for the Eagles before hitting the road for the first time this season when they head to Lexington, Ky. to take on the No. 4/5-ranked University of Kentucky Wildcats Wednesday, Nov. 27.

EMU is coming off of a 12-point, 81-69, victory against Cleveland State University, Nov. 18. Karrington Ward once again put together a career-high game, leading the Eagles in scoring with 28 points while grabbing six rebounds. The junior college transfer made 9-of-10 shots from the floor, including all three attempts from three-point land while converting 7-of-11 from the charity stripe. Off the bench, Glenn Bryant tallied 10 points and tied Ward with a team-high six rebounds in the victory.

WHAT'S TO COME: Eastern's schedule puts it on the road to Kentucky, Nov. 27, before coming back to Ypsilanti, Mich. for a Dec. 3 matchup with the University of Massachusetts at 7 p.m.

FINDING THE GAME AT HOME: The Eagles' contest with the Mavericks will hit the airwaves of 89.1 FM (WEMU). In addition to the WEMU broadcast, fans can watch live streaming video on Eastern Michigan's Eagle All-Access. Subscriptions for Eagle All-Access start at just $6.95.

Veteran "Voice of the Eagles" Chad Bush will serve as EMU's play-by-play announcer for both the radio and streaming broadcasts for the Green and White's contest with UT Arlington.

A NEW DANCE PARTNER: Eastern Michigan and UT Arlington have never squared off in the history of these programs. EMU has a history of basketball over 100 years old, while Arlington began varsity play in the 1959-60 season.

EARNING SOME RESPECT: As of the Nov. 18 poll, the EMU men's basketball team is receiving votes to be ranked in the CollegeInsider.com Men's Mid-Major Top 25. The Eagles are receiving 16 votes, and have defeated a pair of schools in the same category, including Cleveland State and Robert Morris.

WARD LIFTS EAGLES TO FOUR-STRAIGHT TO OPEN 2013-14: Eagle newcomer and junior college transfer Karrington Ward has shown why he deserves the praise that Head Coach Rob Murphy and his staff gave him heading into his first season donning the Green and White, including during the Eagles' win over Cleveland State, Nov. 18. Ward poured in a career-high 28 points and went 9-for-10 from the floor including a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc. While the 28 points was also the most points scored by a player in a single game this season it was also the highest point output since Darrell Lampley exploded for 37 against Colgate, Dec. 1, 2011, in Murphy's first season as the head man at EMU.

20-PLUS: The Eagles have relied on Lockport, Ill. native Karrington Ward to do the bulk of the scoring this season for EMU as he is averaging 20 points per game. The two-time NJCAA All-American is the first Eagle to score at a 20 point clip since John Bowler posted 20.1 during the 2005-06 season when EMU went 7-21 on the year.

DEEP GREEN SEA: Head Coach Rob Murphy has the luxury of being "too deep". Murphy has 11 players that he feels could start on any given day for the Green and White. So far this season, the Detroit, Mich. native has played 10 different student-athletes for at least 13 minutes per game, including eight that have seen at least 15 minutes of action per contest.

COMFORTABLE AT THE CONVO: Under Head Coach Rob Murphy, the EMU basketball team has been comfortable opening up the season inside the friendly confines of the Convocation Center. Throughout the past three seasons, EMU holds an impressive 12-1 record at home in the 11th month of the calendar year. Overall since Murphy has taken over the EMU program, he holds a 26-9 record inside the Convocation Center over the last three seasons.

BEST START THIS CENTURY: With a 4-0 record to start the 2013-14 campaign, the EMU hoops team is off to its best start in the 21st century. The last time the Eagles opened up the season with four straight victories was the 1996-97 season when Earl Boykins and Derrick Dial led EMU to six consecutive wins to begin the season. That season was sandwiched between two trips to the NCAA Tournament for the Green and White.

NO NON-CONFERENCE CUPCAKES: Head Coach Rob Murphy does not shy away from a battle with his squad. The Eagles have a schedule that does not lend them any breaks. There are four postseason tournaments in which NCAA Division I schools participate in; of the Green and White's non-conference competition, EMU will face nine teams that appeared in one of these postseason tournaments. Eastern will square off with Duke and Syracuse, who were a two and four seed, respectively in the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament. EMU has Kentucky, Massachusetts and Robert Morris on its schedule, rach of which took part in the National Invitation Tournament. The Wildcats were a No. 1 seed, while UMass and Robert Morris earned two and eight seeds. Green Bay, Oakland and UT Arlington each played in the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament, while Purdue took part in the College Basketball Invitational last season.

DEFYING MURPHY'S LAW: Although defense has been Head Coach Rob Murphy's philosophy since he stepped foot on the campus of Eastern Michigan, the 2013-14 basketball team seems to be showing the third-year head coach that it might be able to win games on the offensive side of the ball as well. Since coming to Ypsilanti, Murphy's squads have averaged 53.2 and 56.6 points per game, respectively. On the other side of the ball, Murphy's Eagles have allowed just 58.7 and 59.1 points per contest in those two seasons. After four games this season, the Eagles are averaging 80.5 points on the offensive side, while allowing just 57.0 points on the defensive side. It seems as though these Eagles are embracing the defensive philosophy while exploding on the other side of the court as well.

STUFF YOU VERY MUCH: Eastern Michigan's defensive prowess is what has allowed the team to be successful the last few years. That stealthy defense includes their shot blocking ability. In its first four games, EMU has blocked 45 shots. Those rejections are already 26.6 percent of last season's total of 169 swatted shots. Projections say the Eagles are on pace for 350 blocked shots this season. Eastern leads the country in blocked shots, posting 11.25 per game, while their 45 rejections are the second-most behind VMI's 50. However, VMI has played two more games that EMU and averages just 8.33 per game.

Da'Shonte Riley has led that defensive block party. The senior who transferred from Syracuse just two seasons ago has racked up 22 blocks already this season. The Detroit, Mich. native is also earning his spot in the EMU record books. The seven-footer has blocked 118 shots in his career, good for the third-most in EMU history. He is 49 shy of Jamell Harris, while he trails the all-time leader Theron Wilson by a wide margin. Wilson finished his career with 257 rejections. Riley, however, has only played just over one and a half seasons for the Green and White, while Wilson appeared on the EMU roster for four seasons (1992-96). Riley holds down the No. 2 spot in the country with his 5.5 per game this season, trailing just Michale Kyser of Louisiana Tech.

Glenn Bryant has been no slouch at turning away the opposition. He is averaging 2.75 blocks per contest, good for the 35th-most in the nation, while his 11 are good for 39th overall. His 55 career blocks rank him as the 15th-best shot blocker in EMU history.

KINETIC KARRINGTON: Eastern Michigan's new wingman, Karrington Ward, is currently leading the Eagles in scoring after the first four games of the season with 20.0 points a game, while also pulling down a team-best 7.3 rebounds per game. The junior college transfer also posted the first double-double for an Eagle this season when he pulled down 12 rebounds and poured in 18 points against Robert Morris, Nov. 14. Ward has become a human highlight reel at EMU, as the two-time junior college All-American has shown his versatility to the fans by dunking, draining threes, rebounding and swiping the ball from the opposition.

DROPPIN' DIMES: The Eagles had struggled the last few seasons to find the open man, but 2013-14 has been a different story. The Green and White is averaging 15.5 assists per game this season, compared to last season when they notched 10.7 per tilt. Missing a true point guard the last two seasons, it seems Mike Talley has emerged as the 2013-14 floor general for EMU and has dished out 3.75 assists per game.

EMU FOR THREE!: Eastern's offense has clicked on all cylinders in its first four contests. The Eagles have knocked down 20 three-pointers in their first three games of the season, but what is more impressive is that they are shooting 45.5 percent from beyond the arc.

IT AIN'T NO THING: After starting 30-of-34 games last season for EMU, senior Glenn Bryant finds himself coming off the bench for Rob Murphy's squad. However, Bryant has embraced the role from the bench, doing whatever he can to help the team win.

Despite not starting the game on the floor Bryant is averaging 12.3 points a game, good for the third most on this highly explosive offensive attack from the Eagles.

Eastern Michigan Athletics

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