The Rundown

The Eagles do not have a very experienced roster, and they only have two seniors who combine for returning 5 points per game.  They add two junior college transfer guards to their roster; Ty Toney who averaged 18 points per game; and Willie Magnum who averaged 20 points per game in his sophomore season.

The Eagles have size, but they are not incredibly talented in the post.  Seriously, how does a 6’8″ man shoot 27 % from the field?

The Mavericks will need this win.  Really, you need every win, but the Mavericks will meet the Eagles after a 3 game road trip and right before another three game road trip.  The next home game the Mavericks will play will be against Simpson College, so I am guessing most fans are pretending it is not a real game.  After Simpson, the Mavericks have another three games on the road before starting another three game road swing.  The Mavericks have two home games in the month of December, the Eagles and Simpson College…when they come back, Omaha will start the Summit League.

Prior to playing the Mavericks, the Eagles will take on Vermont, Oakland, Michigan State, and 3 non-division one teams.  They have 4 non-division one teams on their schedule, I get annoyed with the Mavericks having 2 non-division one teams on the schedule, I cannot imagine 4.

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Eastern Michigan

2014-2015 Record: 21-14 (but they went 18-14 vs D-1 opponents)

2014-2015 Road Record: 4-10

Final RPI in 2014-2015: 148

2014-2015 Post Season:  Lost to Louisiana Monroe in CBI 71-67

Big win in 2014-2015:  @ Michigan 45-42

Random Stat:  Eastern Michigan ranked 280th in the nation in field goal percentage in 2014-2015

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Key losses:

Karrington Ward, 6’7″ F

12.5 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 1.3 bpg, 44 FG%, 38 3ptFG%, 65 FT%

Mike Talley, 6’0″ G

10.2 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 3.6 apg, 1.1 spg, 35 FG%, 29 3ptFG%, 72 FT%

Anali Okoloji, 6’8″ F

5.5 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 39 FG%, 76 FT%

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Key returners:

Raven Lee, 6’3″ G, Junior

That name is made up, right?  He was a 3rd Team All MAC as a sophomore showing he is a serious scoring threat averaging 16.7 ppg and shooting 44% from the field.  It is scary to think about who the Mavs will have guard him.  He made 70 three point field goals as a sophomore.  Lee is a guard that could really prepare the Mavericks for the Summit League.

Tim Bond, 6’7″ G/F, Soph

Bond is listed at 160 pounds.  That kind of stands out… He was 4th on the team in scoring with 6.1 ppg and in assists at 1.1 per game.  A 57% free throw shooter.

Jodan Price, 6’8″ F, Junior

Transferred to Eastern Michigan from DePaul after his freshman season.  At 6’8″ he likes to play on the outside with 75% of his shot attempts being from outside for three.  Averaged 4.3 points per game, but only shot 27% on the year.  He constantly has a look on his face that makes you feel like he is bored.  Actually if you look up any picture of any player on their team, they look like they just woke up from a nap.

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The Rundown-Continued

I say I am afraid of Raven Lee because of the Mavericks’ poor perimeter defense last season, but I am gaining more hope as I read about the additions of Tra-Deon Hollins and Alex Allbery.  Both claim to be defensive specialists, but I do not imagine Allbery getting much playing time.  You can be comfortable with your walk on wanting to be a defensive specialist.  In most scenarios, your walk on is going to be your 5th option on the court, so it can be huge if he can make some defensive stops while he is on the court.

While, the Mavericks were one of the highest scoring teams in college basketball in 2014-2015, they unofficially averaged the 19th most points in division one…the Eagles are a sound defensive team.  The Eagles were 11th in the nation in steals per game, and ranked 51st in blocks per game.  How much can the Mavericks score on a defensive team like this?

Hey, the Mavericks are 3-0 against the MAC since joining division one, but all three of those wins are over Northern Illinois.  But, hey, the Eagles had the same conference record as Northern Illinois last season.

I am not going to sit here and say this game is a guarantee for the Mavericks, but if Hollins is as good as a defender as advertised, don’t you like Mavericks’ chances to pick up a win at home against the Eagles?  I know there was not a lot here, but how excited can one man get in writing about Eastern Michigan basketball?  Earl Boykins played at Eastern Michigan, he was pretty fun to watch.