GAME FACTS – The Emory men's basketball team aims to continue its winning ways this weekend when it plays host to a pair of University Athletic Association foes. On Friday (Jan. 12), the Eagles will tangle with Carnegie Mellon in a scheduled 8:00 pm start, before squaring off against Case Western Reserve on Sunday in a noon tip.
The will be a webcast of both contests match-up which can be accessed by going to:
http://emoryathletics.com/information/webcasts.
THE COACHES – Jason Zimmerman (Davidson, 1994) is in his 11th year of patrolling the Emory sideline. Named head coach in April of 2007, Zimmerman came to Emory after serving as an assistant coach at the University of Evansville (2003-04 through 2006-07). Prior to his stint with the Aces, Zimmerman was an assistant at Davidson College for seven years (1996-97 through 2002-03).
During his tenure with the Eagles, he ranks as the program's winningest coach, compiling a school and career record of 181-94. In games played at the Woodruff PE Center, Zimmerman posts a 105-26 ledger and a 76-68 mark in road/neutral settings.
He has guided Emory to eight straight winning seasons and five consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017). The Eagles are the lone D-III school to have won at least one NCAA contest in each of the past five years.
After going 17-33 his first two years at Emory, Zimmerman has compiled a won-lost slate of 164-61 (.728) since the 2009-10 season.
Tony Wingen (Springfield, '82) is in his 28th season at the helm of the Carnegie Mellon program. During his stint with the Tartans he has compiled a school record of 309-379. In 30 campaigns as a head coach, Wingen checks in with a career ledger of 330-407.
In his second year in calling the shots for Case Western Reserve is Todd McGuinness (Bethany College, '02). Heading into a Friday meeting at Rochester, McGuinness has registered a school record of 15-22. In nine seasons as a head coach, which includes a seven-year stay at Hartwick College, McGuinness claims a career slate of 129-94.
2017-18 RECORDS – Emory, ranked 20th in this week's D3hoops.com Top 25 Poll, has won its last six games which has raised its overall record to 10-2. The Eagles opened UAA play on a successful note last Saturday, earning an 80-62 victory at home over No. 22-ranked Rochester. Senior Adam Gigax led four double-figure Eagle scorers with 17 points while freshman Romin Williams came off the bench to contribute 15 points. Senior Christopher Avant came through with 14 points and a team-high seven boards while junior Beau Bommarito rounded out the double-digit scorers with 11 points.
Emory is 7-0 at home and 3-2 in road/neutral contests.
Carnegie Mellon comes to Atlanta looking to shake a three-game losing streak that has left its overall record at 4-8. CMU opened conference play with a 94-63 setback at Case Western. The Tartans are 1-3 in road/neutral contests and 3-5 at home.
After starting the season with four losses in its first five games, the Spartans of CWRU have bounced back to win their last four and six of the last seven to improve to 7-5. Prior to its Friday night game at Rochester, Case Western had compiled a 3-2 mark in road/neutral affairs and stood 4-3 on its home floor.
SERIES RECORDS – In a series that began in January of 1987, Emory holds an all-time record of 37-22 against Carnegie Mellon. The Eagles have captured the last seven meetings including last year's 93-77 (in Pittsburgh) and 88-73 (in Atlanta) outcomes. Emory has won the last three and holds a 24-5 mark against the Tartans in games that have been played at the Woodruff PE Center.
Emory claims a 30-20 edge in the all-time series against Case Western Reserve that saw the first game played in January of 1987. The Eagles battled their way to a pair of wins over the Spartans last year, winning in Cleveland, 91-81, before coming away with a 99-92 overtime victory in Atlanta. Emory has won the last eight and 17 of 24 games that have been played at the Woodruff PE Center.
RAPP IN SELECT COMPANY – Senior Whit Rapp is just one of three players in program history to have reached the 500-career assists plateau. He reached that mark in the Oglethorpe contest (Jan. 12) after finishing with 12, the 16th time as an Eagle that he registered double figures in that category.
Entering the Carnegie Mellon contest, Rapp has 506 assists to his credit and is just three shy of tying Michael Florin (2011-15) for the No. 2 spot. Holding down the top position is Austin Claunch (2008-12) with 580. Rapp stands in the No. 2 spot on Emory's all-time chart in assists average (5.69 apg).
In his six appearances this year, Rapp is averaging 7.3 assists per contest.
GIGAX CLIMBING EMORY CAREER LISTS – Adam Gigax continues his climb up a number of Emory career categories. His 17-point afternoon against Rochester boosted his career total to 1,046, ranking him 14th on the school's all-time chart. He is 21 points shy of tying Nick Pastis (1989-93) for 13th place. In the three-point field goal department, the Mason, Ohio native holds down the No. 4 slot on the Eagles' career ladder with 172 triples. Gigax's career effort of 38.7 percent (172-444) from beyond the arc is ninth on the Emory all-time chart.
EMORY DEFENSE RISES TO OCCASION – While Emory's 80 points in the Rochester win represented the 10th time it had reached or surpassed that plateau this season, the Eagles came through with a solid defensive effort against the Yellowjackets, limiting the Yellowjackets to 62 points, the fourth time this year Emory had held the opposition to 64 or fewer points. In addition, UR shot 35.8 percent from the floor and turned the ball over on 18 occasions, with the Eagles coming up with a season-high 13 steals, the sixth time they registered double digits in that category. Emory finished the game with an 18-8 edge in the points-off-turnover department.
EMORY OFFENSE PUTTING UP POINTS – The Emory offense is scoring at an 86.6 points-per-game clip, good for the top spot in the UAA and 30th among all D-III programs (through Jan. 7). The Eagles have totaled 80 or more points in 10 of 12 contests and have registered three outings with 90 or more points.
The Eagles' current scoring average stands as the third-highest seasonal mark in program history.
WILLIAMS MAKES IMPACT – Romin Williams enjoyed a fine UAA debut last Saturday against Rochester, leading all reserves in scoring with 15 points. He was successful on four-of-nine field goal opportunities and hit all six of his free throws in notching his eighth consecutive and 10th double-figure performance of the season.
Williams paces the team and ranks second among UAA players in scoring average (17.5 ppg). He has either led or shared for team scoring honors on five occasions, most recently against Transylvania (Dec. 29) with a season-high tying 26 points. He is second on the Emory score sheet with 28 three-point field goals and his 41.2 effort (28-68) from beyond the arc slots him in the No. 3 position on the conference ladder. Other UAA statistical categories that he finds himself ranked prominently include free throw percentage (7th, .772 (44-57)), assists (8th, 3.6 apg) and steals (t-8th, 1.5 spg).
EMORY SOLID AT THE STRIPE – After finishing with a 66.7 percent (4-6) effort at the foul line in the Oglethorpe win (Jan. 2), the Eagles spent considerably more time at the stripe in the Rochester outing, draining 22-of-26 attempts for a conversion rate of 84.6 percent, their second-highest mark of the campaign.
Emory has been successful on 70 percent or better of its free throw opportunities in 10 games and its 77.5 percent (189-244) mark ranks first in the UAA and 10th among all D-III programs (through Jan. 7). In their seven home dates, the Eagles are connecting at a 79.1 clip (129-163) from the stripe.
CHRIS AVANT TOP EMORY REBOUNDER – Christopher Avant's game-high seven rebounds against Rochester represented the third straight and ninth time this year that he ranked as the Eagles' top player on the boards. The owner of four games this season (nine career) with 10 or more caroms, his 8.3 per-game average tops the team and ranks fifth among UAA players. He has been opportunistic on the offensive end of the floor with an average of 3.2 caroms, slotting him fourth on the conference chart.
In addition to his rebounding efforts, Avant is averaging 11.6 points per game with that mark third on the team and tied for 13th among UAA players. Avant has come through with eight double-digit scoring efforts, and has been successful on 55.1 percent (54-98) of his field goal opportunities, good for fifth in the conference. Heading into Friday's match-up vs. CMU, he has shot 50 percent or better from the floor on nine occasions.
EMORY RESERVES PRODUCING – Emory has received productive play from its bench, with the Eagle reserves producing a total of 331 points (27.6 ppg) vs. 260 points (21.7 ppg) for the opposition's subs.
Emory's bench totaled 36 points against Oglethorpe, the sixth time this season the subs had registered 30 or more points. Back on Nov. 21, the Emory reserves chalked up a season-high 46 points in a 109-103 win over Berry College.
DID YOU KNOW? – That Whit Rapp's six steals in the Rochester game was his second-highest career total and tied for 10th place on the school's single-game chart … Rapp has moved into 15th place on the Eagles' all-time list with 118 steals … That Emory has seen five or more players score in double figures in five games this year, surpassing last season's total of four … That the Eagles went 6-0 at home during the non-conference this season and have won their last 34 non-league contests dating from the early stages of the 2012-13 campaign (included in the streak are 6 NCAA Tourney wins) … Emory has won its last 13 and 20 of its last 21 home games … That Christopher Avant current holds down the No. 3 spot on the Eagles' all-time field goal percentage list, sinking 56.5 percent (191-338) of his attempts … That since the 2010-11 season, Emory has the No. 1 record among UAA teams in overall (149-51) play and the second-best mark in league action (69-30) .… Washington University has the conference's second-best overall ledger (144-52) and the top slate in conference play (71-28) … That entering the Carnegie Mellon contest, Emory has at least one three-point field goal in its last 529 games -- The last time the Eagles failed to convert from beyond the arc came on Feb. 14, 1997, vs. Washington University (0-of-6) … Emory was won 40 of its last 41 games when allowing 69 or fewer points (4-0 in '17-18, 7-1 in '16-17, 13-0 in '15-16, 16-0 in '14-15) … That Christopher Avant's career-high 17 rebounds against Covenant tied the ninth-highest individual game total in school history and tied him with Will Trawick (vs. LaGrange, Dec. 1, 2013) for the most rebounds by a Zimmerman-coached player …
NOTES – The Eagles have come up with 10 or more steals in six contests and their average of 8.9 thefts per game places them in the No. 1 spot in the UAA and 61st nationally … In its 10 wins, Emory is shooting 38.3 percent (105-274) from three-point range compared to 26.5 percent (13-49) in its two losses … Emory has attempted more free throws than the opposition in five games and stands 5-0 in those contests … Emory has outrebounded five opponents and has been outboarded on four occasions (three games are tied) … The Eagles are averaging 41.8 points during the first half of play and 44.8 points over the final 20 minutes … Gebereal Baitey claims seven games of two or more steals this year and 19 in his career … Baitey has contributed seven games of double-figure scoring, and his 10.3 points per game average is fourth on the team and tied for 26th on the UAA chart, while his 46.0 percent showing from the floor (46-100) ranks 15th among UAA players …Freshman Matt Davet claims five double-figure scoring effort of the season and is shooting 42.1 percent (16-38) from three-point range, good for the No. 9 spot on the UAA chart, and has two or more triples to his credit in four contests … Opponents are scoring at a 35.6 points-per-game clip in the first half and 42.2 points in the second half … The Eagles are 44-6 in the last 50 games when making 10 or more three-point field goals in a game (6-0 in '17-18) … Adam Gigax is second on the team and stands sixth in the league in scoring average (16.5 ppg) … Gigax has converted two or more triples in all 11 of his appearances and has been successful on 42.2 percent (35-83) of his three-point attempts, good for the No. 2 position on the UAA ladder … In Emory's seven home contests, Gigax has converted 48.8 percent (21-43) from distance … Junior Beau Bommarito has six double-figure scoring performances this season and has three-point field goals to his credit in his last eight and in a total of 11 contests …
Since the 2012-13 season, the Eagles are 89-6 when outshooting the opposition from the floor (6-1 in '17-18, 17-1 in '16-17, 12-3 in '15-16, 18-0 in '14-15) … During Jason Zimmerman's tenure as head coach, Emory stands 146-18 when leading at halftime (9-0, in '17-18, 13-0 in '16-17; 18-3 in 2015-16) … Emory is 87-10 (.897) over its last 97 home contests … The Eagles have recorded 100 or more points 48 times in program history and own a 43-5 won-lost record in those affairs … During Jason Zimmerman's tenure as head coach, Emory has 17 contests of 100 or more points and stands 16-1 in such games.