GAME FACTS – After sweeping a pair of conference opponents at home last weekend, the Emory men's basketball team continues University Athletic Association play when it ventures to the University of Chicago for a Friday (Jan. 31) match-up before clashing with Washington University on Sunday. Friday's encounter with the Maroons of UC is scheduled for a 9:00 pm tip (EST) while Sunday's match-up vs. WU begins at 1:00 pm (EST).
Video and Live Stats will be available for both games with the links as follows:
Chicago
Live Stats: https://athletics.uchicago.edu/sports/mbkb/2019-20/boxscores/20200131_t9lj.xml
Video - https://athletics.uchicago.edu/sports/mbkb/live-video
Washington University
Live Stats - https://washubears.com/sports/mbkb/2019-20/boxscores/20200202_aoi2.xml
Video - https://portal.stretchinternet.com/wustl/
THE COACHES – Jason Zimmerman (Davidson, 1994) is in his 13th 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 228-105. In games played at the Woodruff PE Center, Zimmerman posts a 132-30 ledger and claims a 96-75 mark in road/neutral settings.
He has guided Emory to 11 straight winning seasons and seven consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019), tying the longest streak in the history of the University Athletic Association.
After going 17-33 his first two years at Emory, Zimmerman has amassed a won-lost slate of 211-72 (.745) since the 2009-10 season.
Mike McGrath (DePauw, '92) is in his 21st year as head coach of the Chicago program and heads into the Emory tilt with a school record of 305-218. He has seen the Maroons post 15 winning seasons while claiming four UAA titles.
In his second year patrolling the Wash U sideline is Pat Juckem (Lawrence, '95). As a Friday game vs. Rochester awaits, Juckem has a two-year school mark of 31-10. In 15 seasons as a head coach that includes stops at Coe College and UW-Oshkosh, Juckem stands 230-163.
2019-20 RECORDS – Emory, ranked No. 8 in the D3hoops.com Top 25 Poll, holds an overall record of 14-2, and is tied with Brandeis for second place in the UAA with a 4-1 mark. The Eagles chalked up a pair of double-digit wins at home this past weekend, upending Carnegie Mellon, 91-72, and Case Western Reserve, 106-70.
Five players averaged double-figure scoring over the two games, led by junior Matt Davet's effort of 15.0 points. Davet, who tied for team scoring honors with 20 points vs. CMU, shot 63.2 percent (12-of-19) from the floor and sank six treys in 11 attempts. Junior Nick Stuck and sophomore Mason Johnson each tossed in 14.5 points, with Stuck also doling out 5.5 assists per outing.
Emory is 8-1 on its home floor this season, 6-1 in away/neutral contests.
Chicago will square off against Emory with an overall record of 7-9, 2-3 in the UAA. The Maroons split of pair of home dates over the weekend, topping New York University, 79-74, before falling to Brandeis, 63-60. UC is 3-6 in home games this year, 4-3 on the road.
Washington University, ranked 11th by D3hoops.com, hosts Rochester with an overall slate of 14-2 while owning a league-best ledger of 5-0. Last weekend, WU hosted and defeated both Brandeis (70-60) and NYU (73-70). The Bears stand 8-0 on their home floor, 6-2 in away endeavors.
SERIES RECORDS – In a series that began in January of 1987, Chicago registers an all-time record of 38-27 against Emory. UC captured both meetings during the 2018-19 season, 96-86 in overtime at the Ratner Center and 114-107 in Atlanta. The Maroons have won 23 of the 33 games against Emory that have been played on their home floor.
Wash U holds the upper hand in the all-time series with Emory, which saw the first game played in January of 1988, by a 49-15 margin. The Eagles emerged victorious in both of last season's affairs, 108-98 in Saint Louis and 105-82 in Atlanta.
EMORY FINDS RANGE FROM DISTANCE – Emory averaged 98.5 points in last weekend's games against Carnegie Mellon and Case Western Reserve, part of which was fueled by keen shooting from three-point range that saw the Eagles connect on 46 percent (23-of-50) from downtown.
Included in Emory's three-point shooting exploits was a 16-trey barrage against Case Western, tying a season best as well as the program's sixth-highest game total. The Eagles shot a blazing 55.2 percent from beyond (16-of-23) the arc against the Spartans with that mark second high on the year and 14th all-time on the school' game chart. By the time the final horn had sounded, Emory had sank 10 or more treys in a game for the 10th time this year and saw eight different players hit a triple.
Emory is tied for first place in the UAA and 39th in the D-III ranks (through Jan. 27) with an average of 10.1 three-pointers per game.
Romin Williams and Matt Davet are tied for the No. 3 position on the league leader board with an average of 2.5 treys per contest. Williams has multiple treys in 10 games and his five makes from distance vs. NYU (Jan. 17) represented his ninth game this year with three or more. Davet has 11 multi-trey outings to his credit this year, including eight with three or more. Matt Schner is seventh among UAA players at 2.2 triples per game, and stands No. 1 in three-point percentage (52.2%, 36-of-69).
GET A REBOUND – Emory's 46-33 margin in the rebounding department in the Case Western contest upped its record to 12-0 when finishing with the advantage in that category.
The Eagles, who have outboarded seven foes by 10 or more caroms, find themselves second among UAA squads and 19th nationally (through Jan. 27) in rebound margin (8.4).
The Eagles are pulling down an average of 13.6 rebounds on the offensive end of the floor, good for the No. 1 spot on the conference chart, which has aided them in registering 238 second-chance points (14.8 scppg). A check at the UAA stats show that junior Lawrence Rowley sits No. 2 on the UAA ladder in rebound average (8.6 rpg) while Matthew Schner holds down the No. 10 slot (6.8 rpg).
EMORY UAA LEADER IN SCORING AVERAGE – The Eagles are averaging 89.4 points per outing in overall contests, good for the No. 1 spot among UAA schools and 13th (through Jan. 27) in D-III. Emory has tossed in 85.4 points over their nine home dates and 94.4 in seven away/neutral affairs.
In breaking down scoring by halves, Emory is putting up 43.3 points during the opening 20 minutes of play and 46.1 in the second half. The Eagles have totaled 50 or more points in nine halves of action.
Emory has three of the top seven and four of the top 13 UAA scoring leaders in overall play, led by Romin Williams who is averaging a conference-best 18.6 points per contest. Williams has logged 15 performances of double-figure scoring including eight of 20 or more points. Matt Schner holds down the No. 3 position at 16.4 points per game while Matt Davet's showing of 14.4 points per game is seventh. Lawrence Rowley (13.5 ppg) is 13th.
SCHNER'S ALL-AROUND PLAY A BOOST FOR EMORY – Matt Schner's all-around play has been a significant factor in the Eagles' success so far this year. No. 2 on the squad and third in the UAA in scoring, Schner, who has 15 double-figure scoring contests to his credit, is connecting on 55.4 percent (93-of-168) of his field goal attempts, good for second on the team and sixth on the league list. Schner, who shooting 62.5 percent (25-of-40) from the field over the last four games, has converted 50 percent or better of his floor attempts on 13 occasions this season.
Schner's play on the glass can't be overlooked as he has either led or tied for team honors in that area in seven games, most recently in last Sunday's win over Case Western when he tied his career high with 12 boards. Second on the club with an average of 6.8 caroms per outing, he has snatched 38 offensive rebounds and his average of 2.4 offensive rebounds per game ties for fifth among UAA cagers.
He has shown the ability to distribute the ball with his average of 3.3 assists per game second on the team and tied for sixth among UAA players. His 22 steals pace Emory while his 1.4 thefts-per-game average is eighth in the conference.
MOVING UP THE LADDER – Lawrence Rowley currently ranks as the program's No. 3 all-time leader in field goal shooting at 56.2 percent (242-of-430) … Matt Schner currently stands as the all-time leader at 57.2 percent (232-of-405) … Romin Williams has 40 three-point field goals through 16 contests and a career total of 181, good for fourth place on the school's all-time ladder and just one shy of tying Jeff Hall (2002-06) for the No. 3 position … Williams has cracked the school's all-time Top-20 in scoring with his 1,155 points placing him 11th on that list … Matt Davet has totaled 130 career three-point field goals and is 13th on the Eagles' all-time ladder … In addition, Davet has logged a total of 896 points during his Emory tenure … Junior Nick Stuck stands 9th all-time at Emory with 238 assists … Lawrence Rowley has moved into the ranks of the school's all-time top 20 rebounders with his 384 boards placing him 19th.
ROWLEY SCORING AND BOARDING – Lawrence Rowley has been a consistent performer for the Eagles, scoring in double figures on 12 occasions while snatching 10 or more rebounds in six outings. Heading into the weekend, Rowley ranks 13th among UAA players and fourth on the team's score sheet with an average of 13.5 points per contest. His 8.6 per-game effort in rebounding is scond in the conference, and he has finished as the Eagles' top performer on the glass in nine games this year. He has four double-doubles to his credit this season (nine in career), most recently an 11-point, career-high 16-rebound performance in the 87-80 win over UW-Oshkosh (Dec. 29).
The 6-foot-5 Rowley stands as the squad's most accurate shooter, converting 56.5 percent (83-of-147) from the field, good for the No. 5 spot on the UAA ladder. He opened the season by shooting 50 percent or better from the floor in 12 straight games.
EMORY PICKED AS TEAM TO BEAT IN UAA – Emory was picked as the team to beat in the University Athletic Association in a preseason poll conducted by the league coaches, picking up seven of the eight first-place votes cast. Washington University nabbed the other first-place ballot and was picked for second. Brandeis and Chicago were slotted in third and fourth place, respectively.
WILIAMS TABBED AS PRESEASON ALL-AMERICAN -- Romin Williams was selected as a Preseason Honorable Mention All-American by D3hoops.com. Williams was the lone UAA player to be recognized by D3hoops.com. Chosen to all-region teams by both the National Association of Basketball Coaches and D3hoops.com a year ago, Williams ranked as the Eagles' top scorer on eight occasions and rang up 450 points, the fourth-highest total by an Emory sophomore.
NOTES & NUGGETS – Emory leads the UAA and ranks 76th nationally in free throw percentage (.737) … The Eagles have attempted more charity tosses than the opposition on 13 occasions this year … In its nine home games, Emory has converted 69.2 (135-of-195) of its foul shots while draining 78.7 percent (137-of-174) in seven away/neutral contests … In five UAA games, Emory has scored 78 points (15.6 ppg) off opponent turnovers while the opposition has totaled 39 points (7.8 ppg) … Emory reserves scored a season-high 52 points in the 106-70 win over Case Western … Emory finished the Case Western outing with eight turnovers, the third straight and sixth contest this season with single digits in that category … The Eagles are No. 1 in the UAA and 29th among D-III programs (through Jan. 27) with an average of 17.3 assists per game … Romin Williams has played in 69 games during his Emory career and registered 59 double-figure scoring performances … Williams dialed up a team-high tying 20 points in the win over Carnegie Mellon, his eighth outing this year and 24th of his career with 20 or more points … Nick Stuck is second among UAA players and 21st (through games played Jan. 27) in D-III in assists (5.9 apg) … Stuck finished last weekend with 11 assists and four turnovers, giving him an assist/turnover ratio of 2.2, good for second place in the UAA and 52nd in D-III … Emory has outscored the opposition in 24 halves, been outpointed in five and been tied in three … The Eagles have had players tally 20 or more points 18 times vs. 12 for opponents … Emory has made 20 or more free throws in four contests this year … When Romin Williams notched his 1,000th career point in the LaGrange game (Dec. 4), he became the second-fastest player in school history to reach that plateau (61 games), trailing only Jake Davis who accomplished it in 60 contests … Emory's school-record 124 points against Pfeiffer bettered the previous mark of 116 set twice – vs. Carnegie Mellon on Jan. 20, 2019, and Trinity University (TX) on Dec. 1, 2018 … Emory's back-to-back 62-point halves vs. Pfeiffer tied the fifth-highest point totals by a Zimmerman-coached Eagle squad …
DID YOU KNOW -- Since the 2010-11 season, Emory has the No. 1 record among UAA teams in overall (196-62) play and the second-best mark in league action (95-36) .… Washington University has the conference's second-best overall ledger (187-64) and the top slate in conference play (98-33) … That Emory has at least one three-point field goal in its last 587 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 57 of its last 58 games when allowing 69 or fewer points (5-0 in '19-20, 5-0 in '18-19, 11-0 in '17-18, 7-1 in '16-17, 13-0 in '15-16, 16-0 in '14-15) … Emory posts a 41-5 ledger in games since the 2016-17 season when it has converted 10 or more three-pointers in a contest (9-1 in '19-20, 11-2 in '18-19, 11-0 in 2017-18, 10-2 in '16-17 … The Eagles have won 47 of their last 49 games at the Woodruff PE Center against non-league foes … Emory is 114-14 (.890) over its last 128 home contests … The Eagles have recorded 100 or more points 56 times in program history and own a 50-6 won-lost record in those affairs … During Jason Zimmerman's tenure as head coach, Emory has 25 contests of 100 or more points and stands 23-2 in such games … Since the 2012-13 season, the Eagles are 125-8 when outshooting the opposition from the floor (10-1 in '19-20, 16-1 in 2018-19, 16-1 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 187-22 when leading at halftime (11-1 in '19-20, 20-2 in 2018-19, 19-1, in '17-18, 13-0 in '16-17; 18-3 in 2015-16).