GAME FACTS - After picking up a pair of University Athletic Association wins at home this past weekend, the Emory men's basketball team faces a non-conference test on Wednesday (Jan. 13) when it plays at Piedmont College. The Cave Arena at the Johnny Mize Athletic Center on the Piedmont campus will serve as the venue for the sixth-ever meeting between the Eagles and Lions and tip is slated for 7:00 p.m.

THE COACHES - Leading the Emory program is third-year Head Coach Jason Zimmerman (Davidson, '94)  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).

In his seventh season as the head coach at Piedmont College is Lee Glenn.  During his tenure with the Lions, he has recorded a won-lost mark of 75-94

2009-10 RECORDS - Emory takes an overall record of 9-4 into the Wednesday night affair at Piedmont.  Over the weekend, the Eagles raised their UAA effort to 2-1 following victories over Carnegie Mellon (80-67) and Case Western Reserve (98-89).  The two wins boosted Emory's home record to 5-2 on the year.  Sparking the two wins were the senior tandem of Daniel Curtin and Anthony Fernandez, both of who averaged 19.0 points on the weekend.

Piedmont will host Emory with an 8-5 mark.  The Lions saw a four-game win streak come to an end on Sunday when they dropped an 88-79 decision at Rust College.  Piedmont has captured three of four games played on its home floor this year.

Emory's Top Offensive Scoring Efforts Under Zimmerman    

SERIES RECORDS -  In a series that has its origins in 1988, Emory claims an all-time record of 3-2 against Piedmont.  The Lions won the last meeting between the schools, a 96-87 verdict last season at Emory.  The only contest played at Piedmont took place on Jan. 6, 2003, where the Lions emerged with an 88-80 victory.

EMORY SENIORS ENJOY BIG WEEKEND - Emory's senior trio of Anthony Fernandez, Daniel Curtin and Chad Hixon all turned in solid efforts over the weekend in helping the Eagles to a pair of wins.  Both Fernandez and Curtin averaged 19.0 points in the two games with Fernandez shooting 75.0 percent (15-of-20) and Curtin 65.0 percent (13-of-20) from the floor.  Curtin totaled a season-high 24 points in the 80-67 win over CMU, hitting eight-of-11 from the floor, including five-of-seven beyond the arc, before picking up 14 points against Case.  Fernandez opened the weekend with a 15-point performance before pacing all players with a season-high 23 points against the Spartans of Case.  Hixon pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds against Carnegie Mellon, his third double-figure effort in that category this season, and followed that with 12 points and a team-high tying five rebounds vs. Case. 

EMORY OFFENSE PUTTING UP NUMBERS - Through 13 games, the Eagles have scored 85 or more points on eight occasions compared to a total of five times for the entire 2008-09 campaign. 

Through games played Jan. 10, Emory holds down the No. 1 spot among University Athletic Association teams with an 82.9 points per game average.  The Eagles have posted 90 or more points on five occasions and also top the conference in three-point field goal percentage (.434) and field goal percentage (.499).


EMORY SPREADS SCORING AROUND - Through 13 games, Emory has had five or more players score 10 or more points in six contests, a dramatic jump from last year's total of one time.  The Eagles have had six double-figure scorers in two games this year (Nov. 29, vs. LaGrange & Dec. 7 vs. Oglethorpe), the first time since the 2003-04 season that they had a pair of games with six players finishing with 10 or more points.

EMORY MAKES THE MOST OF CHARITY STRIPE ATTEMPTS --  Emory was solid at the free throw line in the games against Carnegie Mellon and Case, converting 84.2 percent (48-of-57) of its opportunities from the charity stripe.  The Eagles knocked down a season-high 29-of-32 of its free throw attempts on Sunday against Case, the second time this season that they had finished with a mark of 90 percent or better.

After shooting 66.4 percent  from the foul line (85-of-128) in its first six games, Emory has been successful on 80.2 percent (122-of-152) from the stripe in the last seven contests.  The Eagles have sank 70 percent  or better of their free throw tries in six of the past seven games and have moved into the No. 2 spot in the UAA in that category (.739).

THREE-POINT SHOT AN EMORY WEAPON --  Emory continues to be effective from three-point range and is coming off a weekend where it sank 50 percent (18-of-36) from distance. A look at the UAA statistics through Jan. 10 sees the Eagles in the No. 1 spot with a 43.4 percent mark from beyond the arc.  Emory has hit on 40 percent or better from three-point range in six of its last seven outings.

The Eagles have seven or more treys in nine contests and have a pair of outings of 10 or more including 15 from beyond the arc, the second-highest game total in school history, against Oglethorpe on Dec. 7. 

PLAYERS MOVING UP EMORY CAREER CHARTS - Through 13 games, a pair of Emory players are moving up the school's career listings in various categories.  Daniel Curtin stands in the 10^th position with 111 three-point field goals and is seven shy of tying Blake Hollander (1994-98) for ninth place on that list.   In addition, his career effort of 37.5 percent (111-of-296) in three-point shooting is good for the No. 7 spot.

Anthony Fernandez's 10 rebounds over the weekend upped his career effort to 340 and into sole possession of 18th place on the school's all-time ladder.   Scoring-wise, Fernandez stands 18^th with 817 points, 31 shy of tying Neil Bhutta (1997-2000) for the 17^th spot.

NOTES - Emory's 56.6 percent mark from the floor (30-of-53) against Case was the second-highest showing by the Eagles this year and the fourth-highest effort by a Zimmerman-coached team ... The Eagles post an 8-1 won-lost slate under Zimmerman when sinking 25 or more free throws ... Emory has shot 50 percent or better from the field in six games this year and stands 6-0 in those contests ... The Eagles have enjoyed an edge in rebounding on seven occasions and show a 6-1 ledger in those affairs ... Emory's 58 points in the second half of the Case game, tied the team's second-highest total in a half under Zimmerman ... Hixon's 12 rebounds vs. Carnegie Mellon was his fifth career performance of 10 or more boards ... Emory has attempted more free throws than the opposition in eight games ... Sophomore Austin Claunch wrapped up the Case game with 14 points, his team-leading 10^th double-figure scoring effort of the campaign ... Claunch paces the squad with a 13.2 per-game scoring average, good for the No. 8 position among UAA players ... Claunch also figures prominently in the UAA in assists (2^nd, 6.0 apg), free throw percentage (4^th, .841), field goal percentage (13^th, .513) and steals (5^th, 1.9 spg) ... Freshman Michael Friedberg came off the bench in the Case game and registered a season-high 12 points ... Sophomore Corey Spraggins is fourth in the UAA with a 55.1 field goal percentage mark (43-of-78) and has shot 50 percent or better from the field in nine outings ... In games it has won, Emory is averaging 88.2 points and shooting 52.7 percent from the field ...  In games they have lost, the Eagles are scoring 71.0 points and shooting 43.8 percent from the field ... Daniel Curtin will enter the Piedmont affair with three-point field goals to his credit in his last 10 games.