GAME FACTS - The Emory University men's basketball team takes to the road for the final time during the regular season when it meets Washington University on Friday (Feb. 8) before closing out the weekend with a Sunday contest at the University of Chicago. The WU Field House will be the site of the 52nd meeting between the Bears and the Eagles with that game slated for an 8:00 pm (CST) tip. On Sunday, the scene will shift to the Ratner Center on the Chicago campus where the Eagles and Maroons will clash for the 53rd occasion with that affair starting at noon (CST).
Live Stats and a video stream provided for both games. To access video for the Wash U contest, go to: http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/wustl.portal# . The Live Stats can be accessed by: http://bearsports-livestats.wustl.edu/Basketball/xlive.htm.
Live Stats for the Chicago outing can be viewed by going to the following link: http://athletics.uchicago.edu/livestats/xlive.htm while the video can be accessed by the following: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/maroon-tv.
THE COACHES - Leading the Emory program is sixth-year Head Coach Jason Zimmerman (Davidson, 1994). 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' program, he has compiled a school and career record of 85-59.
Last year, Zimmerman Emory to an overall record of 19-6, the program's third consecutive winning campaign, the first time since 1987-88 through 1989-90 that it had recorded three straight winning seasons. The 19 victories were the third-highest mark in school annals.
In his 32nd year as the head coach at Washington University is Mark Edwards (Wash Univ., '69). Heading into Friday's contest, Edwards has compiled a school ledger of 578-262. During his stint on the Bears' bench, he has captured two NCAA D-III national titles (2008 & 2009) and has been tabbed as the UAA Coach of the Year on eight occasions.
Mike McGrath (DePauw, '92) is in his 14th campaign as the head coach at Chicago and enters a Friday night game vs. Rochester with a school record of 205-147. A three-time UAA Coach of the Year, McGrath has directed the Maroons to four league titles.
2012-13 RECORDS – Emory stands 14-5 overall, 6-3 in the UAA with that record good for a second-place tie with WU and Brandeis. The Eagles are coming off a split of a pair of road games last weekend, dropping a 72-67 decision to Brandeis on Friday before regrouping to post a 74-69 verdict over NYU. Junior McPherson Moore came through with a season-high tying 19 points to lead the team's scoring effort against Brandeis while senior Alex Greven tied for game honors with 24 points, his sixth performance of 20 or more points this season, in the win vs. NYU.
Washington University, ranked 20th by D3hoops.com, hosts Emory with an overall mark of 16-4, 6-3 in the UAA. The Bears have won their last four games and are coming off a weekend that saw them earn home victories over Carnegie Mellon, 90-72, and Case Western, 78-57. Wash U stands 7-1 in home games this year.
Chicago will entertain UAA leader Rochester Friday evening with an overall mark of 10-10, 4-5 in the league. The Maroons picked up a couple of victories over the weekend, topping Case Western on Friday, 81-73, before chalking up a 79-59 verdict over Carnegie Mellon. UC is 8-3 in home contests this year.
SERIES RECORDS – Wash U has a 41-10 advantage in the all-time series with Emory. The Bears have won the last three meetings including the initial contest of this season, an 86-84 decision back on Jan. 11 in Atlanta. The Bears have captured 22 of the 25 games that have been played on their home floor.
In a series that has its origins in 1987, Chicago stands 34-18 against Emory. The Eagles have emerged victorious in four of the last five encounters against the Maroons including a 79-48 triumph on Jan. 13 at the Woodruff PE Center. UC has won 21 of the 26 meetings vs. Emory that have been played on its home floor.
TIDBITS AND NUGGETS – Alex Greven opened last weekend by hitting one three-point field goal vs. Brandeis before drilling seven triples in the victory over the NYU, extending his streak to 33 contests of converting at least one trey, the fourth-longest mark in school history … The next longest streak is 35 games shared by Alex Gulotta and Robert Spivey … Michael Friedberg has blocked shots to his credit in 32 of his last 37 contests with 27 performances of two or more rejections in that stretch … Emory has held five opponents to fewer than 60 points this year and has won its last nine games when accomplishing that feat … Emory stands 6-6 in overtime games during Jason Zimmerman's tenure as head coach … Emory has had players register 20 or more points on 14 occasions this season while opponents have had 15 cagers reach or surpass that mark … Emory has had five or more players score in double figures in five games this season vs. zero for the opposition … In their 14 victories, the Eagles are averaging 84.8 points vs. 63.8 for the opposition and shooting 48.0 percent (441-of-918) from the floor compared to their foes 38.1 percent (313-of-821) … In its five setbacks, Emory is being outscored by an 81.2-76.8 margin and hitting 44 percent of its field goal tries compared to 49.7 percent for opponents … Emory's 11.8 turnovers per game is the third-lowest mark in the UAA and the team tops the conference in turnover margin (+3.68) … The Eagles are 21-9 during the Zimmerman era when finishing with less than 10 turnovers, 16-3 since the 2010-11 season.
MOORE SETS EMORY FREE THROW MARK – Junior McPherson Moore sank all eight of his free throw attempts over the weekend and in the process established a school record for consecutive makes from the charity stripe. After hitting all six of his opportunities against Brandeis, he knocked down a pair against NYU, boosting his streak to 39 straight and bettering the previous standard of 38 held by Austin Claunch. Moore's last miss from the charity stripe took place in the University of Ozarks game (Nov. 17).
Entering Friday's contest at Wash U, Moore has drained 41-of-42 from the stripe with his 97.6 percent mark leading the UAA. He stands 18-for-18 in free throw attempts in league play.
DAVIS STREAK CONTINUES – Jake Davis saw his streak of scoring in double figures reach 42 games after picking up 15 points against Brandeis before closing out the weekend with a 22-point afternoon in the victory over NYU. His output against the Violets represented his eighth contest of 20 or more points this season and 22nd of his career. The team's leading scorer in 11 contests this year, the Davis holds down the No. 2 spot in scoring among UAA players in both overall (18.6 ppg) and conference (18.2 ppg) outings. Davis currently owns a six-game streak of three-point field goals and is hitting at a 56.2 percent clip (9-of-16) from beyond the arc in that stretch.
In addition to his scoring average, Davis figures prominently in the league with a seventh-place ranking in rebounding (5.9 rpg) while standing 11th in field goal percentage (.518). He has connected on 50 percent or better of his field goal opportunities on 10 occasions this year and has either led or tied for the team high in caroms in five games. In eight road appearances this season, Davis has averaged 19.3 points compared to his 18.1 per-game showing in home dates.
Career-wise, he resides in the No. 15 position in career rebounding at Emory with 437 caroms and is 11th with 1,124 points, just four points shy of moving into 10th place.
FLORIN TURNS IN BIG GAME vs. NYU -- After recording one assist against Brandeis, sophomore Michael Florin came through in a big way against NYU, doling out a career-high 11 assists with that effort the high-water performance by a league player to date this year and tying the sixth-highest individual mark in school history. More importantly, Florin did not turn the ball over in a total of 64 minutes of action over the weekend, increasing his UAA-leading assist/turnover ratio average to 3.1.
Over the last seven contests, Florin has been extremely careful with the ball, totaling 38 assists with just four turnovers while averaging a little over 31 minutes per stint. At the start of the week, Florin, who ranks 18th all-time at Emory with 139 assists, stands second among UAA players in assists with a 5.4 per-game average.
GREVEN CONTINUES CLIMB UP EMORY CAREER CATEGORIES – Alex Greven's 24 points against NYU on Sunday enabled the Winston-Salem, NC, native to leapfrog Rashawn Allen (2001-05) and move into ninth place on the school's all-time scoring list with 1,135 points. Greven is now eyeing current eighth-place holder Kevin Felner's (1989-93) mark of 1,146 points. Greven's seven three-point field goals against the Violets catapulted him into the No. 7 spot on the Eagles' all-time chart with 139 triples, surpassing Paul Schuliger's (1987-91) effort of 133. Two other all-time Emory lists that he figures in are free throws (8th, 248) and field goals (11th, 374).
Greven has produced 18 double-figure scoring games this season including six of 20 or more points. The Eagles' leading scorer on five occasions in '12-13, his 16.4 per-game scoring average is second on the team and third among UAA players. In addition, he is eighth in free throw percentage (.808, 63-of-78) and fifth in treys per game (2.3 tpg). During his career, he has compiled 60 double-figure scoring games including 15 of 20 or more points.
MORE ON MOORE – McPherson Moore led the Eagles in scoring for the third time this season when he pumped in a season-high tying 19 points against Brandeis, the fourth time in '12-13 that he posted that total. His six-of-12 performance from the floor against the Judges represented the 13th time this year he had connected on 50 percent or better from the field, and was his 13th performance of double-digit point production as well. He will check into the Wash U game in the No. 10 spot on the league ladder in field goal percentage (.521).
Scoring-wise, his 12.9 points-per-game average ranks 11th among the league leaders while his 5.1 per-game effort in rebounding is good for a 12th-place tie. He has been one of the team's more consistent rebounders with 11 games of five or more caroms, 10 of which have come over the past dozen contests.
The 6-foot-2 Moore has demonstrated a deft touch when it comes to three-point shooting with his 47.5 percent conversion rate (28-of-59) from beyond the arc pacing the squad and good for third place on the league ladder. He has at least one trey in 10 of his last 11 games.
FRIEDBERG'S BLOCK PARTY – Senior Michael Friedberg played a key defensive role in the triumph at NYU, swatting away a season-high tying five Violet shot attempts.
Friedberg's performance marked his 14th effort of two or more rejections this season and boosted his league-leading average in that category to 2.1 per game.
Earlier in the season, he became Emory's all-time leader in blocked shots in the LaGrange (Nov. 24) outing when his rejection of a shot attempt by Denzel Robinson early in the second half put him atop that list. Currently, Friedberg has 169 blocked shots to his credit, bettering the previous standard of 138 held by Tim Garrett (1986-90). His 39 blocks in 2012-13 are sixth on Emory's seasonal ladder.
Friedberg stands 11th on the school's all-time rebounding list with 493 caroms, five from moving past Karel Glass (1999-03) and into 10th place … At the start of the week, Friedberg finds himself among the UAA's top 10 performers in rebounding (5th, 6.3 rpg), steals (t-7th, 1.4 spg) and blocked shots (t-1st , 2.1 bpg).
NOTES – Emory has turned the ball over less than its opposition in 13 of 19 games this year and stands 10-3 in those contests … In its 14 victories, the Eagles are averaging 11.6 miscues per game compared to 12.6 in their five setbacks … Since the 2010-11 season, the Eagles stand 43-12 in contests when they have finished with fewer turnovers than their foes … The Eagles have shot 70 percent or better from the charity stripe in their last 10 games and are connecting at a 77.1 percent (118-of-153) rate in that stretch … Emory stands No. 2 in the league in free throw shooting (.752, 249-of-331) … Emory has outshot 14 opponents from the floor this year and posts a 13-1 record in those affairs … Over the last four games, Emory has turned the ball over 31 times (7.75 tpg) vs. 58 miscues (13.5 tpg) for the opposition … Sophomore Alex Foster has scored in double figures on 10 occasions during his career, six times during the '12-13 campaign … Emory has attempted more free throws than the opposition in nine contests this year (7-2) … Emory has enjoyed an advantage in the points-off-turnover category in the last eight and in 16 games this season including last weekend's affairs vs. Brandeis (18-6) and NYU (11-7) … The Eagles stand 12-2 when leading at the break this season, 67-11 during Jason Zimmerman's tenure as head coach … Over the past three seasons, Emory is 30-4 in its last 34 home games … During Zimmerman's tenure, the Eagles have scored 90 or more points on 31 occasions and own a 28-3 slate in those games … Emory has scored 50 or more points in five halves … Emory has outpointed its opposition in 25 of 38 halves of play while being outscored 10 times … Emory is averaging 39.5 points during the first of play compared to the opposition's mark of 31.2 points … Over the final 20 minutes of play, the Eagles are scoring at a 42.2-point clip vs. 36.6 for their foes … Emory is averaging a UAA-leading 82.7 points per game and stands No. 2 in the conference in scoring margin (+14.3) … Emory is No. 1 in UAA in steals (8.3 spg) and has chalked up 10 or more thefts on five occasions … Chicago (Jan. 13) ended its game vs. Emory hitting just 22.8 percent of its field goal tries (13-of-57), an opponent low against a Zimmerman-coached team and the first time since Jan. 14, 2000, that an Emory foe finished with a mark of less than 30 percent from the field when Carnegie Mellon posted a 24.5 percent showing (13-of-53).