GAME FACTS – The Emory University men's basketball team will close out the regular season on Saturday (Feb. 29) when it plays at the University of Rochester. The Louis Alexander Palestra on the Rochester campus will serve as the site for the 66th meeting between the two schools and tip is slated for 2:00 pm.
Rochester
Live Stats: https://uofrathletics.com/sidearmstats/mbball/summary
Video (fee based) - https://uofrathletics.com/watch/?Live=838&type=Live
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 234-107. In games played at the Woodruff PE Center, Zimmerman posts a 135-31 ledger and claims a 99-76 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 217-74 (.747) since the 2009-10 season.
Zimmerman stands 15-10 vs. Rochester.
Luke Flockerzi is in his 10th year at the helm of the Rochester program and checks in with a school record of 175-85. During his run at UT, Flockerzi has totaled four seasons of 20 or more wins and four trips to the NCAA D-III Tournament. In 13 campaigns as a head coach, which includes a three-year stay at Skidmore College (2007-08 through 2009-10), Flockerzi holds a career ledger of 205-131.
2019-20 RECORDS – Emory, ranked No. 12 in the D3hoops.com Top 25 Poll, sports an overall record of 20-4, including a 10-3 mark in the University Athletic Association that is good for second place, one game behind Washington University. The Eagles split a pair of road games last weekend, topping Carnegie Mellon, 98-86, last Friday before coming out on the short end of an 83-78 decision to Case Western Reserve. Emory's 20 wins marks the third straight year and eighth time in program history that it has reached or surpassed that total.
Junior Matt Davet averaged 20.0 points over the weekend, shooting 70 percent (14-of-20) from the floor and 64.3 percent (9-of-14) from three-point range. Davet totaled a team-high 24 points in the Case Western and became the 17th player in school history to reach the 1,000 career-point plateau. Lawrence Rowley was next up on the score sheet, tossing in 18.0 points while pulling down 8.5 rebounds.
Emory is 11-2 on its home floor this season, 9-2 in away/neutral contests.
The Eagles' record is the best 24-game mark during Zimmerman's tenure as head coach and the program's second best in history (22-2 by 1989-90 team).
Rochester hosts Emory with an overall record of 16-8, 7-6 in the UAA. The Yellowjackets split road games last weekend, losing in overtime to Case Western, 88-87, before winning an overtime decision at Carnegie Mellon, 82-81. UR is 12-2 on its home floor, 4-6 in road contests.
SERIES RECORDS – In a series that dates from January of 1988, Rochester holds an all-time record of 36-29 vs. Emory, though the Eagles have made up some ground with wins in nine of the past 11 meetings. Earlier this year, Emory won at the Woodruff PE Center by a 75-57 margin with Lawrence Rowley and Nick Stuck each scoring 20 points in the victory. UR stands 25-7 vs. the Eagles in games contested on its home floor with the teams splitting the last six outcomes at the Palestra.
TREY BALL KEY PART OF EMORY ATTACK – Through games played Feb. 26, Emory leads the UAA and stands 46th in the D-III ranks with an average of 10.0 treys per contest. The Eagles hold down the No. 2 position on the conference ladder and stand 39th nationally with a 38.1 percent showing (239-of-627). Emory's 239 three-pointers rank 6th on the program's seasonal ladder.
Emory has 10 or more three-pointers to its credit on 13 occasions this year, including a pair of 16-trey barrages, tying the school's sixth-highest game total, vs. Pfeiffer (Nov. 30) and Case Western Reserve (Jan. 26).
Matt Davet holds down the No. 3 position on the conference chart with an average of 2.5 treys per contest. Davet has 16 multi-trey outings to his credit this year, including 12 with three or more. Romin Williams is one spot behind with an effort of 2.4 triples per outing, and he claims 14 games with multiple triples and a dozen with three or more. Matt Schner posts a mark of 1.9 three-pointers per contest, ninth on the conference ladder, and stands second with a showing of 46.0 percent (46-of-100) from distance.
GET A REBOUND!! – Emory's setback to Case Western this past Sunday represented its first loss in 18 games when finishing with an edge in rebounding. The Eagles outboarded the Spartans by a 39-36 margin.
The Eagles have outboarded nine foes by 10 or more caroms and find themselves second among UAA squads and 33rd nationally (through Feb. 26) in rebound margin (6.6).
The Eagles are pulling down an average of 12.4 rebounds on the offensive end of the floor, good for second in the league, which has aided them in registering 318 second-chance points (13.3 scppg). A check at the UAA stats show that junior Lawrence Rowley sits No. 3 on the UAA ladder in rebound average (8.2 rpg) while Matthew Schner stands fifth (7.8 rpg).
Schner has led or tied for team honors in rebounding on 13 occasions this season while Rowley has earned that distinction in 11 games.
EMORY UAA LEADER IN SCORING AVERAGE – The Eagles are averaging 87.9 points per outing in overall contests, good for the No. 1 spot among UAA schools and 14th (through Feb. 26) in D-III. Emory has tossed in 85.4 points over their 13 home dates and 90.9 in 11 away/neutral affairs.
In breaking down scoring by halves, Emory is putting up 42.2 points during the opening 20 minutes of play and 45.7 in the second half. The Eagles have totaled 50 or more points in 10 halves of action.
Emory has four of the top 12 UAA scoring leaders in overall play, led by Romin Williams who is averaging 16.4 points per contest, good for the No. 2 position. Williams has logged 18 performances of double-figure scoring including eight of 20 or more points. Matt Schner holds down the No. 4 spot at 15.5 points per game while Matt Davet's showing of 14.3 points per game ties for 8th. Lawrence Rowley rounds out the quartet with his 13.8 per-game effort slotting him 12th.
SCHNER'S ALL-AROUND PLAY A BOOST FOR EMORY – Matt Schner stands as one of the UAA's most versatile performers with the 6-foot-4 native of Boca Raton, Florida, ranking among the league's top-10 in 12 categories.
The league leader in minutes (33.7 mpg), Schner is No. 2 in three-point shooting at 46.0 percent (46-of-100), currently seventh on the program's seasonal ladder.
No. 2 on the squad and fourth in the UAA in scoring, Schner, who has 20 double-figure scoring contests to his credit, is connecting on 53.3 percent (129-of-243) of his field goal attempts, good for second on the team and fifth on the league list. Schner has converted 50 percent or better of his floor attempts on 18 occasions this season.
Schner's play on the glass can't be overlooked as he has either led or tied for team honors in five of the last seven and in a total of 13 games, most recently in last Friday's encounter vs. Carnegie when he registered 10 boards. Second on the club with an average of 7.8 caroms per outing, he has snatched 61 offensive rebounds and his average of 2.5 offensive rebounds per game is third among UAA cagers.
He has shown the ability to distribute the ball with his average of 3.1 assists per game second on the team and sixth on the UAA leader board. His 32 steals pace Emory while his 1.3 thefts-per-game average ranks fifth in the conference.
Matt Schner's UAA Rankings
1st – Minutes (33.7 mpg)
2nd – 3pt FG% (.460, 46-of-100)
4th – Scoring (15.5 ppg)
3rd – Offensive Rebounds (2.5)
5th – FT% (.829, 68-of-82)
5th – FG% (.533, 129-of-242)
5th – Steals (1.3 spg)
5th – Rebounds (7.8 rpg)
6th – Assists (3.1 apg)
7th – Assist/Turnover Ratio (2.1)
8th – Defensive Rebounds (5.3)
9th – 3pt FG per game (1.9)
MOVING UP THE LADDER – Lawrence Rowley ranks No. 2 all-time on the Eagles' all-time list in field goal percentage with an effort of 56.1 percent (283-of-504) while Matt Schner stands No. 3 on the chart at 55.9 percent (268-of-479) … Romin Williams has 58 three-point field goals through 24 contests and a career total of 199, good for third place on the school's all-time ladder and 10 shy of tying Adam Gigax (2014-18) for the No. 2 position … Williams has cracked the school's all-time Top-10 in scoring with his 1,252 points placing him eighth on that list … Matt Davet has totaled 149 career three-point field goals and is 9th on the Eagles' all-time ladder … In addition, Davet has logged a total of 1,008 points during his Emory tenure (17th all-time in program history) … Junior Nick Stuck stands 9th all-time at Emory with 271 assists … Lawrence Rowley has moved into the ranks of the school's all-time top 20 rebounders with his 443 boards ranking 18th.
ROWLEY SCORING AND BOARDING – Lawrence Rowley has been a consistent performer for the Eagles, scoring in double figures on 19 occasions while snatching 10 or more rebounds in six outings. Heading into the weekend, Rowley ranks 12th among UAA players and fourth on the team's score sheet with an average of 13.8 points per contest. His 8.2 per-game effort in rebounding is third in the conference, and he has finished as the Eagles' top performer on the glass in 11 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 56.1 percent (124-of-221) from the field, good for the No. 3 spot on the UAA ladder. He opened the season by shooting 50 percent or better from the floor in 12 straight games and now has 20 to his credit.
DAVET & WILLIAMS THREE-POINT THREATS – Matt Davet and Romin Williams stand as the UAA's second-most prolific three-point shooting duo. Davet (59) and Williams (58) have totaled 117 makes from beyond the arc with only Washington University's tandem of Jack Nolan (75) and Payden Webb (50) accounting for more with 125.
Heading into the final contest of the regular season Davet is tied for 14th on the school's seasonal chart for most three-pointers while Williams is 19th.
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 – In his last four games, Lawrence Rowley is shooting 58.1 percent (25-of-43) from the floor and averaging 17.8 points … Rowley's 21-point night at Carnegie Mellon was his fifth outing of 20 or more points this season … Matt Davet is scoring at 17.3 per-game average over his last four outings while connecting on 71.4 percent (25-of-35) from the field, 60.9 percent (14-of-23) from three-point range … Nick Stuck totaled a career-high 21 points in last weekend's game vs. Case Western, his 12th double-digit performance of the campaign … Junior Luke Morrison registered his third double-digit scoring outing of the season when he finished with 10 points vs. Carnegie Mellon … Nick Stuck is second among UAA players and 32nd (through games played Feb. 26) in D-III in assists (5.3 apg) … Stuck's 2.15 assist/turnover ratio is second in the UAA … In his last three games Stuck has dished out 14 assists with just three turnovers … Emory leads the UAA and ranks 62nd nationally in free throw percentage (.744) … The Eagles have attempted more charity tosses than the opposition on 18 occasions this year … In its 13 home games, Emory has converted 70.7 (200-of-283) of its foul shots while draining 78.8 percent (193-of-245) in 11 away/neutral contests … In 13 UAA games, Emory has scored 199 points (15.3 ppg) off opponent turnovers while the opposition has totaled 126 points (9.7 ppg) … Emory has held the edge in points-off-turnovers category in 14 contests …Emory reserves scored a season-high 52 points in the 106-70 win over Case Western … Emory has finished with single digits in turnovers in 10 games this season … The Eagles are No. 2 in the UAA and 52nd among D-III programs (through Feb. 26) with an average of 16.5 assists per game … Romin Williams has played in 77 games during his Emory career and registered 64 double-figure scoring performances … Williams has logged 20 or more points on nine occasions this year and 25 during his career … Emory has outscored the opposition in 34 halves, been outpointed in 11 and been tied in three … Emory has held eight opponents to less than 40 percent from the field … The Eagles have had players tally 20 or more points 24 times vs. 19 for opponents … Emory has made 20 or more free throws in five 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 (202-64) play and the second-best mark in league action (101-38) .… Washington University has the conference's second-best overall ledger (201-66) and the top slate in conference play (104-35) … That Emory has at least one three-point field goal in its last 595 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 61 of its last 62 games when allowing 69 or fewer points (9-0 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 43-6 ledger in games since the 2016-17 season when it has converted 10 or more three-pointers in a contest (11-2 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 117-15 (.886) over its last 132 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 130-8 when outshooting the opposition from the floor (15-1 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 191-22 when leading at halftime (15-1 in '19-20, 20-2 in 2018-19, 19-1, in '17-18, 13-0 in '16-17; 18-3 in 2015-16).