Who: Virginia Tech Hokies (9-3) vs Eastern Michigan Eagles (5-6)
When: Thursday, December 22 @ 7:00 p.m.
TV: ESPN3 (Quint Kessenich and Glenn Consor)
Where: Cassell Coliseum (9,847), Blacksburg, VA
The Opponent: The Hokies welcome Eastern Michigan to the Cassell on Thursday evening to wrap up their 2011 home slate. The Eagles are coming off a hard-fought 52-48 win at Radford on Tuesday that snapped a five-game losing streak. Under first year head coach Rob Murphy, EMU has battled the likes of Syracuse (lost by 36), Michigan State (lost by 32), and Purdue (lost by 25) this season.
The Eagles rank near 200 in the RPI and their best win came against IUPUI, which sits at #238 in the early season rankings. Here’s a look at their starting lineup:
| No. | Name | Pos. | Ht. | Yr. | PPG | RPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 34 | Darrell Lampley | G | 5-10 | Sr. | 15.3 | 1.8 |
| 21 | Quintin Dailey | G | 6-3 | Sr. | 2.5 | 2.0 |
| 2 | J.R. Sims | G | 6-3 | R-So. | 6.5 | 2.4 |
| 32 | Jamell Harris | F | 6-9 | Jr. | 4.2 | 6.3 |
| 1 | Da’Shonte Riley | C | 7-0 | So. | 8.0 | 4.0 |
Quite simply, EMU can’t score. They average 55 points a game, next to last in the MAC, which isn’t exactly a power conference. In their “big” games they put up an astounding 36 against Purdue, 40 against Michigan State, and 48 against Syracuse. That average is 334th in the nation (out of 345 teams). The Eagles can’t make shots (37.8%), rebound (32.8 per game), or take care of the ball (14.5 turnovers per game) very well at all.
Eastern’s best player is their point guard, Darrell Lampley. Despite being just 5’10”, Lampley has lit up the scoreboard at times, dropping a career-high 37 in a loss to Colgate earlier this year. In addition to scoring, he’ll try to dish it down low to his big men, including Syracuse transfer Da’Shonte Riley, who just became eligible for Tuesday’s game against Radford.
The Eagles have a very fluid lineup and a bunch of players have seen legitimate action this season. Ten players are averaging more than 15 minutes per game, but Lampley is the only player in double figures. Instead, EMU relies on a bunch of players to chip in bits at a time. For example, Quintin Dailey led the Eagles with 13 against Radford on Tuesday, increasing his season average to 2.5 ppg.
EMU is going to try and slow the game down and play like its the 1950’s. They’re not going to be able to outscore the Hokies and therefore will try to get fouls on Tech’s big men and use their size to their advantage. If this turns into a run-and-gun style of game, the Eagles are done, seeing as how they've only scored more than 60 points four times this season.
The Hokies have been in a good rhythm thanks to their easy wins over Campbell and North Florida. With Christmas break on the horizon, Tech needs to maintain focus and keep the energy level up and they’ll be fine. Dorenzo Hudson and Victor Davila have started to come around and it will be important to keep their individual morales up as well. Everyone seems to be feeling good on the squad right now and keeping that flow is essential, especially with a 9-day break on the horizon.
Go Hokies and Happy Holidays!
