GAMEDAY CENTRAL
Shawnee State (1-1) at #16 Embry-Riddle (1-0)
#11 Davenport (2-1) vs. #23 Southern Oregon (2-0)
DATES: Friday, Nov. 9 - Saturday, Nov. 10
CITY: Daytona Beach, Fla.
SITE: ICI Center (1,968)
TIP-OFF: 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. (Friday), 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. (Saturday)
LIVE STATS: Stretch Internet
LIVE AUDIO: Stretch Internet
LIVE VIDEO: Stretch Internet
ON THE RADIO: WELE 1380 AM (ERAU games)
ERAU CURRENT STREAK: W1
ERAU LAST 5 GAMES: 3-2
ERAU LAST 10 GAMES: 4-6
AT HOME IN 2012: 1-0
SERIES: Embry-Riddle has never faced any of the three teams in the tournament
LAST MEETING: N/A
AT A GLANCE
The Eagles welcome three of the top teams in the NAIA to Daytona Beach and the ICI Center this weekend in #11 Davenport, #23 Southern Oregon and Shawnee State. Embry-Riddle began the 2012-13 season with an impressive 74-58 win over visiting Sterling (Kan.) last Saturday and will look to extend their win total this weekend. All three of these visiting teams are new faces to Embry-Riddle as the Eagles have never played any of the three in the previous 24 seasons of Blue and Gold basketball.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
After one game, the Eagles' defense looks solid, but will be tested by the Bears of Shawnee State on Friday night and again by whichever team Embry-Riddle take on Saturday evening. Jason Powell missed just one shot against Sterling, leading the way for ERAU with 16 points, the guard play of Powell, DeForest Carter and Daniel Mondragon will go a long way in determing the winner of this weekend's tournament.
ANOTHER JAM PACKED WEEKEND
After last Saturday's busy schedule, this weekend offers no respite for the Eagle athletic department. Four of the five fall athletic teams and the basketball squad will be in action on either Friday, Saturday or both days.
The Embry-Riddle men's soccer team will compete in The Sun Conference Tournament Final Four in Miami Gardens, Fla., hosted by St. Thomas. The Eagles take on Florida Memorial on Friday at 12 p.m. in one tournament semifinal.
The Eagle women's soccer team hosts St. Thomas on Friday night at 6 p.m. in The Sun Conference Tournament Championship. With a victory, the Eagles earn an automatic berth to the NAIA National Tournament.
Embry-Riddle volleyball hosts The Sun Conference Volleyball Conference Tournament Final Four on Friday and Saturday. The Eagles take on Warner at 5:30 p.m. on Friday evening.
SCOUTING SHAWNEE STATE
The Bears enter this weekend 1-1 with a win over Bethel (Ind.) after suffering a season-opening loss to Taylor (Ind.). Shawnee State, coached by Jeff Hamilton, plays in the ultra-competetive Mid-South Conference (NAIA I), finishing 4-12 in league play last season. Jeremy Bennington averages 26.0 points for the Bears, while Tyler Morgan adds 16.5 points and 5.5 board per contest.
SCOUTING DAVENPORT
A NAIA II Fab Four team last season, the Panthers lost a huge chunk of their team when six seniors graduated from the program. Head Coach Burt Paddock's top returner, JaVontae Ford has taken the reigns of the team and averages 14.3 points and 8.0 rebounds in 2012-13. Davenport (2-1), blew out their first two opponents of the year in Grace Bible and Miami-Hamilton, but suffered a 65-55 setback at the hands of NAIA No. 4 Indiana Wesleyan last Saturday.
SCOUTING SOUTHERN OREGON
The Raiders (2-0) feature a strong inside-outside combo in forward Eric Thompson and guard Taylor Roos. Thompson leads the team with 18.5 points per contest, while Roos chips in 15.5 points for SOU. Brian McDermott is in his 17th season at the helm of the Raiders, compiling a 242-280 record over the span.
LAST GAME: Embry-Riddle Blows by Sterling in Season Opener, 74-58
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The Embry-Riddle men's basketball team started the 2012-13 season on Saturday night, taking care of Sterling (Kan.), 74-58 to earn the Eagles' first win of the year. The Blue and Gold (1-0) used a stifling defense in the first half to take a 40-22 lead into the break and never looked back.
The story of the night proved to be the Eagles' defense. The Warriors (1-1) shot just .250 from the floor in the first frame, managing just seven made field goals. Although Sterling improved it's shooting percentage to .429 in the second half, it was too little too late as the Eagles had a sizable lead throughout the final 20 minutes of play.
SHOOTOUT WINS
The Eagles have won five of the last seven Daytona Mitsubishi/Kia Shootouts, but failed to do so last season, falling 88-83 to Olivet Nazarene in the championship game. The Eagles' Blake Touchard and Ray Graham were named to the All-Tournament team along with Warner Pacific's Sean Gaines and ONU's Jack Boyce and Ben Worner while Antonion Marshall of Olivet Nazarene was the tournament MVP.
THIRD PLEASE
The Sun Conference preseason coaches' poll was announced on Oct. 22 with the Eagles placing third amongst the nine teams in the league. Northwood received eight first-place votes and 64 total points in the poll to claim the top spot, followed by Warner (52), Embry-Riddle (49), St. Thomas (45) and Southeastern (33) in the top five.
SWEET NO. 16
The Eagles received a pleasant surprise on Oct. 23 when the NAIA released the preseason coaches' top 25 poll. Embry-Riddle, after finishing 17-15 in 2011-12, found it's name in the No. 16 slot. The Eagles have been ranked 16th on three occasions now, including the 2008 preseason poll and on Jan. 4, 2005. A complete listing of ERAU's all-time rankings can be found HERE.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE ROOKIE
Rico Saldana became the first Eagle to record a double-double in their debut since David Butler did it in 2009. Saldana's 14 points and 11 rebounds helped Embry-Riddle down Sterling, and he was nominated for The Sun Conference Player of the Week award for his performance.
POWELL PRODUCES POINTS
Jason Powell's 16 points on Saturday marked a career high for the Melbourne, Fla. native. Powell, who Head Coach Ridder described as the most improved player on the team, averaged 5.0 points per game last season while shouldering the load of being the team's defensive stopper.
QUARTER CENTURY OF EAGLE BASKETBALL
The 2012-13 season marks the 25th edition of Eagle basketball and Embry-Riddle athletics overall. The basketball, baseball, men's tennis and men's golf programs began in the 1988-89 academic year and were the foundation the rest of the department was built upon.
Embry-Riddle is 556-234 in 24+ seasons, capturing eight conference regular season titles, nine conference tournament titles, claiming 17 NAIA All-America honors, 15 Honorable Mention All-American honors and reaching the pinnacle of NAIA basketball in 2000 when the Eagles won the NAIA II National Championship.
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Shawnee State (1-1)
at
No. 16 Embry-Riddle (1-0)
11/9/12 | Daytona Beach, Fla. - ICI Center | 8 p.m.
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1st |
2nd |
Total |
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Shawnee State |
79 |
67 |
146 |
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Embry-Riddle |
40 |
34 |
74 |
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Stats at a Glance |
SSU |
ERAU |
|
FG Percentage |
.437 |
.456 |
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3PT FG Percentage |
.387 |
.296 |
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FT Percentage |
.692 |
.700 |
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Offensive Rebounds |
13 |
12 |
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Defensive Rebounds |
46 |
25 |
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Total Rebounds |
59 |
37 |
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Assists |
16 |
18 |
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Turnovers |
19 |
13 |
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Steals |
5 |
13 |
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Statistical Leaders |
SSU |
ERAU |
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Points |
Bennington - 26.0 |
Powell - 16.0 |
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Rebounds |
Devlin - 6.0 |
Saldana - 11.0 |
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Assists |
Nixson - 4.0 |
Carter - 6.0 |
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Steals |
Devlin - 1.0 |
Carter - 3.0 |
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Blocks |
Banks - 0.5 |
Carter - 1.0 |
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Related Links |
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• 2012-13 Embry-Riddle Basketball Media Guide |
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• 2012-13 Embry-Riddle Stats |
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• 2012-13 Shawnee State Stats |
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