Emory Men's Basketball Closes Out Homestand With Thursday And Saturday Contests

GAME FACTS - The Emory men's basketball team will close out a five-game homestand when it plays host to a pair of foes this week.  On Thursday (Dec. 17), the Eagles welcome Greensboro College to the Woodruff PE Center for a 7:00 p.m. tip, before playing their final game prior to the holidays on Saturday (Dec. 19) against Hanover College in a 7:00 p.m. start.

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 fifth season as the head coach at Greensboro College is Bryan Galuski (Eckerd, 1998).  Galuski will take a school and career won-lost slate of 59-55 into Thursday's outing against Emory.

Jon Miller (Hanover, 1997) directs the fortunes of the Hanover program. Prior to his current post, Miller spent five seasons as the head coach at Defiance College. 

2009-10 RECORDS - Emory starts the week looking to snap a two-game losing streak that has left its record at 4-3.  When the Eagles take to the court against Greensboro, it will be their first action since Dec. 7 when they came out on the short end of a 97-93 double-overtime decision to Oglethorpe.

Greensboro comes to town with a record of 5-4.  The Pride saw a five-game win streak snapped on Sunday when they lost a home game to Mary Washington, 72-65.

Heading into a Saturday game at Oglethorpe, Hanover, a member of the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference, claims a won-lost ledger of 4-3.  The Panthers hosted Defiance on Saturday (Dec. 12) and notched a 79-73 triumph.  

Emory's Top Offensive Scoring Efforts Under Zimmerman    

SERIES RECORDS -  Greensboro stands 2-0 all-time against Emory.  Last year, the Pride hosted the Eagles and came away with a 59-57 victory.

Saturday's bout against Hanover will represent the first-ever meeting between the programs.

EMORY OFFENSE PUTTING UP NUMBERS - Through seven games, Emory holds down the No. 1 spot among University Athletic Association teams with an 84.6 points per game average.  The Eagles have posted 90 or more points on four occasions this year and also rank third in the loop in field goal percentage (.489) and first in three-point field goal percentage (.430).   Last year at this time, Emory was averaging 79.0 points per outing and shooting 46.9 percent from the field.

THREE-POINT SHOT AN EMORY WEAPON --  Emory has made the most of the three-point shot and is averaging 7.8 treys per contest. The Eagles have seven or more treys in five 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.  In UAA statistics released at the start of the week, Emory held down the No. 1 position with a 43.0 percent mark from three-point range. After seven games a year ago, Emory was averaging 5.0 three-pointers per game.

PLAYERS MOVING UP EMORY CAREER CHARTS - During the early stages of the season, a pair of Emory players are moving up the school's career listings in various categories.  Senior Daniel Curtin ranks 11^th in career three-point field goals with 96 and is three shy of tying former marksman Adrian Sosa (2005-07) for 10^th place on that list.   In addition, Curtin stands 11^th all-time at the school with a 35.8 percent showing (96-of-258) in three-point shooting.

Senior Anthony Fernandez is 19^th all-time at Emory with 321 rebounds and is nine shy of tying Clayton Fuller (2002-04) for 18^th place.  Scoring-wise, Fernandez has 745 points to his credit and is 24 shy of cracking the school's top 20 list.

NOTES - In games that it has won, Emory is averaging 93.2 points and shooting 52.5 percent from the floor ... In games they have lost, the Eagles are scoring 73.0 points and shooting 43.9 percent from the field ... Sophomore Austin Claunch has scored in double figures on five occasions and his team-leading 14.7 points per game average is good for a sixth-place tie among UAA players in stats released on Dec. 14 ... Freshman Alex Greven has posted a team-leading six double-figure scoring contests and he is second on the club and tied for 11^th in the UAA in scoring (12.3 ppg) ... Curtin has scored in double digits in three of his last four outings and is averaging 12.8 points in that stretch ... In his last three games, Curtin is 57.6 percent from the field (15-of-26) including 64.2 percent from three-point range (9-of-14) ... Emory has outrebounded four opponents this year and stands 3-1 in those games ... Junior Julien Williams grabbed a team-high nine rebounds in the Oglethorpe game, the third time this year he had paced the team in that department ... Williams owns a team-high 5.9 rebounds per-game average, good for 10^th place among UAA performers ... Claunch stands second in the UAA in assists (6.1 apg) ... The Eagles had six players finish with double-figure scoring in the Oglethorpe game, the second time this year the team had that many players register 10 or more points ... Emory shows a 7-1 slate under Zimmerman when converting 25 or more free throws.