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Opponent Scouting Report |
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Gannon – The Golden Knights
will come to Ashland with a 7-5 record, 1-1 in GLIAC play.
Gannon has won four consecutive games and six of its last
seven games. Ten of GU’s 12 games have been played at
home. The Golden Knights are under the direction of first-year
head coach John Reilly. He relies on one of the league’s
best inside tandems in 6-8 junior Aurimas Truskauskas and 6-9
junior Shelby Chaney. Truskauskas is the GLIAC leader in
rebounding (13.0 rpg.) and is fourth in scoring (16.8 ppg.).
Chaney is second in rebounding (11.1 rpg.) and eighth in
scoring (14.4 ppg.). Thanks to Truskauskas and Chaney, GU
leads the GLIAC in rebound margin (+13.1)
The Golden Knights consist of more than
just that inside attack. Guard Darmel Whitfield, a 5-11
senior, is the GLIAC leader in three-point field goals
(34/2.83 fpg.). Guard Demondi Johnson, a 5-11 senior, is fifth
in the conference in assists (4.58 apg.).
Last season, the teams split a pair of
games. The Eagles won in Erie, PA, 73-62 and lost at home,
58-46. Gannon has won three of the last four meetings and
leads the all-time series, 22-10. |
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Mercyhurst – Picked sixth in
the GLIAC South Division in the coaches preseason poll, the ‘Hurst
has gotten off to a quick start. The Lakers begin the week
11-2, 1-2 in the conference. Before arriving in Ashland, the
Lakers will play at Findlay on Thursday. Gary Manchel is the
MC coach and he directs a team that tries to keep a firm grip
on the game’s tempo. The Lakers excel in a half-court
game. MC is the GLIAC leader in turnover margin (+6.38), is
second in scoring defense (59.6 ppg.) and third in scoring
margin (+10.7).
Terry Smith, a 6-1 sophomore guard, is
averaging a team-high 12.9 ppg. Richard Field, a 6-5 junior
forward, is bringing down 5.3 rpg. Guard-forward Andy
Kubinski, a 6-4 senior, is the league leader in steals
(43/3.31 spg.).
Mercyhurst enters the week with a four-game
winning streak and has won six of its last seven games. MC
hasn’t surrendered more than 54 points in any of its last
four games.
Ashland swept the ‘Hurst last season,
winning at home, 61-55 and at Mercyhurst, 77-73. The teams
have divided the last four meetings. The all-time series tilts
in Ashland’s favor, 16-13. |
The Week Ahead
Thursday, Jan. 5 – Gannon at ASHLAND, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 7 – Mercyhurst at ASHLAND, 3 p.m.
(Both games can be heard live on WNCO 1340 AM)
About the Eagles
Lake effect basketball, that’s what’s in store for the
Ashland University Eagles this week.
The two Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic
Conference schools from Erie, PA – Gannon and Mercyhurst –
will pay a visit to Ashland this week. These are AU’s first
GLIAC encounters since the Eagles hosted Findlay on Dec. 10. The
remaining 14 games on the schedule are all GLIAC games.
Ashland is 10-3, 2-1 in GLIAC play. The Eagles
have won four consecutive games and eight of their last nine
games. Last week, AU played twice. Both games came in the Ashland
Holiday Inn Express Tournament. In the first round, the Eagles
made quick work of Malone, 93-67. That victory put the Eagles in
the tournament title game opposite Lincoln Memorial. AU stopped
the Railsplitters, 86-75. The Ashland holiday tournament has been
played nine times and the Eagles have won the tournament
championship on eight occasions.
“I think we have a better idea of
the personality of this team,” said AU head coach Roger
Lyons, when asked where he thought his team stood since the
last GLIAC encounter. “Secondly, I think our starting five is
more comfortable playing together. We’ve started the same
five guys every game with the exception of one game and that was
due to injury.” (Sophomore guard Brett Bartlett
missed the Slippery Rock game due to injury).
AU Facts and Figures
During their four-game winning streak, the Eagles haven’t
scored less than 77 points and their average margin of victory is
17.0 ppg….Ashland is averaging 80.9 ppg, a major upgrade over
last year (72.2 ppg.). Ashland leads the GLIAC in scoring…the
Eagles have had 50 or more rebounds in three consecutive games…AU
senior center Justin Brown (Columbus, OH/West Liberty State)
had his sixth double-double of the season against Lincoln Memorial
with 21 points and 12 rebounds. Brown is third in the GLIAC in
rebounding (9.5 rpg.). He’s second in scoring (18.5 ppg.) and
field goal percentage (.636). Brown has moved into ninth place in
career rebounds (505) at AU.
Junior forward Greg Emmons (Ashland, OH)
had a double-double (13 points, 10 rebounds) against Lincoln
Memorial. Over his last four games, Emmons is shooting 67 percent
(24-of-36) from the field. He’s averaged 15.3 ppg., over that
stretch. Emmons has 738 points in his career. His father, Randy
Emmons, is a member of AU’s `1,000-point club with 1,124
points (ninth all-time at AU.). Emmons is fifth in the GLIAC in
rebounding (7.5 rpg.) and ninth in scoring (14.4 ppg.) and field
goal percentage (.550).
Brett Barlett (LaGrange, OH/Kent State),
in his first year at AU, is third in the GLIAC in three-point
field goal percentage (.479) and free throw percentage (.854). The
sophomore guard is sixth in assist-turnover ratio (1.53).
AU head coach Roger Lyons is one
victory shy of 200 for his career. His first win at AU came
against Ohio Dominican, 75-57 during the 1986-87 season.
The Line on Lyons
Lyons is in his 13th season with the Eagles. His career record
is 199-143. The Akron, OH, native is the career leader in
victories at Ashland. A 1974 Ashland graduate, Lyons has guided
the Eagles to 18 or more wins in a season five times. In
1999-2000, he directed the Eagles to a 20-9 finish. His 1987-88
team went 19-10 and advanced to the NCAA Division II playoffs.
“I guess if you want to boil it
down, 200 wins means one thing,” said Lyons of pulling close
to 200 victories. “It means we’ve done the job we were
asked to do and done it for a long time. I think we’ve had a
quality basketball program for a long time.”
Asked if he remembered his first victory, that
18-point triumph over Ohio Dominican, Lyons emphatically said he
did.
“I was the most relieved guy in
the world when it was over,” he said. “I knew I wouldn’t
be shut out, at least I’d have one win.”
Lyons on the Golden Knights
“They’re very
similar to us. They have two big inside guys and they look to take
the ball inside. Shelby Chaney is one of the best big men in our
league. He was hurt earlier, but looks to be full go now.”
Lyons on the Lakers
“They are a half-court
team, they’ll run a lot of sets. They do a lot of screening,
we’ll have to handle that. They want a half court game and we’ll
want to run.”
Short Shots
- Brown averaged 10.5 rpg., in two games
against Mercyhurst last season.
- In last year’s game at home against
Gannon, AU was held to 46 points. That was the Eagles’
second lowest output of the season and the lowest point total at
Kates Gymnasium.
- Junior guard-forward Vahn Knight
(Euclid, OH/Benedictine) is 13th in the GLIAC in scoring
(13.7 ppg.). He had a team-high 19 points in last year’s
win at Gannon.
- The Eagles are second in the GLIAC in field
goal percentage (.405), third in rebound margin (+7.5) and
fourth in scoring margin (+7.6).
Up Next
After this week, AU plays four consecutive road contests. Next
week finds the Eagles in Detroit on Thursday (Jan. 12, 7:30 p.m.)
for a date with Wayne State. Saturday (Jan. 14, 3 p.m.), the
Eagles will call on Hillsdale. |
