Men's Basketball | 1/10/2012 4:34:00 PM
HOMESTANDING
The Hornets close out a two game homestand against Lincoln. The Hornets will play four of their next five games in the friendly confines of White Auditorium.
LAST TIMEOUT
The Hornets shot .490 from the field but could not overcome a strong performance from the line in a 75-68 loss to Pittsburg State. The Hornets made only nine free throws while the Gorillas hit 24 of 29 from the charity stripe. Tola Lawal led the Hornets with 24 points, scoring 16 of his points as ESU made their second half comeback. Chris Sights added 14 points for the Hornets going two of two from behind the three-point line. Troy Pierce and Taylor Euler had 11 points apiece while Euler led the team with six rebounds.
THE COACHES
Shaun Vandiver is 7-6 in his first year at ESU. The former NBA round draft pick spent the last ten years as an assistant coach at the NCAA Division I level, most recently at Boise State University. As a player he led Hutchinson CC’s to the 1988 NJCAA National Championship before earning first-team All-Big 8 honors at Colorado.
John Redmond is 10-55 in three seasons at Lincoln. He is 0-2 against ESU in his career.
SCOUTING THE BLUE TIGERS
Lincoln is 2-10, 2-5 in the MIAA this season. They are led by Cedric Riddle who is averaging 16.6 points per game and 5.2 rebounds. He is joined in double figures by Jimmy Payton who is averaging 10.9 points and a team leading 5.8 rebounds per game.
SERIES HISTORY
This will be the 18th meeting between the two teams with ESU holding a 12-5 overall advantage. The Hornets have won four straight matching their longest winning streak in series history.
LAST TIME VS. LINCOLN
The Hornets shot .600 from the field in the second half on the way to an 84-70 win over Lincoln on Feb. 19, 2011 in White Auditoriuim. Xavier Burnette and Michael Tyler each had 14 points to pace the Hornets. They were joined in double figures by Robert Moores with 12 and Matt Boswell with 11 points.
UP NEXT
The Hornets will travel to Washburn on Jan. 14 for the Turnpike Tussle. Tip-off is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. from Lee Arena in Topeka, Kan.
