Men's Basketball | 1/11/2013 12:59:00 PM
LAST TRAIN TO KIRKSVILLE
Emporia State makes its final MIAA road trip to Kirksville, Mo. to take on Truman.
THE COACHES
Shaun Vandiver is 14-25 in his second season at Emporia State. A first round draft pick by the Golden State Warriors in 1991 spent ten years as an assistant coach at the NCAA Division I level. As a player he led Hutchinson CC to the 1988 NJCAA National Championship before earning first-team All-Big 8 honors at Colorado. He is 1-1 against Truman.
Matt Woodley is 13-28 in his second season at Truman. He is 1-1 in his career against the Hornets.
LAST TIME OUT
The Emporia State men battled back from a 20 point deficit midway through the first half, but could not complete the comeback in a 65-60 loss at Southwest Baptist. Emporia State used a 14-0 run that spanned the half to pull within 37-33 with 18:42 left in the game. They would cut the lead to three points on three occassions in the second half but could not take the lead. Paul Bunch led Emporia State with a career high 23 points and 13 rebounds. Chris Sights added 14 points and Terrence Moore scored ten for the Hornets.
ABOUT EMPORIA STATE
The Hornets are 5-7 on the season, 0-4 in the MIAA and have played one of the most difficult schedules in the nation. Their 11 opponents have a combined record of 93-48 (.616) on the season. Paul Bunch has three double-doubles in his last five games.
ABOUT TRUMAN
The Bulldogs are 5-8 on the season and 2-3 in the MIAA. They have lost four of their last five games and are 3-5 at home this season. Mike Carlson is the only big in the starting lineup and averages 16.9 points and 6.3 boards per game. He is fifth in the MIAA in scoring and second in free throw percentage.
SERIES HISTORY
This will be the 42nd meeting between the two teams with Emporia State holding a 27-14 overall advantage. The Hornets had won a series best nine straight prior to last year’s Bulldog win in overtime in Kirksville. Emporia State leads the series 14-7 in Pershing Arena.
LAST TIME VS. THE BULLDOGS
ESU got outscored 20-13 in overtime by Truman in a 77-70 loss on the road. The game saw a combined 54 fouls which is the second most in the MIAA this season. With under two minutes to play in overtime and ESU trailing by two Truman converted a five point play. They hit a three pointer and two fouls shots following a foul in the screen to give TSU a seven point lead. Tola Lawal led the way for the Hornets scoring 15 points while Antonio DiMaria finished with 13 points and six rebounds.
UP NEXT
Emporia State returns to White Auditorium on Sunday, January 20 to take on Missouri Western. Tip-off is set for 3:30 p.m. in the last trip to White Auditorium for long time Griffon coach Tom Smith. Smith has announced his retirement at the end of this, his .25th season at Missouri Western.
