2020–21 Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball team

The 2020–21 Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball team represented Eastern Michigan University during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Eagles, led by 10th-year head coach Rob Murphy, played their home games at the Convocation Center in Ypsilanti, Michigan as members of the Mid-American Conference. Starting this season, the MAC announced the removal of divisions.[1] They finished the season 6–12, 3–11 in MAC play to finish in 10th place. They failed to qualify for the MAC tournament.

2020–21 Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball
ConferenceMid-American Conference
Record6–12 (3–11 MAC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaConvocation Center
Seasons
2020–21 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Toledo 15 4   .789 21 9   .700
Buffalo 12 5   .706 16 9   .640
Akron 12 6   .667 15 8   .652
Kent State 12 6   .667 15 8   .652
Ohio 9 5   .643 17 8   .680
Bowling Green 10 8   .556 14 12   .538
Miami (OH) 9 8   .529 12 11   .522
Ball State 8 9   .471 10 13   .435
Western Michigan 4 12   .250 5 16   .238
Eastern Michigan 3 11   .214 6 12   .333
Central Michigan 3 13   .188 7 16   .304
Northern Illinois 2 12   .143 3 16   .158
2021 MAC tournament winner

Following the season, the school announced it as parting ways with Murphy after 10 seasons.[2] On April 12, 2021, the school hired EMU alum and former Kent State, Arkansas, and South Florida head coach Stan Heath as the team's new head coach.[3]

Previous season

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The Eagles finished the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season 16–16, 6–12 in MAC play to finish in a tie for last place in the West Division. They lost in the first round of the MAC tournament to Kent State.[4]

Roster

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2020–21 Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Yeikson Montero 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Sr Pensacola State Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
F 1 Ty Groce 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) RS Sr Lincoln High School Ypsilanti, Michigan
G/F 2 Miles Gibson 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 195 lb (88 kg) RS Jr Northwest Kansas Tech Richmond, Virginia
G 3 Drew Lowder 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) So Holy Cross Jackson, Michigan
G 4 Bryce McBride 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Jr Dyersburg State Community College Jackson, Tennessee
G 5 Noah Morgan 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Sr Northwest Florida State Mount Vernon, New York
G 10 Darion Spottsville 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Sr South Mountain Community College Phoenix, Arizona
G 12 Andrew Wells 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Fr International Sports Academy East Lansing, Michigan
G 13 Chris James 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg) So St. John Bosco High School Long Beach, California
F 15 Axel Okongo 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 245 lb (111 kg) Sr Missouri Saâcy-sur-Marne, France
F 21 James Love III 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 225 lb (102 kg) RS Sr Kansas State Fort Lauderdale, Florida
F 23 Thomas Binelli 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Sr Monroe College Bologna, Italy
F 33 Derek Ballard Jr. 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) RS Jr Southfield-Lathrup High School Southfield, Michigan
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: March 11, 2021

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
November 25, 2020*
6:00 pm, BTN
at No. 13 Michigan State L 67–83  0–1
Breslin Center 
East Lansing, MI
December 4, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Toledo L 74–91  0–2
(0–1)
Convocation Center 
Ypsilanti, MI
December 9, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Adrian W 95–35  1–2
Convocation Center 
Ypsilanti, MI
December 16, 2020
8:00 pm, ESPN3
Valparaiso Canceled due to COVID-19 issues Athletics–Recreation Center 
Valparaiso, IN
December 27, 2020
2:00 pm
Olivet W 94–65  2–2
Convocation Center 
Ypsilanti, MI
December 29, 2020
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Central Michigan L 60–87  2–3
(0–2)
Convocation Center 
Ypsilanti, MI
January 2, 2021
5:30 pm, ESPN3
Kent State Canceled due to COVID-19 issues Convocation Center 
Ypsilanti, MI
January 5, 2021
7:00 pm
Akron Canceled due to COVID-19 issues Convocation Center 
Ypsilanti, MI
January 9, 2021
2:00 pm, ESPN+
Akron W 71–59  3–3
(1–2)
Convocation Center 
Ypsilanti, MI
January 12, 2021
7:00 pm, ESPN3
at Toledo L 63–96  3–4
(1–3)
Savage Arena 
Toledo, OH
January 14, 2021
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Calvin W 67–56  4–4
Convocation Center 
Ypsilanti, MI
January 16, 2021
4:30 pm, ESPN3
at Central Michigan L 64–75  4–5
(1–4)
McGuirk Arena 
Mount Pleasant, MI
January 19, 2021
7:00 pm
Western Michigan Postponed due to COVID-19 issues Convocation Center 
Ypsilanti, MI
January 21, 2021
2:00 pm, ESPN+
at Buffalo L 77–92  4–6
(1–5)
Alumni Arena 
Amherst, NY
January 23, 2021
5:30 pm, ESPN3
Miami (OH) L 63–85  4–7
(1–6)
Convocation Center (100)
Ypsilanti, MI
January 26, 2021
7:30 pm, ESPN3
at Akron L 65–86  4–8
(1–7)
James A. Rhodes Arena 
Akron, OH
January 29, 2021
at Northern Illinois Postponed due to COVID-19 issues Convocation Center 
DeKalb, IL
February 2, 2021
7:00 pm
Bowling Green Postponed due to COVID-19 issues Convocation Center 
Ypsilanti, MI
February 6, 2021
2:00 pm
at Ohio Postponed due to COVID-19 issues Convocation Center 
Athens, OH
February 9, 2021
7:00 pm
at Miami (OH) Canceled due to COVID-19 issues Millett Hall 
Oxford, OH
February 13, 2021
1:00 pm
Ball State Postponed due to COVID-19 issues Convocation Center 
Ypsilanti, MI
February 16, 2021
5:00 pm, ESPN3
Buffalo Postponed due to COVID-19 issues Convocation Center 
Ypsilanti, MI
February 20, 2021
2:00 pm, ESPN3
at Kent State L 51–64  4–9
(1–8)
MAC Center 
Kent, OH
February 23, 2021
7:00 pm
Bowling Green L 69–82  4–10
(1–9)
Convocation Center (125)
Ypsilanti, MI
February 25, 2021
2:00 pm, ESPN3
at Ohio L 67–86  4–11
(1–10)
Convocation Center 
Athens, OH
February 27, 2021
1:00 pm, ESPN3
Northern Illinois W 91–57  5–11
(2–10)
Convocation Center 
Ypsilanti, MI
March 2, 2021
7:00 pm, ESPN3
at Ball State L 65–100  5–12
(2–11)
Worthen Arena (92)
Muncie, IN
March 5, 2021
7:00 pm, ESPN3
at Western Michigan W 64–63  6–12
(3–11)
University Arena (100)
Kalamazoo, MI
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern Time.

Source[5][6]

References

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  1. ^ "Mid-American Conference cancels postseason tournaments for eight sports, changes basketball format". CBSSports.com. May 12, 2020. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
  2. ^ "Rob Murphy, Eastern Michigan part ways after 10 yrs". Coaches Database. March 17, 2021. Retrieved April 19, 2021.
  3. ^ "Eastern Michigan hires Heath as basketball coach". ESPN.com. April 12, 2021. Retrieved April 19, 2021.
  4. ^ "Eastern Michigan vs. Kent State – Game Recap – March 9, 2020 – ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 19, 2020.
  5. ^ "2020-21 Eastern Michigan Eagles Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
  6. ^ "2020-21 Eastern Michigan Eagles Schedule and Results". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved March 10, 2021.