2022–23 Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball team

The 2022–23 Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball team represented Eastern Michigan University during the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Eagles, led by second-year head coach Stan Heath, played their home games at the George Gervin GameAbove Center in Ypsilanti, Michigan as members of the Mid-American Conference.^[1] They finished 8–23 with a 5–13 MAC record.^[2] They finished tied for ninth in the MAC and failed to qualify for the MAC tournament.

2022–23 Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball
Conference	Mid-American Conference
Record	8–23 (5–13 MAC)
Head coach	Stan Heath (2nd season)
Assistant coaches	Shawn Trice (2nd season) Bob Simon (2nd season) Drew Denisco (2nd season)
Home arena	George Gervin GameAbove Center
Seasons ← 2021–22 2023–24 →

2022–23 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Toledo	16	–	2		.889			27	–	8		.771
Kent State †	15	–	3		.833			28	–	7		.800
Akron	13	–	5		.722			22	–	11		.667
Ball State	11	–	7		.611			20	–	12		.625
Ohio	10	–	8		.556			19	–	14		.576
Buffalo	9	–	9		.500			15	–	17		.469
Northern Illinois	9	–	9		.500			13	–	19		.406
Miami (OH)	6	–	12		.333			12	–	20		.375
Bowling Green	5	–	13		.278			11	–	20		.355
Eastern Michigan	5	–	13		.278			8	–	23		.258
Central Michigan	5	–	13		.278			10	–	21		.323
Western Michigan	4	–	14		.222			8	–	23		.258
† 2023 MAC tournament winner

Previous season

Main article: 2021–22 Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball team

The Eagles finished the 2021–22 season 10–21 and 5–15 in MAC play to finish in eleventh place.^[3] They failed to qualify for the MAC tournament.

Offseason

Departures

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason
Bryce McBride	4	G	6'2"	175	Junior	Jackson, Tennessee	Transferred to Youngstown State
Mo Njie	13	C	6'10"	245	Freshman	Centerville, Ohio	Transferred to SMU
Malcolm Clements	14	G	6'3"	170	Freshman	Ypsilanti, Michigan	Transferred to Henry Ford College
Monty Scott	2	G	6'5"	200	Senior	Union, New Jersey	Exhausted Eligibility
Darion Spottsville	10	G	6'4"	205	Senior	Phoenix, Arizona	Signed for Grises de Humacao
Axel Okongo	15	F	7'0"	240	Senior	Saâcy-sur-Marne, France
Thomas Binelli	23	F	6'10"	240	Senior	Bologna, Italy	Exhausted Eligibility
Nate Scott	25	G/F	6'8"	210	Senior	Naperville, Illinois

^[4][5][6]

Incoming transfers

Incoming Transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous School
Tyson Acuff	2	G	6'4"	190	Junior	Detroit, Michigan	Duquesne
Jalin Billingsley	4	F	6'8"	225	Sophomore	Cleveland, Ohio	Georgetown
Emoni Bates	21	F	6'9"	190	Sophomore	Ypsilanti, Michigan	Memphis
Legend Geeter	23	F	6'8"	235	Sophomore	River Rouge, Michigan	Providence

^[4][5]

Recruiting class

College recruiting information

Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
Orlando Lovejoy G	Detroit, Michigan	Summit Academy North	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	185 lb (84 kg)
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    (NR)
JZ Zaher G	Fenton, Michigan	Powers Catholic	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	164 lb (74 kg)
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    (NR)
Overall recruit ranking:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2022 Team Ranking". Rivals.

Pre Season Awards

• Emoni Bates (Pre-Season All-MAC 2nd Team)

Roster

2022–23 Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 0 Kevin-David Rice 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) So Grand Blanc Delta College Flint, MI F 1 Colin Golson Jr. 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 230 lb (104 kg) So Ferndale Siena Detroit, MI G 2 Noah Farrakhan 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 162 lb (73 kg) So The Patrick School East Carolina Hillside, NJ G 3 Luka Savicevic 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 150 lb (68 kg) So Sports Academy Skopje Skopje, North Macedonia F 4 Jalin Billingsley 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 218 lb (99 kg) So Lutheran East Georgetown Cleveland, OH G 5 Tyson Acuff 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 196 lb (89 kg) So Cass Technical Duquesne Detroit, MI G 10 Orlando Lovejoy 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 184 lb (83 kg) Fr Summit Academy North Detroit, MI G 12 Andrew Wells 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 163 lb (74 kg) So International Sports Academy East Lansing, MI G 13 Prakash Ketterhagen 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 208 lb (94 kg) RS Fr New Rochelle Combine Academy Kalamazoo, MI F 15 Derik Pranger 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 186 lb (84 kg) Fr Colorado Prep Parker, CO F 21 Emoni Bates 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 170 lb (77 kg) So Ypsi Prep Memphis Ypsilanti, MI F 22 Yusuf Jihad 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) So North Farmington Oakland Farmington Hills, MI F 23 Legend Geeter 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 230 lb (104 kg) RS Fr River Rouge Providence River Rouge, MI G 30 JZ Zaher 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 164 lb (74 kg) Fr Flint Powers Catholic Fenton, MI F 33 Derek Ballard Jr. 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 232 lb (105 kg) GS Southfield-Lathrup Southfield, MI F 35 Javantae Randle 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 205 lb (93 kg) RS Fr Frederick Douglass Detroit, MI	Head coach Stan Heath (Eastern Michigan) Assistant coach(es) Shawn Trice (Penn) Bob Simon (Eastern Michigan) Drew Denisco (Wittenberg) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
October 27, 2022* 7:00 p.m.		Grand Valley State	W 85–69		27 – Bates	11 – Geeter	4 – Geeter	George Gervin GameAbove Center (2,487) Ypsilanti, MI
Non-conference regular season
November 7, 2022* 7:30 p.m., ESPN3		Wayne State	W 75–66	1–0	18 – Lovejoy	8 – Geeter	4 – Savicevic	George Gervin GameAbove Center (4,677) Ypsilanti, MI
November 11, 2022* 9:00 p.m., ESPNU		vs. No. 22 Michigan	L 83–88	1–1	30 – Bates	6 – Farrakhan	4 – Acuff	Little Caesars Arena (14,204) Detroit, MI
November 15, 2022* 8:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Bradley Cancún Challenge	L 61–89	1–2	20 – Bates	6 – Bates	3 – Tied	Carver Arena (4,110) Peoria, IL
November 19, 2022* 3:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Oakland Cancún Challenge	L 90–92 OT	1–3	19 – Bates	6 – Geeter	4 – Tied	Athletics Center O'rena (4,059) Rochester, MI
November 22, 2022* 12:30 p.m., FloSports		vs. Purdue Fort Wayne Cancún Challenge	L 67–74	1–4	16 – Bates	6 – Farrakhan	4 – Farrakhan	Hard Rock Hotel Riviera (250) Cancún, Mexico
November 23, 2022* 12:30 p.m., FloSports		vs. Winthrop Cancún Challenge	L 87–101	1–5	25 – Acuff	10 – Geeter	2 – Tied	Hard Rock Hotel Riviera (107) Cancún, Mexico
November 27, 2022* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+		UC San Diego	L 63–66	1–6	17 – Bates	13 – Bates	5 – Acuff	George Gervin GameAbove Center (2,340) Ypsilanti, MI
November 30, 2022* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Florida International	W 80–68	2–6	26 – Bates	8 – Tied	4 – Acuff	Ocean Bank Convocation Center (1,150) Miami, FL
December 4, 2022* 2:30 p.m., ESPN+		Florida Atlantic	L 73–101	2–7	29 – Bates	6 – Bates	2 – Farrakhan	George Gervin GameAbove Center (4,192) Ypsilanti, MI
December 7, 2022* 8:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Illinois State	L 81–87	2–8	14 – Acuff	5 – Golson	4 – Tied	Redbird Arena (3,331) Normal, IL
December 11, 2022* 1:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Niagara	L 60–67	2–9	21 – Farrakhan	5 – Jihad	4 – Farrakhan	Gallagher Center (897) Lewiston, NY
December 18, 2022* 3:00 p.m., ESPN+		Detroit Mercy	W 79–77	3–9	19 – Tied	7 – Geeter	6 – Acuff	George Gervin GameAbove Center (2,823) Ypsilanti, MI
December 30, 2022* 7.00 p.m., SEC Network		at South Carolina	L 64–74	3–10	36 – Bates	7 – Randle	2 – Bates	Colonial Life Arena (9,023) Columbia, SC
MAC regular season
January 3, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Bowling Green	L 65–91	3–11 (0–1)	15 – Bates	7 – Jihad	1 – Tied	George Gervin GameAbove Center (2,305) Ypsilanti, MI
January 7, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN3		Central Michigan	W 62–56	4–11 (1–1)	26 – Bates	10 – Bates	2 – Acuff	George Gervin GameAbove Center (2,531) Ypsilanti, MI
January 10, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Western Michigan	L 79–85	4–12 (1–2)	23 – Bates	6 – Bates	3 – Tied	University Arena (3,017) Kalamazoo, MI
January 13, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPNU		at Akron	L 67–104	4–13 (1–3)	18 – Farrakhan	4 – Tied	2 – Tied	James A. Rhodes Arena (2,177) Akron, OH
January 17, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Kent State	L 63–77	4–14 (1–4)	24 – Bates	6 – Bates	3 – Acuff	George Gervin GameAbove Center (2,212) Ypsilanti, MI
January 21, 2023 3:30 p.m., ESPN3		Northern Illinois	L 67–88	4–15 (1–5)	26 – Farrakhan	8 – Farrakhan	3 – Tied	George Gervin GameAbove Center (4,719) Ypsilanti, MI
January 24, 2023 7:00 p.m., CBSSN		at Toledo	L 79–84	4–16 (1–6)	43 – Bates	9 – Farrakhan	5 – Farrakhan	Savage Arena (5,162) Toledo, OH
January 28, 2023 3:45 p.m., ESPN3		at Miami (OH)	W 74–69	5–16 (2–6)	20 – Farrakhan	6 – Tied	4 – Bates	Millett Hall (3,096) Oxford, OH
January 31, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Ohio	W 90–79	6–16 (3–6)	29 – Acuff	4 – Geeter	6 – Acuff	George Gervin GameAbove Center (2,472) Ypsilanti, MI
February 3, 2023 2:00 p.m., CBSSN		at Ball State Red Out	L 90-91	6–17 (3–7)	35 – Bates	6 – Tied	2 – Tied	Worthen Arena (6,068) Muncie, IN
February 7, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Buffalo Equality & Inclusion Night	L 97–102	6–18 (3–8)	35 – Acuff	5 – Tied	4 – Tied	Alumni Arena (4,507) Buffalo, NY
February 11, 2023 7:30 p.m., ESPN3		Toledo	L 63–70	6–19 (3–9)	36 – Acuff	10 – Bates	3 – Farrakhan	George Gervin GameAbove Center (5,390) Ypsilanti, MI
February 14, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Akron	L 51–78	6–20 (3–10)	13 – Bates	5 – Farrakhan	3 – Tied	George Gervin GameAbove Center (2,122) Ypsilanti, MI
February 17, 2023 4:00 p.m., CBSSN		at Kent State Black History Celebration/ Greek Night	L 54–81	6–21 (3–11)	15 – Bates	11 – Bates	1 – Tied	MAC Center (2,095) Kent, OH
February 21, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Western Michigan	W 66–59	7–21 (4–11)	17 – Bates	7 – Bates	2 – Farrakhan	George Gervin GameAbove Center (2,703) Ypsilanti, MI
February 25, 2023 3:30 p.m., ESPN3		Ball State Senior Day	W 75–68	8–21 (5–11)	24 – Bates	11 – Bates	3 – Tied	George Gervin GameAbove Center (5,287) Ypsilanti, MI
February 28, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Bowling Green Rocky Night	L 68–88	8–22 (5–12)	15 – Lovejoy	4 – Acuff	3 – Tied	Stroh Center (2,123) Bowling Green, OH
March 3, 2023 8:00 p.m., ESPN3		at Northern Illinois Senior Day	L 66–85	8–23 (5–13)	26 – Acuff	4 – Tied	3 – Tied	Convocation Center (729) DeKalb, IL
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time.

Source^[7]

Post Season Awards

• Emoni Bates (3rd Team All-MAC)
• Yusuf Jihad (Academic All-MAC)