After dropping its fourth nonconference game of the season, Syracuse (6-4) has a quick turnaround before hosting Eastern Michigan (6-4) on Monday at 7 p.m. Tyler Lydon seems to have found his offensive groove after a career-high 29 points in Saturday’s loss to Georgetown, but the Orange’s scoring depth – or lack thereof – has dragged the team down.

Here’s what you need to know about the Eagles before their matchup with Syracuse in the Carrier Dome.

All-time series: Syracuse leads, 3-1

Last time they played: The Orange cruised to a 70-48 win over EMU on New Year’s Eve in 2013 behind 15 points each from Jerami Grant and Rakeem Christmas. C.J. Fair and Trevor Cooney also scored in double figures, with Grant and Fair each grabbing eight rebounds and Tyler Ennis dishing out a team-high nine assists. SU hit only 3-of-14 attempts from behind the arc, but managed to stretch its unbeaten start to the 2013-14 season to 13 games.

The Eastern Michigan report: The Eagles are coached by former Syracuse assistant Rob Murphy, who’s in his sixth season in Ypsilanti, Michigan, after serving on Jim Boeheim’s staff from 2004-11. EMU has won four of its last five, but two of those were against non-Division I opponents. The Eagles do have an impressive loss under their belt, when they fell by three in double overtime to Pittsburgh in the season opener. Other than that, Murphy’s team is 3-3 against Division I foes this season.

Eastern Michigan head coach Rob Murphy | Daily Orange File Photo

Three players average over 15 points per game for Eastern Michigan: Willie Mangum IV (17.5), Ray Lee (17.4) and James Thompson IV (15.6). On top of a balanced offensive attack, the Eagles are one of the best teams in the country at turning opponents over. According to Kenpom.com, EMU steals the ball on 14.3 percent of possession, which ranks third in the country. The Orange isn’t far behind, though, coming in at 10th nationally with steals on 13 percent of opponent possessions.

How Syracuse beats the Eagles: This might be obvious, but just don’t turn the ball over in excess. The Orange gave it away 13 times on Saturday, the most in its last five games and third-highest total through 10 games. Starting point guard Frank Howard turned the ball over six times and said after the game he was telegraphing his passes too much and not faking out defenders by making it look like he was driving to the basket. With Tyus Battle presumably still out of the starting five while healing his left foot, the onus on Howard to take care of the ball in the backcourt will be bigger once again. Even though it’s just Eastern Michigan, Syracuse has proven it’s capable of playing down to far inferior opponents (North Florida), and this one is one of the best in the country at turning opponents over.

Stat to know:

28.1 – EMU opponents get an average of 28.1 percent of their points from the foul line, which is the seventh highest total in the country, according to Kenpom. In other words, SU is best off driving the basket and all likelihood is fouls will come.

Player to watch: James Thompson IV, forward, No. 2

On top of averaging almost 16 points per game, Thompson grabs 12 rebounds per contest and should be a thorn in the side of Syracuse’s frontcourt. Thompson has topped 20 points in three of the last five games and ranks second in the country in Kenpom’s offensive rebounding percentage category. He has totaled double-digit rebounds in eight of 10 games, including a season-high 21 boards in a Saturday loss to Vermont.

Published on December 18, 2016 at 2:48 pm

Contact Matt: mcschnei@syr.edu | @matt_schneidman