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EASTERN ILLINOIS (5-12, 2-4) vs Austin Peay (8-10, 2-2)

Jan. 18, 2014 • 2 p.m. 
Lantz Arena (5,300) • Charleston, Ill.
Radio: Hit Mix 88.9 FM
(Mike Bradd & Jack Ashmore)

THE OPENING TIP
The Panther men's basketball team plays host to Austin Peay on Saturday, Jan. 18 at 2 p.m. EIU is 5-12 (2-4 OVC) and Austin Peay is 8-10 (2-2 OVC).
 
Saturday's matchup features the top two teams in the Ohio Valley Conference in blocks as the Governors rank first (5.5 bpg) and the Panthers rank second (5.3 bpg). Both teams lost their most recent conference games as Austin Peay dropped a road contest at SIUE on Thursday and the Panthers fell at home to Murray State.
 
The Panthers are led by second-year head coach Jay Spoonhour. He has posted a 122-65 record in seven seasons as a head coach and a 16-33 record at EIU.
 
Dave Loos has a 461-396 overall record in 28 years as a head coach with a 379-343 record in 24 seasons with the Governors. Loos is also the conference's all-time wins leader.
 
BASKETBALL PROMOTION: FREE WINGS
If the Panther men's basketball team makes six 3-pointers and wins, EIU students in attendance will receive six free wings to Buffalo Wild Wings. The promotion will run for the duration of the home basketball season for both the men's and women's basketball squads.
 
SERIES HISTORY WITH AUSTIN PEAY
EIU trails the all-time series with Austin Peay, 24-14. The Panthers and Governors split the series last year with each team winning their road game. EIU defeated APSU, 77-67, on Jan. 19 in Clarksville and APSU defeated EIU, 71-64, on Feb. 14 in Charleston.
 
Sherman Blanford posted 12 points and eight rebounds per game last year against Austin Peay. He also went 12-for-14 from the foul line in those games. Josh Piper added 13 points per game and Alex Austin chipped in 11 points per game.
 
SCOUTING THE GOVERNORS
The Governors are 8-10 this season with a 1-7 road record. Austin Peay has tied its win total from a year ago as they went 8-23 (4-12 OVC) last season.
 
Chris Horton, the 2012-13 OVC Freshman of the Year, leads the team in scoring (14.1 ppg), rebounding (10.1 rpg) and blocks (3.1 bpg). Travis Betran (13.6 ppg) and Will Triggs (11.9 ppg) round out the double-figure scoring while Damarius Smith has added 8.6 points and 5.8 assists per game.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Panthers are coming off a 70-66 home loss to Murray State on Thursday, Jan. 16. EIU led the entire game until the 9:40 mark in the second half as the Racers rallied to pull off the win. Reggie Smith scored a season-high 27 points in the loss while Sherman Blanford posted his seventh career double-double.
 
UP NEXT
After playing host to the Governors on Saturday, EIU travels to UT Martin (Jan. 23) and Southeast Missouri (Jan. 25).
 
IN THE PAINT
• Saturday's game features the top two teams in the OVC in blocks. EIU ranks second behind the Governors with 5.3 blocks per game. Luke Piotrowski, Mat Piotrowski and Keenen Anderson all have 15 blocks to pace the Panthers.
 
• The Panthers had a 45-40 advantage on the glass in the loss to Murray State, the second consecutive game EIU has out rebounded its opponent. EIU has grabbed more rebounds than their opponent six times this season.
 
• Reggie Smith scored a season-high 27 points against Murray State, going 8-for-23 from the floor and 9-for-11 from the foul line. The junior guard leads the team in scoring (13.1 ppg), assists (44) and steals (22).
 
• Sherman Blanford posted his seventh career double-double against Murray State, scoring 17 points to go along with a season-high 14 rebounds. He has 29 career double-figure scoring games and eight games with 10 or more rebounds.
 
• Luke Piotrowski tied his season-highs in scoring and rebounding with nine points and seven rebounds against Murray State. The sophomore forward has averaged 8.3 points per game in the team's last three contests with a .688 field-goal percentage (11-for-16) in 19.7 minutes per game off the bench.
 
• Alex Austin was held scoreless for only the second time in his career against Murray State with the other coming in the team's season-opener at Northwestern. The sophomore guard led all OVC freshmen in scoring a year ago and has averaged 8.1 points per game this season.
 
• EIU took a season-high 68 shot attempts against Murray State and grabbed a season-high 45 rebounds. The Panthers also made 22 free throws, their second most free throws made in game this year.
 
• Sherman Blanford has averaged 14.3 points and 7.7 rebounds per game in OVC contests this season. He currently ranks seventh in the conference in rebounding during conference play.
 
• EIU ranks second in the conference in free-throw percentage during OVC games, hitting 74.7 percent of their free-throw attempts. Alex Austin has gone 18-for-20 from the charity stripe in those games while Sherman Blanford has gone 30-for-38.
 
• Dylan Chatman has averaged 8.8 points per game in conference action, an increase from his 2.6 points per game average in non-conference play. The junior guard has started in every conference game after coming off the bench in non-conference play.
 
• After averaging 59.8 points per game in non-conference action, the Panthers have increased their scoring average to 69.8 points per game in OVC play. Reggie Smith paces the offense in conference action with 15 points per game.
 
• The Panthers dropped their first game of the season when leading at the half on Thursday night. EIU dropped to 5-1 on the year in games when leading at the half.
 
• The Panthers are 3-5 in home games this year, averaging 70.4 points per game with a .426 field-goal percentage. Reggie Smith leads the team in scoring at home with 15.7 points per game while Sherman Blanford has added 14.1 points per game and a team-best seven rebounds per game.
 
EASTERN ILLINOIS HEAD COACH JAY SPOONHOUR
Jay Spoonhour enters his second season as the Panthers head coach having been hired on April 9, 2012.  Spoonhour was previously the head coach at Moberly Area Community College where he coached for three seasons.  He is a long time assistant coach at the NCAA Division I level and served as the interim head coach at UNLV to complete the 2004 season posting a 6-4 record and taking the team to the finals of the Mountain West Conference along with an NIT appearance.  In 2001 Spoonhour was named the National Junior College Coach of the Year leading Wabash Valley College to the NJCAA National Championship with a 36-1 record.  He is the son of the late legendary coach Charlie Spoonhour.  Spoonhour played basketball at Pittsburg State earning his degree in 1994. He was an honorable mention All-Conference selection.  He has assistant coaching stops at Central Missouri, Saint Louis, UNLV, Missouri and Texas San Antonio. Spoonhour's career mark is 122-65, 22-37 at NCAA Division I.
 
FATHER, SON COMBINATIONS
Jay Spoonhour and his late father, Charlie Spoonhour, are one of several father/son combinations that have coached in collegiate basketball as they have combined to win 391 NCAA basketball games, all coming at the Division I level.  Only 17 father/son combinations have ever won 600 or more games with Eddie, Scott and Sean Sutton topping the list with 1,120 wins between the three. Scott is currently the head coach at Oral Roberts. Only three father/son combinations have ever won more than 1,000 games at the NCAA level. (through games on Jan. 17, 2014)