Thanksgiving Tournament Resumes Against Host Utah Tonight

SALT LAKE CITY - After a 59-55 win over Wright State in the first round of the Utah Thanksgiving Tournament Wednesday, the Chippewas will hit the court again tonight at 7 p.m. ET to face host Utah. 

The Utes, who enter the game with a 2-1 record identical to the Chippewas, defeated Idaho State, 57-46, in their first game, Wednesday.

The Chippewas and Utes have never faced each other, but Central Michgan's last two NCAA Tournament berths have brought them to the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City.

Dan Majerle and the 1987 Chippewas fell to a UCLA team led by Reggie Miller and Jack Haley. And in 2003, Chris Kaman and the 11th-ranked CMU squad defeated No. 15 Creighton and Kyle Korver before falling to a seventh-ranked Duke team that sent all five starters to the NBA – J.J. Redick, Shelden Williams, Dahantay Jones, Daniel Ewing and Chris Duhon.

 • TOURNAMENT MATCHUP                                                   

GAME TWO at Utah
Friday, Nov. 23, 2012 • 7 p.m. (ET)
Salt Lake City, Utah  • Jon M. Huntsman Center

 • THE BROADCAST                                                                 

Radio: Central Michigan IMG Sports Network (Justin Hoff, play-by-play); Robbie Harman (color analyst)

TV: PAC-12 Network. Ted Robinson, play by play; Joe Cravens, analyst. DISH ch. 413.
Availability: See pac-12.com for channel finder.

Web:
Live audio: cmuchippewas.com
Live stats: utahutes.cstv.com
Live video: pac-12.com
Twitter updates: @cmumensbball

 • POSTGAME NOTES AFTER WIN OVER WRIGHT STATE      

FINDING A NEW WAY TO WIN
Known for their focus on three-point shooting, the Chippewas turned to an inside game to hand Wright State its first loss of the season, scoring 36 of their season-low 59 points in the paint. Many of those came thanks to a 40-29 rebounding edge which led to 15 second-chance points.
    CMU outscored Wright State 36-22 in the paint and shot six more free throws than the Raiders to overcome the lowest field goal percentage (.407) and fewest three-point attempts (14) of the season.
        
IT’S NOT ABOUT WHO STARTS, IT’S ABOUT THE MINUTES
Davis has used the same starting lineup in all three games, but the first subs see the court just a minute into the game. Of the 10-man rotation, six are averaging at least 20 minutes per game and two more are averaging at least 14.
    The group of starters is comprised of two true freshmen, a sophomore and two seniors, none of which had started a game as a Chippewa prior to this year.

SUB OFTEN AND SUB A LOT
With Davis’ fast style of play, the substitution pattern resembles that of a hockey game. Against Wright State, four new players came to the table at the 18:50 mark. In all three games, the entire rotation of 10 players has seen the court before the first media timeout.

RANDALL HAS SECOND DOUBLE-DIGIT GAME
Senior point guard Kyle Randall, who graduated in three years at UNC Greensboro and is currently enrolled in grad school, followed up his 17-point debut against Iowa with a 13-point outing against Wright State. He hit his first six field goal attempts against the Raiders and dished out four assists.

BALANCED ATTACK
For the first time this season, only one player was in double figures Wednesday but everyone saw the scoring column. Hibbitts added eight off the bench and five others contributed six points. According to Davis, anyone on the court has the ability to lead the squad in scoring.

SAYLOR CONTINUES TO SET PR’S
Fifth-year senior and grad student Zach Saylor led the Chippewas against Olivet with a career-high 14 points and 6 rebounds, then turned in four blocks against Wright State. Saylor averaged around one point and a rebound in a limited role prior to this season, but has started four times and led the team in scoring twice this year (including the exhibition game).

IMPORTANCE OF THE GLASS
The +11 rebounding margin against Wright State represented the first advantage this year and included a 13-6 edge on the offensive end. Coach Davis has preached the importance of winning the rebounding battle in order to help push the tempo and take advantage of the team’s speed and shooting ability.

 • QUOTABLE                                                                          

• "There were so many big-time plays for us. We had a lot of opportunities down the stretch. With a young team you have to find ways to win, and we made enough big plays to win. We will enjoy Thanksgiving a little more than had we lost that in the last few seconds."
(Keno Davis following Wednesday's win over Wright State. The Chippewas had a 10-point lead late in the game but were held without a field goal for the final five-plus minutes.)

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