1997–98 Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball team

1997–98 Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball
1997–98 Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball
MAC tournament champions
NCAA tournament, first round
Conference	Mid-American Conference
Record	20–10 (13–5 MAC)
Head coach	Milton Barnes (2nd season);
Home arena	Bowen Field House
	Seasons ← 1996–97 1998–99 →

1997–98 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
East
Akron	13	–	5	.722	17	–	10	.630
Kent State	9	–	9	.500	13	–	17	.433
Miami	9	–	9	.500	17	–	12	.586
Marshall	7	–	11	.389	11	–	16	.407
Bowling Green	7	–	11	.389	10	–	16	.385
Ohio	3	–	15	.167	5	–	21	.192
West
Ball State	14	–	4	.778	21	–	8	.724
Western Michigan	14	–	4	.778	21	–	8	.724
Eastern Michigan †	13	–	5	.722	20	–	10	.667
Toledo	10	–	8	.556	15	–	12	.556
Northern Illinois	6	–	12	.333	10	–	16	.385
Central Michigan	3	–	15	.167	5	–	21	.192

† 1998 MAC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll

The 1997–98 Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball team represented Eastern Michigan University during the 1997–98 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Eagles, led by head coach Milton Barnes, played their home games at Bowen Field House and were members of the Mid-American Conference. They finished the season 20–10, 13–5 in MAC play. They finished third in the MAC West regular season standings and won the MAC tournament to receive an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as No. 13 seed in the East region. The Eagles were beaten by No. 4 seed Michigan State in the opening round in what was Tom Izzo's first NCAA Tournament win.^[1]

Roster

1997–98 Eastern Michigan Hurons men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Previous school	Hometown
G	3	Derrick Dial	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Sr	Cass Technical	Detroit, Michigan
G	11	Earl Boykins	5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)	130 lb (59 kg)	Sr	Cleveland Central Catholic	Cleveland, Ohio

Head coach

Milton Barnes

Assistant coach(es)

Legend

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

Injured
Current redshirt

Source:^[2]

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Regular season
Nov 15, 1997*		Drake	W 86–58	1–0	Bowen Field House Ypsilanti, Michigan
Nov 17, 1997*		at UNLV Preseason NIT	L 66–84	1–1	Thomas & Mack Center (4,692) Las Vegas, Nevada
Nov 30, 1997*		Ashland	W 81–70	2–1	Bowen Field House Ypsilanti, Michigan
Dec 3, 1997*		at Minnesota	L 58–65	2–2	Williams Arena Minneapolis, Minnesota
Dec 6, 1997*		at Dayton	L 76–81	2–3	UD Arena Dayton, Ohio
Dec 17, 1997*		at Michigan	W 89–83 ^OT	3–3	Crisler Arena Ann Arbor, Michigan
Dec 20, 1997		at Toledo	W 57–56	4–3 (1–0)	Savage Arena Toledo, Ohio
Dec 27, 1997*		vs. Boston University Arizona State Tribune Classic	W 72–69	5–3	Desert Financial Arena Tempe, Arizona
Dec 28, 1997*		at Arizona State Arizona State Tribune Classic	L 90–102	5–4	Desert Financial Arena Tempe, Arizona
Jan 3, 1998		Ohio	W 85–64	6–4 (2–0)	Bowen Field House Ypsilanti, Michigan
Jan 5, 1998		Marshall	W 99–82	7–4 (3–0)	Bowen Field House Ypsilanti, Michigan
Jan 8, 1998		at Miami (OH)	L 64–72	7–5 (3–1)	Millett Hall Oxford, Ohio
Jan 10, 1998		at Bowling Green	L 75–78	7–6 (3–2)	Anderson Arena Bowling Green, Ohio
Jan 14, 1998		Ball State	W 73–63	8–6 (4–2)	Bowen Field House Ypsilanti, Michigan
Jan 17, 1998		at Northern Illinois	W 75–72	9–6 (5–2)	Chick Evans Field House DeKalb, Illinois
Jan 21, 1998 7:00 p.m.		at Western Michigan	L 85–98	9–7 (5–3)	University Arena Kalamazoo, Michigan
Jan 24, 1998		Central Michigan	W 85–53	10–7 (6–3)	Bowen Field House Ypsilanti, Michigan
Jan 29, 1998		Bowling Green	W 86–67	11–7 (7–3)	Bowen Field House Ypsilanti, Michigan
Jan 31, 1998		Miami (OH)	W 71–67	12–7 (8–3)	Bowen Field House Ypsilanti, Michigan
Feb 5, 1998		at Akron	L 67–69	12–8 (8–4)	Rhodes Arena Akron, Ohio
Feb 7, 1998		at Kent State	W 79–74	13–8 (9–4)	Memorial Gym Kent, Ohio
Feb 11, 1998		at Ball State	W 89–77	14–8 (10–4)	University Arena Muncie, Indiana
Feb 14, 1998		Northern Illinois	W 66–61	15–8 (11–4)	Bowen Field House Ypsilanti, Michigan
Feb 18, 1998		at Central Michigan	W 97–82	16–8 (12–4)	Rose Arena Mount Pleasant, Michigan
Feb 21, 1998 7:00 p.m.		Western Michigan	L 82–102	16–9 (12–5)	Bowen Field House Ypsilanti, Michigan
Feb 25, 1998		Toledo	W 87–86	17–9 (13–5)	Bowen Field House Ypsilanti, Michigan
MAC tournament
Feb 28, 1998*	(4)	(5) Toledo Quarterfinals	W 98–79	18–9	Bowen Field House Ypsilanti, Michigan
Mar 3, 1998*	(4)	vs. (1) Ball State Semifinals	W 93–92 ^OT	19–9	SeaGate Convention Center Toledo, Ohio
Mar 4, 1998*	(4)	vs. (7) Miami (OH) Championship game	W 92–77	20–9	SeaGate Convention Center Toledo, Ohio
NCAA tournament
Mar 12, 1998* CBS	(13 E)	vs. (4 E) No. 16 Michigan State First Round	L 71–83	20–10	Hartford Civic Center Hartford, Connecticut
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. E=East. All times are in Eastern Time.

^[3]^[4]

NBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	NBA Club
2	52	Derrick Dial	San Antonio Spurs

^[5]

References

^ "Michigan State 83, Eastern Michigan 71". The Chicago Tribune. March 12, 1998. Retrieved July 9, 2022.
^ "1995-96 Eastern Michigan Eagles Roster and Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved July 9, 2022.
^ "2019–20 Eastern Michigan Men's Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). Eastern Michigan University Athletics. Retrieved July 9, 2022.
^ "1997-98 Men's Basketball Schedule". Eastern Michigan University Athletics. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
^ "1998 NBA Draft". Basketball-reference.com. Retrieved July 9, 2022.

[1] "Michigan State 83, Eastern Michigan 71". The Chicago Tribune. March 12, 1998. Retrieved July 9, 2022.

[2] "1995-96 Eastern Michigan Eagles Roster and Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved July 9, 2022.

[3] "2019–20 Eastern Michigan Men's Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). Eastern Michigan University Athletics. Retrieved July 9, 2022.

[4] "1997-98 Men's Basketball Schedule". Eastern Michigan University Athletics. Retrieved April 4, 2023.

[5] "1998 NBA Draft". Basketball-reference.com. Retrieved July 9, 2022.

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[5]

v t e Eastern Michigan Eagles men's basketball
Venues	Normal Gymnasium (1897–1955) Bowen Field House (1955–1998) George Gervin GameAbove Center (1998–present)
Rivalries	In-state MAC schools
Culture & lore	Swoop
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
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