Eastern Michigan hosted Florida International University on Saturday, Dec. 11. The Eagles defeated the Panthers 92-88 in quadruple overtime improving their season record to 5-5.
Noah Farrakhan led the Eagles with a career-high 27 points, the second-highest amount of points scored in one game this season. Monty Scott rallied up 17 points and 11 rebounds against the Panthers, while Mo Njie tallied 10 points and 11 rebounds for his first career double-double. Senior Nathan Scott recorded a career-high five assists and Bryce McBride put up 15 points against FIU.
During Saturday’s contest, EMU welcomed former student-athlete and NBA legend George “Iceman” Gervin back to the 734 for an honorary celebration presented by Game Above.
George Gervin played two seasons of Eastern Michigan basketball between 1970 and 1972. While at EMU he averaged 29.5 points and 15.3 rebounds per game and was also named a member of the 1,000 point club (1,044). Gervin’s jersey was retired In 1986 and he was inducted into the E-Club Hall of Fame in 1993.
After leaving the Eagle’s nest Gervin went on to play in the NBA for 10 seasons. From 1973-1985 Gervin played for the San Antonio Spurs and from 1985-1986 he played with the Chicago Bulls. While in the NBA Gervin was an all-star for nine consecutive seasons, a four-time scoring champion, an NBA first-team selection five times, and second-team twice.
In 1996, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and named amongst the NBA's top-50 players of all time, and recently named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team.
As George Gervin was honored during halftime, President Smith announced that the Convocation Center will be renamed the “George Gervin Game Above Center”.
"We are excited to put George's name on this building," said EMU President Dr. James M. Smith in an article released by EMU Athletics. "George personifies the kinds of traits all successful people show-resilience, bravery, kindness, and vision to make our world a better place. These traits are the cornerstones of our partnership with GameAbove. They continue to provide the vision to help move our university forward."
