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TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Northeastern State men's basketball team is set for its first game as members of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association.
 
The RiverHawks (5-1, 0-0 MIAA) will play host to Emporia State (4-2, 0-0 MIAA) in a doubleheader Dec. 5. The women will tipoff at 5:35 p.m., and the men's game will start at approximately 7:35 p.m.
 
The NSU men will face the Hornets for the first time since opening the 2006-07 campaign with a home-and-home set. ESU took both meetings, winning 75-70 in Tahlequah (Nov. 18, 2006) and 70-58 in Emporia (Nov. 24, 2006).
 
SCOUTING THE HORNETS
Emporia State is currently 4-2 this year. The Hornets began the year 3-0 but have since posted a 1-2 record, falling to Newman 69-62 in its most recent outing. ESU has also lost to Western Oregon (65-60). Kaleb Wright leads the team in scoring and is second in the conference at 19.2 ppg. He is also second on the squad in rebounding at 5.0 rpg. Gavin Brown is fifth in the conference in rebounding, as he hauls in 7.8 rpg to go with his 9.3 ppg. Chris Sights adds 9.7 points a night and 3.2 rpg.
 
A PERFECT START
NSU opened the 2012-13 campaign 5-0 before dropping its first contest. The perfect start was the best since 2005-06. The RiverHawks also started the season 5-0 that year. Northeastern State won its opener Nov. 12 by a 78-73 margin against Northwestern Oklahoma State University. The green and white then posted a 75-60 upset triumph over then-No. 19 Arkansas Tech on Nov. 15, using a game-high 26 points from junior guard Bryton Hobbs and an 11-0 run to close out the contest. Ten different members of the team recorded at least two points and one assist in NSU's 77-48 victory over Central Bible College on Nov. 17. The team has also defeated Ecclesia (90-45) Nov. 19, which was the largest margin of victory in nearly four years. In its most recent outing, NSU went on the road to top NWOSU 83-77 before losing its first game of the season at Harding (65-63).
 
LEADING THE WAY
Northeastern State is led in scoring by newcomer Bryton Hobbs, who is averaging 17.3 points and 5.2 assists per game. Senior guard Ethan Anderson has poured in 12.5 points per contest. Senior forward Jermaine Bransford is averaging 14.2 ppg and a team-high 7.0 rpg. Sophomore forward Landon DeMasters is contributing 8.3 points a night.
 
IN THE LEAGUE
Northeastern State leads the MIAA in three statistical categories this year. The team is the league leader in field-goal percentage (.524), three point field-goal percentage (.465) and free-throw percentage (.850). The team is also second in assists (17.0), third in three point field goals made (7.8) and fourth in blocked shots (4.0). Senior guard Ethan Anderson is tops in the league in free-throw percentage (1.000) and sixth in three point field-goal percentage (.520). Senior forward Jermaine Bransford is third in free-throw percentage (.955), ninth in rebounding (7.0) and blocks (1.0), and 15th in scoring (14.2). Junior guard Bryton Hobbs ranks third in assists (5.2) and sixth in scoring (17.3).
 
LIGHTS OUT
The RiverHawks have shot lights out this season, making 52 percent of their attempts from the field (164-313), 47 percent from downtown (47-101) and 85 percent from the free-throw line (91-107). Of those with at least 10 attempts, sophomore forward Landon DeMasters leads the team in shooting percentage (14-20, .700), senior guard Christian Mack is the team leader in three-point percentage (8-13, .615), and senior guard Ethan Anderson is 12-for-12 from the line. Senior forward Jermaine Bransford, DeMasters and Anderson are a combined 52-for-55 (95 percent) from the charity stripe.
 
BRANSFORD EXPLODES FOR 31
Jermaine Bransford poured in a career-high 31 points on 10-of-15 shooting against Northwestern Oklahoma State on Nov. 24, leading NSU to an 83-77 win. The senior forward also shot 11-for-12 from the free-throw line, and he added nine rebounds and a career-high five assists in 37 minutes. He is currently second on the team in scoring at 14.6 ppg and he leads NSU in rebounding at 6.8 rpg. He is shooting 57.8 percent (26-45) from the field and 95.5 percent (21-22) from the free-throw line.
 
MIAA NETWORK TO TELEVISE NSU
The Northeastern State men's and women's basketball road games against Lincoln University will be televised by the MIAA Network. The contests will be one of just three league doubleheaders being aired by the network, which is available locally on Cox Oklahoma Channels 3 and 703, and on KSMO Channel 62 in Kansas City. The RiverHawks' games against the Blue Tigers have been moved up a half hour to accommodate the network's broadcast schedule. The women's game will now begin at 1:07 p.m., while the men's game is now slated for a 3:07 p.m. tip. Both contests will be in Jason Gym on Lincoln's campus. It will be the first meeting for both programs as league rivals, as NSU is currently in its inaugural campaign in the MIAA. NSU will kick off the MIAA Network's basketball slate, which will feature three doubleheaders and the men's and women's tournament championship games. In addition to NSU's Dec. 8 contests, the MIAA Network will also broadcast the Feb. 23 doubleheader between Nebraska Kearny and Missouri Western and the March 2 doubleheader between Central Missouri and Washburn. The network will close out the regular season on March 10 with the MIAA Women's and Men's Basketball Championship games, which will be played at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo.
 
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