Three exhibition games have been enough for the Emporia State men’s basketball team.
“I’m ready to play,” ESU guard Andrew Davison said. “We’ve been through all the preseason stuff.”
The regular season officially begins tonight, as ESU opens at home against Ottawa. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at White Auditorium.
“We’re so excited about (tonight),” ESU guard DeAndre Townsend said. “We can’t wait.”
ESU enters the contest after posting respectable outings against both Wichita State and No. 3 Kansas in exhibition play.
The Hornets went on a 25-9 second half run against the Shockers in an 87-62 loss and only trailed by four at halftime before losing 90-55 to the Jayhawks.
“Hopefully playing those teams,” ESU coach David Moe said, “helped get us ready for tonight’s game.”
ESU also put on an impressive shooting performance in an exhibition against ESU Alumni on Saturday. The Hornets made 17-of-33 three-points attempts, including 12 of 18 in the second half.
“We all can shoot the ball,” said Davison, who added five treys in the 121-97 victory Saturday. “Wes (Book), Donta Watson, DeAndre (Townsend) — all of our guards and some of our post players — we all can shoot the ball. We ought to be a fun team to watch this year.”
Through the three preseason games, Watson and Townsend — the two transfer guards — have led the team in scoring.
Watson has averaged 18.3 points, while Townsend has contributed 17.7 points per game.
Ottawa comes to White Auditorium as a member of the NAIA in the KCAC Conference.
The Braves, coached by Andy Carrier, finished with an 11-18 mark last season.
“It’s a well-coached team that’s done a lot of good things,” Moe said. “We’ve got to play hard and make sure we match their intensity.”
The opener should be a good test for ESU before it travels to Tahlequah, Okla., for Saturday’s game against Northeastern State.