ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Elmira College men's basketball team prepares for an Empire 8 Conference showdown against Nazareth College on Thursday, February 9th at 8:00 p.m. at the Golden Flyers' Kidera Gymnasium.

LAST TIME OUT: EC dropped a conference matchup to Ithaca College, 83-67, on Tuesday evening. The Soaring Eagles struggled to gain their footing to start the contest, finding themselves down 17-4 at the 14:06 mark of the opening half after a 17-0 run by Ithaca. Elmira scored just 15 points in the rest of the half, on its way to a 44-19 halftime hole. In the first half, EC owned a 25.0 field goal percentage on 8-for-32 shooting from the floor. The Soaring Eagles started to turn things around in the second half, as they improved to a 38.6 field goal percentage. Freshmen Alex Ischiropoulos '20 and Jesse Adelson '20 fueled the upgraded play with 19 and 11 points, respectively, in the second half. Ischiropoulos went on a tear to start the stanza, scoring 17 of the team's first 26 points in the first 10:52 after halftime. Ischiropoulos' impressive play allowed Adelson to cut the margin to a second-half low 12 points with a trey with 7:39 remaining. Although the Soaring Eagles clawed their way back into contention, the Bombers extended the lead to 21 points with just 2:32 left to put the game out of reach.    

POUNDING THE GLASS: The Soaring Eagles grabbed a season-high 52 rebounds in Tuesday's outing against Ithaca, the most since hauling in 54 on December 4, 2003, in an 80-79 victory over Houghton College. EC also set a new season high with 23 offensive boards, a mark that has not been accomplished since the 2011-12 season. Sophomore guard Anthony Abate '19 led the way for Elmira with a team-high nine boards, the most he has posted since he grabbed a career-high 14 against Vassar on November 26th. Ischiropoulos made an impact on the glass as well, recording a new season high with seven boards. This uptick in rebounding is a welcomed sign for EC, which has not cracked 30 rebounds in each of its last three contests.

SCOUTING NAZARETH: The Golden Flyers enter Thursday's game playing their best basketball of the season, with six wins in their last seven outings.  The most impressive of these victories was a 75-67 triumph over the Empire 8's top team, St. John Fisher College (16-5, 11-1 E8), the Cardinals' lone loss in conference play this season. Naz's ability to limit turnovers has made it one of the toughest teams in the conference. For the season, Nazareth averages a league-low 10.1 turnovers per game and paces the E8 in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.43). Sophomore guard Brendan Wind has been key to the Golden Flyers' success limiting turnovers, as he ranks third in the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio. Wind has done well involving teammates in the offense all season, as he paces league with 6.7 assists per game. Junior guard Tyler Stenglein has been the main benefactor of Wind's helpers, as he leads the conference with his 21.3 points per game average. The Rochester, New York, product has been a scoring machine all season, posting at least 20 points in 14 of his 20 games played this season. His highest scoring output came on January 12th against Utica College, when he scored 32 points.

ALL TIME SERIES: Elmira and Naz have a long history that dates back to the 1978-79 season, with the Golden Flyers owning a commanding 43-20 lead in the all-time series. Nazareth enters Thursday's meeting riding a 23-game win streak over the Soaring Eagles, one that goes back to the 2005-06 campaign. EC's most recent triumph over the Golden Flyers came on February 19, 2005, at Speidel Gymnasium, 71-66. Likewise, Elmira has not won at Naz's home court since the 2000-01 season.

UP NEXT: The Soaring Eagles will welcome Alfred University to Speidel Gymnasium for an 8:00 p.m. bout on Tuesday, February 14th. The tilt against the Saxons will serve as Elmira's home finale for the 2016-17 season.