Boasting a young core roster including four sophomores and three freshmen, the Emory University men's basketball team won 15 games for 13th straight season.
The Eagles opened the season by winning eight of their first nine contests with the lone loss in the stretch coming on the road in overtime to eventual national semifinalist Guilford College. The 8-1 mark featured regional wins over Piedmont, Birmingham-Southern, Berry, Sewanee and Oglethorpe, as well as a 2-0 record in the UAA Challenge against NESCAC schools Colby and Bates.
The 2023 calendar year concluded with a home split in the Emory Holiday Classic, taking down Mary Washington before falling to George Fox in the tournament's championship game, 85-82. The Eagles were back in action four days later and secured one of their biggest wins of the year, toppling defending national champion Christopher Newport, 86-70, at home in the non-conference finale.
Emory moved into the University Athletic Association slate with a 9-2 record where it was pitted against some of the nation's strongest teams over the next two months. The Eagles went on to finish the UAA schedule with a 6-8 record with seven of the eight defeats being by four points or less. The conference ended up sending four teams to the national tournament.
The Eagles finished the year at 15-10 but did not receive an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament, snapping Division III's longest active postseason streak with 10 consecutive appearances in the championship field.
Sophomore duo Ben Pearce and Jair Knight headlined the Eagles on the year with both players earning All-UAA First Team acclaim as well as All-Region recognition from the NABC and D3hoops.com. Knight paced the team in scoring at 17.5 points per game and was the conference leader in steals. For Pearce, he followed up his electrifying rookie campaign with a second year that featured a 16.4 scoring average and totaled 126 assists, the third-best mark in the UAA.
Junior big men Logan Shanahan and Cale Martens continued to be a presence down low as the combo forwards posted rebounding totals of 9.1 and 7.4 to be among the UAA and Division III leaders. Both players chipped in on the scoring end as well with Martens ranking 10th in the conference at 13.7 PPG and Shanahan finishing 18th at 12.2. Shanahan was the UAA leader on the glass, grabbing 227 rebounds including 66 on the offense end.
The Eagles also featured talented newcomers Ethan Fauss and AJ Harris who both averaged seven points per game. Fauss started 17 of 25 games in his rookie season while Harris was a key contributor off the bench.
The 2023-24 season also marked the departures of seniors Max Fried and Matteo Whelton. They contributed multiple conference titles across their time with the program as well as several NCAA tournament appearances.
The Eagles earned the following honors during the 2023-24 season:
