Aces home to face Missouri State on Saturday

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Game set for 11 a.m.

 An early-morning game is on tap for the University of Evansville men’s basketball team as the Purple Aces welcome Missouri State to the Ford Center for an 11 a.m. game.

 

The Missouri Valley Conference TV Network will broadcast the game.  It will be carried live on Fox Sports Network in the Evansville area.

 

Sixteen lead changes took place as the Purple Aces fell by a final of 57-54 to UNI on Wednesday night.  Trailing by as many as 11 in the first half, Evansville rallied back to go up by as many as four points in the second half.  Egidijus Mockevicius recorded his 19th double-double of the season, which is tied for the most in the NCAA; he finished with 14 points and 13 rebounds, both game highs.  Adam Wing finished the night with ten points, hitting 4 of his 6 attempts.

 

D.J. Balentine now stands at 2,262 career points jumped past Larry Humes into second place on the all-time Aces scoring list with his 18-point effort versus Wichita State.  Balentine is also just 18 away from breaking Colt Ryan’s program mark of 2,279.

 

Egidijus Mockevicius is also within shouting distance of the top spot on the Aces’ all-time rebounding list.  The senior has 1,122 boards in his career and is 88 behind Dale Wise’s mark of 1,197, which was set in 1961.

 

Missouri State comes to the Ford Center with a 10-13 mark, but are over .500 in the Valley, standing at 6-5.  The Bears have won their last two games, both at home, defeating Illinois State and Bradley.

 

Three players average double figures, led by Dequon Miller, who stands with 12.7 points per game and will be one of the major favorites to be the MVC Newcomer of the Year.  Camyn Boone checks in with 11.4 PPG, he also leads the squad with 6.3 rebounds per contest; Boone notched 18 points and 8 rebounds in the victory over the Braves.  Chris Kendrix was the top scorer for MSU last time out, notching 21 points in a 77-71 triumph over the Braves on Tuesday evening.

 

The Bears hold a slight 33-30 edge in the all-time series against the Purple Aces, but UE has won three in a row.  Evansville has been victorious in eight of the last 11 games against MSU and is 19-10 in home contests.