University Of  Evansville Welcomes UNI For Weekend Series

University Of  Evansville Welcomes UNI For Weekend Series

Aces And Panthers To Square Off Saturday And Sunday

 EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Riding the momentum from an exciting 84-72 win at Southern Illinois on Monday, the University of Evansville men’s basketball team hosts its first league foe this weekend, welcoming UNI to the Ford Center for games on Saturday and Sunday.  The Missouri Valley Conference Network and the Purple Aces Radio Network will have the broadcast on Saturday while Sunday’s contest will be on ESPN+; both games will have 3 p.m. tips.

Saturday’s game can be watched in the Evansville area on Fox Sports Indiana.

Last Time Out

– One of the most exciting halves of basketball in recent memory saw the Purple Aces rally past the Salukis on Monday by a final of 84-72

– Trailing by four at halftime, UE hit 10 3-pointers in the final 20 minutes, going 10-for-15 from outside to clinch its first conference win since March 2, 2019 when the Aces picked up a 65-64 win at Valpo

– Samari Curtis reset his career mark with 29 points; he hit 9 out of 13 attempts, went 6-of-8 from outside and was a perfect 5-5 from the free throw line

– As a team, the Aces knocked down 17 3-pointers, tying the school mark which came against Xavier in 2018 and versus the Salukis in the 1996-97 campaign

Finding the Combination

– In the Dec. 9 game vs. Eastern Illinois, the Aces put forth a starting lineup of Shamar Givance, Jawaun Newton, Noah Frederking, Jax Levitch and Evan Kuhlman

– With that group making the start, UE is 3-2

Upping His Game

– Samari Curtis made his presence known in the MVC as he scored a career-best 29 point in Monday’s 84-72 win at SIU

– Curtis hit 9 of his 13 field goals while draining six out of eight 3-point tries

– Since becoming eligible prior to the Dec. 15 game against SEMO, the sophomore is averaging 14.3 points per game while shooting 55.6% from the field and 62.5% from long range

– He is equally as efficient at the charity stripe, hitting 17 out of 21 attempts

– In his second game as a member of the Evansville squad, Curtis erupted for 19 points in an exciting effort that saw him hit 3 out of 4 triples and 8 of his 10 free throws

– The transfer from Nebraska made his Evansville debut on December 15 versus SEMO

Using The 3

– This season, 52.1% of Evansville’s attempts have come from outside

– It marks the third year in a row that over 40% of UE’s field goal tries have come beyond the arc (43.7% in 2018-19, 42.4% in 2019-20)

– Despite taking more attempts, the Aces are actually more efficient in their attempts when comparing to the last two seasons

– Evansville is shooting 38.8% from long range in 2020-21

– On 12/28/20, UE tied the school record with 17 3-point makes at SIU

Scouting the Opponent

– UNI heads to the Ford Center for its 2-game set against the Aces with a 2-5 mark following a split against Missouri State in last weekend’s series

– The Panthers played a challenging non-conference schedule, falling in their first two games against Western Kentucky and Saint Mary’s by a total of eight points

– With the loss of AJ Green, Trae Berhow and Austin Phyfe have been depended upon to pick up the slack

– Berhow has posted 15.5 points per game overall and 15 PPG in the opening pair of Valley contests

– Phyfe checks in with 10.4 PPG, but upped that to 14 points in last week’s games versus Missouri State

FOOTNOTES For all of the latest information on University of Evansville athletics, visit GoPurpleAces.com or follow the program on Twitter via @UEAthletics. 

FUTURE UNAFRAID: To make a gift to the Future Unafraid initiative and contribute to the Purple Aces’ response to COVID-19, please visit UEAlumniOnline.com/FutureUnafraid