 University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball had to withstand a second half run by William Jewell College to post a 98-79 victory Saturday afternoon in Liberty, Missouri. The Screaming Eagles go to 13-4 overall and 5-2 in the GLVC, while the Cardinals are 8-11, 2-5 GLVC.The Eagles wasted little time in taking command of the game during the first 10 minutes, racing out to a 17-point lead, 29-12, with 11:08 left to halftime after sophomore forward Josh Price (Indianapolis, Indiana) connected on a pair of free throws. USI shot 76.5 percent (13-17) to begin the contest and was led by junior guard/forward Kobe Caldwell (Bowling Green, Kentucky) with 11 points during the offensive surge.The first half saw the Eagles extend the lead to as many as 19 points twice (47-28 and 49-30) before going to the locker room with a 51-35 advantage. Caldwell finished the half with 18 points on eight-of-12 from the field, while senior guard Alex Stein (Evansville, Indiana) posted 14 first stanza points on a perfect six-of-six from the field and two-of-two from the line.In the first nine minutes of the second half, USI had to withstand William Jewell’s 28-14 run that saw the 16-point halftime advantage shrink to two points, 65-63, with 11 minutes to play. The Eagles rebounded and methodically rebuilt the lead before sealing the 98-79 victory once and for all with a 21-8 run. Senior guard/forward Nate Hansen (Evansville, Indiana) led the USI run to the finish with 11 of the 21 points.
Caldwell added 11 points in the second half and finished with a season-high 29 points. He was eight-of-12 from the field, two-of-four from long range, to propel the USI offense.
Stein followed with 21 points, marking his ninth game this season with 20-or-more points. He was nine-of-12 from the field, including the six-of-six to start the game, and three-of-three from the line.
Hansen rounded out the double-digit scorers with 18 points, scoring 14 in the second half. The senior, who has reached double-digits off the bench in each of his last three games, was six-of-12 from the field, three-of-six from downtown, and three-of-four from the line.
USI senior forward Jacob Norman (Evansville, Indiana), who had four points during the game-sealing run in the second half, tied a season-high with six points and dished a team-high and career-best six assists.
USI returns to the friendly surroundings of the Physical Activities Center next week when it hosts Missouri University of Science & Technology Thursday at 7:30 p.m. and Drury University Saturday at 3:15 p.m. Game coverage information for USI Men’s Basketball can be found on GoUSIEagles.com.
USI leads the all-time series with Missouri University of Science & Technology, 16-3, since the series started in the 1983-84 season. The Eagles, who are 15-1 against the Miners since they joined the GLVC in 2004-05, defeated Missouri S&T last season at the PAC, 98-78. Sophomore forward Emmanuel Little had his best game as a freshman in the win with 29 points and 21 rebounds.
The series between USI and Drury is knotted up at 11-11 after the Panthers defeated the Eagles last season during the regular season in Springfield, Missouri, 71-61, and in the GLVC Tournament, 79-72. Forward Julius Rajala led the Eagles versus the Panthers last season with 17.0 points per game, while Stein posted 15.0 points per contest in the two outings.
