USI completes homestand sweep with win
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana junior guard Damoni Harrison and graduate forward Jack Mielke led the Screaming Eagles to a 78-66 win over Western Illinois University Saturday at Liberty Arena. The Screaming Eagles are 8-10 overall and 3-5 in OVC action, while the Leathernecks are 8-11, 2-6 OVC.
USI owned the first 11 minutes of the contest, building a 23-9 lead by the 9:41 mark. The Eagles were a blistering five-of-eight from beyond the arc as Harrison led the way with six points on two of the three-point field goals.
WIU began to chip away at the USI advantage, closing the gap to one point, 33-32, before the Eagles closed out the half with back-to-back three-point bombs by Mielke for a 39-32 advantage. Mielke finished the half with a team-best 13 points.
In the second half, USI methodically pushed the margin to 11 points in the first six minutes, 53-42. The Eagles were seven-of-11 from the field during the run with sophomore forward Stephen Olowoniyi scoring six points.
The Leathernecks would rally to close the gap for a second time, pulling to within one point, 53-52, with 10:40 remaining on the clock.
USI, once again, methodically re-built the lead in the final 10 minutes, pulling out in front by eight, 68-60, with 3:07 to play before closing out the 78-66 final with the Eagles sinking six-straight free throws.
Harrison was on fire in the second half, scoring 18 of his season-high tying 26 points. The junior guard was 11-of-19 from the field, two-of-five from beyond the arc, and two-of-two from the stripe in the game.
Mielke followed Harrison in the scoring column with 17 points and a career-high 11 rebounds for his first career double-double. The graduate forward was four-of-seven from the field, including three from downtown, and six-of-six from the stripe. Mielke also grabbed 10 of his 11 rebounds on the defensive glass.
Junior guard Jayland Randall and Olowoniyi rounded out the double-digit USI scorers with 12 points and 11 points, respectively.
Next Up For USI:
Following Saturday’s action, the Eagles will be on the road for three-straight of OVC contests. USI starts the road swing with Southern Illinois University Edwardsville January 23 in Edwardsville, Illinois, and continues at Eastern Illinois University January 25 next week.
The Cougars of SIUE are 12-7 overall and 5-3 in the OVC after falling 85-82 at the University of Tennessee at Martin Saturday. The loss snapped SIUE’s five-game winning streak, but the Cougars have won seven of its last 10 games.
USI leads the all-time series with SIUE, 46-23, but the Cougars have the edges since the Eagles moved to Division I, 3-2. The teams split last year, with both winning on the other’s home court. SIUE took the first game at Liberty Arena, 67-64, but USI bounced back to win at Edwardsville, 84-67.
The Panthers of Eastern Illinois are 5-13 overall and 1-6 in the OVC following an 84-65 loss at Tennessee State University this afternoon. EIU, which will host Morehead State University before USI goes to Charleston, has lost five straight and seven of the last nine.
The series between USI and EIU is tied 3-3 after the Panthers took the only meeting last season, 81-71, at Liberty Arena. EIU leads the series in OVC contests, 2-1.
The next home game for USI at Liberty Arena is February 1 when it starts a three-game homestand by hosting Tennessee Tech University. Tickets for the homestand and all USI home dates are on sale now at USIScreamingEagles.com.
