EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball will begin Thanksgiving week with a visit to Valparaiso University Wednesday and finish the holiday week by hosting Kentucky State University Saturday. Game time Wednesday at Valpo is 2 p.m., while tipoff versus Kentucky State is set for 3 p.m.
 
 
A special ticket package, Family Feast Four Pack, will be available to fans for the Kentucky State contest. The ticket package includes four game tickets, four sodas, and four popcorns for $40. Additional tickets are $10.
 
The USI-KSU showdown also is the final day of the “Stuff the Cruiser” initiative to collect non-perishable items for Archie’s Food Closet. The Public Safety cruiser will be parked in front of Liberty Arena. Those wishing to donate can give items directly to the Public Safety employee or student worker stationed at the cruiser.
 
Donations can also be dropped off at the Public Safety Office, located on the first floor of the Recreation, Fitness and Wellness Center.
 
USI will play either the University of Illinois Chicago or High Point University Saturday in the championship or consolation game. Tipoff for the consolation game is 4 p.m. (CT), and for the championship, it is 6 p.m. (CT).
 
The Screaming Eagles (1-5) hope to get on track when they visit Valp (4-1) on Wednesday. USI was blanked in the Boardwalk Battle, falling to the University of the Incarnate Word, 87-81, and the University of Illinois Chicago, 84-73, despite late rallies in both games.
 
USI senior guard Ismail Habib led the Eagles in the Boardwalk Battle with 17.0 points per contest. He was followed by senior guard Cardell Bailey and senior forward Ola Ajiboye with 15.0 points and 14.0 points per game, respectively.
 
For the season, Habib leads four Eagles in double-digits with 18.3 points per outing. Senior guard Trey Thomas and Cardell follow with 11.8 points and 11.6 points per contest, respectively, while junior guard Kaden Brown rounds out the double-digit scorers with an 11.0 point average.
 
Valpo has started the season 4-1 and has won its last three games after splitting the opening week of the season. The Beacons are coming off a 90-75 victory over Cleveland State University November 19 on the road.
 
Wednesday’s matchup will be the first meeting between the two programs in men’s basketball.
 
Kentucky State is 1-3 overall after splitting a pair of games last week at home. The Thorobreds, who play Fort Valley State University at home Tuesday evening, defeated Allen University, 90-72, and lost to Benedict University, 65-55.
 
USI led the all-time series with Kentucky State, 20-3, during its Division II years and member of the GLVC. The last meeting was in a non-conference game in 2015-16 when the Eagles won, 95-68.
 

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Women’s Basketball returned to the court at Liberty Arena on Tuesday night with another convincing victory, defeating Fisk University by a score of 95-18.
 
USI (4-1) nearly set a program record for the fewest points allowed in a game on Tuesday against Fisk (4-4). The record is 17 points allowed, which USI set in a 45-17 win against Kentucky Wesleyan College in December of 1976. However, the Screaming Eagles matched the history books on Tuesday for the second-fewest points surrendered in a game, which was a 113-18 win against Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College in January of 1979.
 
On Tuesday, all 11 active Screaming Eagles saw the floor and scored in the game. Junior guard Sophia Loden led the way with a career-high 22 points on 10-14 shooting. Loden also finished with 10 rebounds for her second double-double of the season. Freshman guard Lily Graves had her best showing of the season with 17 points on 6-9 shooting, including three triples. Freshman forward Alli Roberton also reached double figures with 10 points and pulled down eight rebounds. Junior forward Maddy Fay also had 10 points on a perfect 5-5 night from the floor.
 
As a team, USI shot for 50 percent (40-80) overall and connected on 42 percent (8-19) of their long-range attempts. The Eagles grabbed 55 rebounds, which is the most for USI since the 2017-18 season when the Screaming Eagles had 59 caroms against Harris Stowe State University. USI dished out a season-high 22 assists in Tuesday’s win. Defensively, the Screaming Eagles limited Fisk to only six made field goals.
 
After a 0-4 start from the floor to begin the contest, USI got rolling. The Screaming Eagles jumped out to a 9-0 advantage four minutes in before Fisk got on the scoreboard. Meanwhile, Loden took control early by scoring the first 13 points of the game for the Eagles. Then USI’s inside game took over, helping build another big run to end the first quarter and give the Eagles a 23-3 lead.
 
USI continued to be aggressive in taking the ball inside in the second quarter. Graves came off the bench and converted a three-point play to extend USI’s lead, 30-3. While the scoring slowed down a bit for USI in the middle of the second, the sizable margin continued to grow. USI took a 43-11 lead into the break, as Loden tallied 17 first-half points. Graves and Fay led the bench scoring in the first 20 minutes, scoring six points each.
 
To start the second half, Loden picked up where she left off in the first half, draining a quick triple to get to 20 points in the game. Junior forward Amiyah Buchanan had a strong run in the early going of the third, scoring three times to help USI’s lead swell to 56-11 midway through the quarter. Graves scored eight points, including hitting a pair of treys, down the stretch of the third to crossover into double figures for the first time in her career, as USI led 70-12 through three periods of play.
 
With the game well in hand in the fourth quarter, USI continued to capitalize. Junior forward Chloe Gannon posted a three-point play before Robertson drained a three-pointer in the next possession during the middle of the frame to pair together a couple of energizing plays. Robertson netted another three before the night’s end to reach double digits for the first time in her career. USI’s final tally in the 95-18 triumph was one more three-point play by Graves inside the final minute of action.
 

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – Trailing 55-41 heading into the fourth quarter against SIUE, the University of Evansville mounted a furious comeback, getting within two with 5:59 to play, but came up just short on Tuesday night with a 75-69 setback. Evansville made 16 three-pointers on the night, their most in a single game since November 16, 2015.

Camryn Runner (Cicero, Ind./Hamilton Heights) led the Aces in scoring with 18 points, playing 39 of 40 minutes, while also tallying six assists. Freshman Sydney Huber (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Mount Vernon) had a breakout night with 17 points, going 5-for-8 from three, and scored 12 points in the fourth quarter on 4-for-5 shooting from deep. Fellow freshman Jelena Savic (Melbourne, Australia/ Kurunjang Secondary College) also enjoyed a strong performance with 12 points, including a 3-for-5 mark from three, while Logan Luebbers Palmer (Union, Ky./Randall K. Cooper) scored in double figures for the fifth game in a row with 16 points and 4-for-6 mark from three-point range.

Evansville got off to an early lead, with Luebbers Palmer knocking down a long two and BreAunna Ward (St. Louis, Mo./John Burroughs School) and Savic sinking triples to give the Aces an 8-7 advantage. However, the Cougars dominated the rest of the period, taking a 19-11 lead into the second quarter.

SIUE continued to dominate the game in the first six and a half minutes of the second quarter, building a 34-15 lead. Needing to sway some momentum heading into the half, the Aces outscored the Cougars 8-2 to end the half, using five points from Huber and three points from Savic to cut into the deficit.

After the Cougars got their lead back up to 18 points early in the third quarter, Runner and Luebbers Palmer rattled off a pair of threes to make the score 41-29. Runner continued to keep her team in the game with another three and a layup to bring it back within 11 with 3:06 to go before SIUE ended the period with a 55-41 advantage.

The Purple Aces mounted their fourth quarter comeback immediately, with Elle Snyder (Latrobe, Pa./Greater Latrobe) getting a steal on the opening possession and Luebbers Palmer capitalizing with a three, opening a three-point barrage. On the next possession, Huber knocked down a triple, while Lubbers Palmer drilled another on the next trip down the floor to make it 57-50 with 7:46 remaining.

Huber cashed in another three-ball to make it a four-point game before Runner stuck a pull-up jumper with 5:59 remaining, cutting SIUE’s lead to just two. However, the Cougars responded with a run of their own, scoring on three-straight possessions to bring their lead back up to 10.

Evansville continued to battle in the final minutes of action, with two more threes from Huber, a triple by Savic, and a layup by Lubbers Palmer making it 69-66 with 31 seconds remaining. Needing to make their free throws to secure the win, the Cougars did just that, knocking down all six shots from the charity stripe in the final 30 seconds to escape with the win.

Evansville shot a season-best 47.2% from the field, including a blistering 53.3% mark from three-point range. The Aces’ 28-point fourth quarter serves as their highest-scoring quarter of the season.

The Aces return to Meeks Family Fieldhouse on Sunday, hosting Northern Illinois. Tip-off is set for 3 PM.

EVANSVILLE, Ind. –  After six UE women’s soccer student-athletes were named to the MVC Scholar-Athlete Team, five women’s soccer student-athletes have been named to the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District Team for their work on the field and in the classroom, the organization announced on Tuesday.

Lindley Amick (Las Vegas, Nev./Faith Lutheran) earns a spot on the Academic All-District Team after playing all 1,440 minutes this season as an anchor of the Purple Aces’ defense. The sophomore owns a 4.00 GPA as a Sports Communication major at UE.

Fellow sophomore Emmy Brenner (Arlington, Tenn./St. Benedict at Auburndale) receives All-District Team recognition following a season that saw her make 14 starts and play 1,182 minutes as a midfielder and defender while adding a goal. Brenner owns a 3.739 GPA as a Biology major.

Second Team All-MVC selection Taylor Johnson (Evansville, Ind./Reitz) receives Academic All-District Team laurels after a standout junior campaign and has been selected as a finalist for Academic All-American, advancing to the national ballet to be voted on by CSC members. This season, Johnson scored three goals while tallying three assists, finishing second on the team with nine points. Johnson boasts a 4.00 GPA while majoring in Chemistry.

Third Team All-MVC pick Allie Lammers (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame) earns All-District recognition following a breakout sophomore campaign as the Aces’ primary goalkeeper and has been selected as a finalist for Academic All-American, alongside Johnson. Playing in 13 matches with 11 starts, Lammers posted a 6-4-1 record and recorded five shutouts with a 1.00 goals against average and .793 save percentage. Lammers owns a 3.762 GPA as a Marketing major.

Senior Kathryn Tyler (Dallas, Texas/Liberty Christian) is recognizied with Academic All-District honors after a career year that saw her post career-highs across the board. Playing in 15 matches with 11 starts, Tyler played 913 minutes on the season while adding a goal in her final season of collegiate soccer. Tyler carries a 3.935 GPA with a major in Psychology.