The Eagles raced out to a 9-0 run after the tip off behind six opening-minute points by junior guard/forward Kobe Caldwell (Bowling Green, Kentucky). USI would match the 9-point lead at 20-11 before Drury rallied with an 11-0 run of its own to lead 22-20 with 7:36 until halftime.
The Panthers would extend their lead to four points, 28-24, before a quick 6-2 dash by the Eagles knotted the game at 30-30 just before the first half buzzer. Drury got the last bucket with 54 ticks on the clock to take a 33-30 lead into the locker room at the intermission.
USI was limited to just five players in the scoring column during the first 20 minutes with senior guard Alex Stein (Evansville, Indiana) in the lead with eight points. The Eagles, as a team, shot 41.4 percent from the field (12-29) in the first half.
The Eagles rallied to start the second 20 minutes and regained the lead, 37-35, when Caldwell hit a jumper to cap off a 5-0 run. After the Panthers scooted back into the lead, 38-37, USI got its final lead of the game, 39-38, when Stein hit a jumper with 16:50 to play.
Drury rebounded with a 17-7 run to take an 11-point lead, 55-44, to put USI on its heels. The Eagles, however, did not quit and used a 9-0 spurt to climb back to within a bucket at 55-53 at 11:15 to play.
The Panthers kept re-extending their margin to five and six points until 52 seconds left when USI sophomore forward Emmanuel Little  (Indianapolis, Indiana) sank a pair of free throws to pull the Eagles to within one point, 73-72. The one-point deficit would be as close as the Eagles would come as the Panther sealed the 76-72 decision with three free throws in the final 11 seconds.
In the scoring column, Stein finished the game with a team-high 18 points, while Little and Caldwell followed with a 15 points each to round out the USI double-figure scorers. Little also posted a game-high 11 rebounds to round out his seventh double-double of the season.
USI hits the road for the next three games, starting with top-ranked Bellarmine University February 2 in Louisville, Kentucky. The Eagles also visit the University of Indianapolis February 7 and Lewis University February 9 on the road trip. Game coverage information for USI Men’s Basketball can be found on GoUSIEagles.com.
Bellarmine saw it record to 18-0, 9-0 GLVC, after defeating Missouri University of Science & Technology, 91-60, today in Louisville, Kentucky.
USI leads the all-time series with Bellarmine, 50-43, but has lost the last six to the Knights and nine of the last 10 (2014-15 to 2018-19). The last USI win over Bellarmine in Knights Hall was in the 2013-14 season, 68-66, in overtime.
The Knights took the first meeting of the year, 92-80, at the PAC in December. Senior Stein led the Eagles with 25 points, followed by sophomore forward Josh Price (Indianapolis, Indiana) with 22 points.
