16th-ranked University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball opened a five-game homestand with a 20-point win over Lincoln College, 81-61, Sunday afternoon at the Screaming Eagles Arena. USI goes to 6-1 overall, while Lincoln is 5-9 in 2019-20.
USI hung on for a five-point advantage, 40-35, at the end of the first 20 minutes. The Eagles, who generated their offense from the outside by hitting six-of-14 from beyond the arc, had built an advantage of 16-points, 35-19, with 6:08 to play in the first half before the Lynx used a 16-5 run to cut the margin to five at the intermission.
USI senior guard Darnell Butler led the Eagles’ offensive attack early with 12 of the first 17 points on four three-point bombs. Junior forward Emmanuel Little followed by nearly producing a double-double in the first half on eight points and nine rebounds.
The first seven minutes of the second half saw the Eagles push the lead back out to 16 points, 55-39. The margin continued to grow until it reached 20 points with 10:15 to play, 62-42, and again with 7:37 left, 67-47.
The Lynx made one last run at the Eagles, surging with an 8-2 run to cut the margin to 11 points, 69-58, with 5:00 to play. After a quick USI timeout, the Eagles re-established command of the contest by scoring 12 of the final 15 points for the 81-61 final.
Butler and Little finished the second half and the game tied for the game-high with 18 points each. Butler, who scored six in the second half, was six-of-11 from the field, five-of-eight from beyond the arc, and one-of-two from the line, while Little was seven-of-16 from the outside and four-of-five from the stripe.
Little also posted his first double-double of the season with a game-high and season-best 15 rebounds.
Senior guard Joe Laravie rounded out the USI double-digit scorers with 11 points, in addition to dishing a team-high five assists. He was five-of-12 from the field and one-of-one from the line.
USI resumes the five-game homestand Saturday when it hosts King University (TN) for a 3 p.m. tip-off. King, currently, is 7-3 and is slated to play Emmanuel College December 18 before coming to USI.
The Eagles lead the series with King, 3-1, after falling to the Tornado last year, 86-80, in the Physical Activities Center. Little led the Eagles with 24 points and seven rebounds, while guard Alex Stein had 20 points.
