MIDLAND, Mich. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball outlasted Northwood University in overtime, 81-78, to start their road trip Saturday afternoon in Midland, Michigan. USI, which has won three-straight, goes to 5-2, while Northwood is 3-7 this season.
The Screaming Eagles started the game off on the right foot with an early 8-2 lead on an 8-0 run after spotting the Timberwolves the opening bucket. Northwood responded with a 9-2 run of its own to regain the lead, 11-10, near the midway part of the first half.
USI regained command in the final minutes of the first half, matching their largest lead of the half, six points, 27-21, at the break. Sophomore guard Tyler Henry (Brooklyn, New York) led the USI offense in the first 20 minutes by posting 11 points on three-of-five from the field, including two from downtown, and three-of-five from the stripe
In the second half, the Eagles quickly extended the lead to eight points, 32-24, on buckets by freshman guard Elijah Jones (Chicago Heights, Illinois), junior guard Jelani Simmons (Columbus, Ohio) and junior forward Jacob Polakovich (Grand Rapids, Michigan). The Timberwolves, however, were not done and rallied to tie the game, 57-57, with just over four minutes to play in the contest.
Northwood would go on to outscore USI, 49-43, in the second half with Timberwolves getting a three-point field from Arnold Ramelle with no time left on the clock to send the game into overtime.
Senior guard Trevell Cunningham (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) keep the Eagles going offensively in the second half, scoring 17 of his 21 points in the final 20 minutes of regulation. Cunningham was a blistering four-of-five from the field in the second half, eight-of-nine from the stripe.
In overtime, USI’s offensive shifted back to Henry, who scored nine of the Eagles’ 11 extra time points. Henry converted his only field goal, a three pointer, and a perfect six-of-six from the stripe to push USI over the top to get the win.
For the game, Henry posted a USI career and season-high 24 points by adding four points in the second half and nine in the overtime period. He finished the game four-of-10 from the field, three-of-six from downtown, and a clutch 13-of-15 from the line.
Cunningham joined Henry in double-digits with a season-high 21 points. The senior guard finished the game six-of-11 from the field, one-of-two from beyond the arc, and eight-of-nine from the line.
USI lost the battle on the glass, 46-40, but was led by Polakovich, who had a game-high 10 rebounds and reached double-digits on the boards for the fourth time this season.
COMING UP FOR USI:
USI concludes its visit to Michigan Monday when it visits 22nd/24th-ranked Grand Valley State University for a 6 p.m. (CST) contest in Allendale, Michigan. The USI-GVSU match-up is the second of five-straight on the road and the first ranked opponent of the year for the Eagles.
The GVSU Lakers are ranked 22nd in the NABC and 24th in the D2SIDA Top 25 polls after posting an 8-1 mark in November and December, including a win over the GLVC’s UIndy, 77-60. GVSU opened Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference action 2-0 last week with wins over Purdue University Northwest, 81-76, and former GLVC member Parkside University, 80-69.
USI and GVSU have split the two meetings in the history of the programs in men’s basketball. The Eagles took the first meeting, 112-86, in the 2001 Disney Wide World of Sports Classic in Orlando, Florida, while the Lakers defeated USI in the 2007 NCAA II Midwest Regional at the University of Findlay, 90-83.
Following the conclusion of the 2021 calendar, the Eagles re-start GLVC action with trips to McKendree University (January 2), Lewis University (January 4), and Lindenwood University (January 6). The next USI game at Screaming Eagles Arena is January 8 when they host Southwest Baptist University.
