Tip set for 1 p.m. inside the Ford Center
 EVANSVILLE, Ind. – In its first home game of the New Year, the University of Evansville men’s basketball team welcomes Murray State to the Ford Center on Saturday afternoon. Tip is set for 1 p.m. CT with ESPN+ and the Purple Aces Radio Network having the coverage.
Last Time Out
– Indiana State scored the first eight points on Wednesday and would take the victory by a final of 87-73
– Trailing by as many as 25 points in the second half, the Purple Aces utilized a 19-2 run to cut the deficit to just eight with two minutes remaining
– Yacine Toumi led all players with 19 points and 10 rebounds while Kenny Strawbridge Jr. scored 15
– Cam Haffner tallied a season-high of 11 points and Antonio Thomas wrapped up the game with 10
Another Double-Double
– Yacine Toumi has been on an absolute roll over the last five games, averaging 15.0 points and 8.6 rebounds
– He has two double-doubles in the last three games, including a 19-point, 10-rebound performance at Indiana State
– Toumi was 9-for-13 from the field against the Sycamores and has converted 22 of his last 33 attempts over the last three games, an astonishing 66.7%
– His current double-figure streak has reached six games with an average of 14.7 PPG over that span; in the five games prior, he posted just 5.4 PPG
– Toumi continues to lead the team with an average of 6.6 boards while his 11.3 points per game is second for the Aces
Big-Time Honor for Coach Rag
– UE head coach David Ragland was the recipient of the Ben Jobe Award Mid-Season Honors on January 3
– The Ben Jobe Award is presented annually to the top minority Division I head coach with the presentation taking place at the Final Four
– Ragland was the mid-season honoree following an impressive start to the season
Season-High
– Cam Haffner put together his top game of the season at Indiana State, registering 11 points while connecting on three of his six attempts from long range
– Increased playing time benefited Haffner, who saw a season-high 29:05 of floor time in Terre Haute
– Prior to the game, Haffner missed 13 triples in a row over a 5-game stretch
– His previous season mark of 10 points came in the road win at SEMO where he shot 4-of-9 from the field and 2-4 from outside
– Haffner has started all 14 games for UE
Scouting the Opponent
– Murray State enters Saturday’s game with a 5-9 record and have picked wins on two of their three MVC contests thus far
– The Racers dealt Bradley its first loss of the year in December and most recently defeated UIC by an 75-83 final on Tuesday
– All five of their wins have come at home
– Five players average double figures with Rob Perry leading the squad with 14.0 points per game
– JaCobi Wood and Brian Moore Jr. averaged 12.7 and 12.2 PPG respectively
– Nick Ellington checks in with 10.3 PPG and a team-high 6.5 boards per contest
