Aces and Golden Eagles to square off at 1 p.m.
 EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Non-conference play resumes on Saturday when the University of Evansville men’s basketball team welcomes Tennessee Tech to the Ford Center for a 1 p.m. contest. ESPN3 and the Purple Aces Radio Network will have the coverage.
Last Time Out
– It was a tale of two halves in Wednesday’s Missouri Valley Conference opener that saw the Purple Aces drop a 54-52 decision against Southern Illinois
– UE trailed by 17 in the first half but rallied to tie the game in the final minute before a last-second shot gave the Salukis the win
– For the second game in a row, Shamar Givance reset his career scoring high, tallying 31 points
Two in a Row
– Three days after scoring what was a career mark of 26 points at Eastern Illinois, Shamar Givance went off for 31 versus SIU
– Givance was 11-for-16 from the field while hitting a pair of triples and 7 free throws
– Averaging 28.5 points in the last two outings, Givance has seen his season scoring average jump to 15.0 PPG, which leads the team and is 8th in the Valley
– The senior continues to pace the squad in assists and steals…his 3.7 assists/game ranks 7th in the MVC while his average of 1.5 steals is tied for third in the league
– He has 4 or more helpers in five of the last seven games including a season-high of 7 against DePauw
– Since opening the season with 7 points at Cincinnati, Givance has averaged 15.9 points while scoring 11 in all but once game since the opener
Checking all the Boxes
– It has been an unbelievable stretch for Jawaun Newton who has averaged 17.2 points and 7.4 rebounds over the last five contests
– He opened the Gulf Coast Showcase with a career-high of 30 points, marking the Aces first such effort since 2019
– It took until his 89th game to record the first double-double of his career, but #2 came just four days later…Newton registered 19 points and 10 boards on Nov. 24 versus Akron and followed that up with 13 points and 12 caroms at EIU
– The 12 caroms was Newton’s top career tally and continues to lead Evansville with 6.1 rebounds per game
Scouting the Opponent
– Tennessee Tech enters Saturday’s match-up with a 2-5 record with wins coming over Oakwood and Lipscomb
– In their last contest, the Golden Eagles dropped an 82-65 decision to Chattanooga
– Leading TTU in scoring is Keishawn Davidson, who has posted 12.0 points per contest
– Jr. Clay has recorded 11.7 PPG and paces Tennessee Tech with a total of 41 assists against just 13 turnovers
– Mamoudou Diarra checks in with 10.6 PPG while averaging a team high 5.4 rebounds per contest
