EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Coming off a season that saw the University of Evansville men’s basketball team more than triple its win total from a season prior, the Purple Aces are set to open the 2024-25 season on Tuesday at North Texas.  ESPN+ and the Purple Aces Radio Network will have the broadcast of the 7 p.m. CT contest from the Super Pit.

– Tanner Cuff saw action in all 35 games last season and made two starts, but his role is set to grow even more heading into the upcoming campaign
– In his first season with the Purple Aces, Cuff averaged 7.4 points and 4.2 rebounds per game
– He had a strong exhibition tune-up, posting 12 rebounds to go along with four points versus Tiffin
– Cuff was named to the MVC All-Bench Team in March of 2024
– In last season’s home win over UIC, he recorded a career-high 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting
– With seven seconds remaining in overtime against UNI, Cuff knocked down a 3-pointer to give UE a 4-point lead and seal the win
– Cuff had an excellent all-around performance at Missouri State, recording 8 assists, 7 points and 7 boards

Doing it All 
– Tayshawn Comer gave UE fans a preview of his abilities in the exhibition contest versus Tiffin
– He recorded 16 points, 7 assists, 3 steals and 2 rebounds in his first time in an Aces uniform
– The Eastern Kentucky transfer averaged 7.8 points and 2.5 rebounds as a sophomore last season with the Colonels
– He completed the season 9th in the A-Sun with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.6
– Rated a 3-star recruit out of high school, Comer was named to the A-Sun All-Freshman Team in 2023

Staying in the State
– After spending his first two collegiate seasons at Butler, Connor Turnbull remained in the State of Indiana with his transfer to UE
– In the exhibition game, the junior scored 15 points while hauling in 7 boards
– He converted 5 of his 10 field goal attempts and was a perfect 4-for-4 from the line
– The 4-star recruit out of high school was limited to 9 games with the Bulldogs last season but finished with 16 blocks
– As a freshman, he shot 44% from the field and 47% from outside

Scouting the Opposition
– The Mean Green have been one of the top mid-major programs in the nation over the past few seasons, making the NIT in each of the last three seasons while earning a spot in the NCAA Tournament in 2021
– Highlighting the recent success was a 31-7 mark in 2022-23 as the Mean Green were the NIT Champions
– This will be the second meeting between the programs with the first taking place at Roberts Stadium in 1995 (58-54 UE win)
– UNT lost its top six scorers from last season as Rondel Walker is the top returner with 3.8 PPG

Senior led UE to a pair of MVC victories

 LOUIS – Averaging 6.50 kills, University of Evansville senior Giulia Cardona led the Purple Aces to a pair of Missouri Valley Conference victories and picked up her second league Player of the Week honor on Monday.

On top of her kills mark, Cardona hit .357. She added a total of 18 dogs, five blocks, and a pair of service aces.

Cardona opened the week with a 34-kill performance in Friday’s win over Illinois State. She hit an unreal .453 in the performance while recording eight digs and two aces.

Saturday’s win over Bradley saw her post 31 kills and hit an efficient .278. Cardona registered 10 digs in the winning effort.

The weekend saw her add another 65 kills to her career tally. With 2,183 in her career, Cardona is 111 away from breaking the all-time MVC mark.

CHICAGO, Ill. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball battled valiantly for 45 minutes before falling in overtime to DePaul University, 80-78, Monday evening at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois. The Screaming Eagles start the year 0-1, while DePaul begins 2024-25, 1-0d.
 
DePaul started the scoring and built an 11-5 lead early before the Eagles exploded on an 11-0 run to take their first lead of the season 16-11. USI sophomore forward Stephen Olowoniyi led the way during the offensive surge with six of the 11 points, including a spectacular fast-break dunk off a pass from junior guard Sam Kodi.
 
Following USI’s extension of the lead to six, 25-19, on a three-pointer by junior guard Damoni Harrison, the Blue Demons rallied on a 15-3 burst to retake the advantage, 34-28. DePaul would close the half with a bucket to lead 44-40 at the break. Harrison and junior guard Jayland Randall, who had USI’s first bucket of the season, led the Eagles during the first 20 minutes with 13 and 11 points, respectively.
 
DePaul opened the second half by extending its lead to as many as nine points, 61-52, with 11:47 on the clock. The Eagles, however, were not done as they would chip away and close the gap to 68-66 with 3:45 to play in the contest.
 
Olowoniyi would put the Eagles out in front, 72-69, with back-to-back buckets and a free throw with 53 ticks left on the clock. USI would try to hold onto the three-point lead, but DePaul would knot the game at 74-74 with 1.6 seconds on the clock and force overtime.
 
In the extra time, both teams missed on the first four possessions combined before Randall gave the Eagles a quick lead, 76-74. DePaul responded by tying the score, 76-76, and grabbing the lead, 78-76, with 1:27 left. Randall knotted the game at 78-78 with his second bucket of overtime, but the Blue Demons took the lead for good, 80-78, on a pair of free throws with two seconds to play.
 
USI had one more chance, but misfired as the final buzzer sounded, 80-78.
 
In the loss, Olowoniyi led three Eagles in double-digits with 23 points and a team-high nine rebounds. The sophomore forward scored 23 points on 11-of-17 from the field and one-of-one from the stripe.
 
Randall followed with 22 points on a blistering nine-of-11 from the field, three-of-three from long range, and one of two from the stripe. Harrison closed out the double-digit scorers with 17 points on six-of-eight from the field, two-of-three from beyond the arc, and three-of-four from the line.
 
As a team, USI shot 50 percent from the field (31-62) and won the battle of the boards, 36-35.
 
Next Up For USI:
USI opens up the 2024-25 home schedule Thursday when it hosts Bucknell University for a 7 p.m. contest at Liberty Arena.  The Bison started their season with an 85-73 win at the University of Delaware this evening.
 
In the first-ever meeting versus Bucknell in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, USI stumbled, 67-56, on the road last season. Forward Jack Mielke led USI with 14 points, while guard Jordan Tillman followed with 13 in the loss.