 University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball won its fifth-straight and completed a homestand sweep with an 84-67 victory over Quincy University Saturday afternoon at Screaming Eagles Arena. USI goes to 14-4 overall and 6-4 in the GLVC, while Quincy is 10-8, 4-6 GLVC.
After trailing in the opening minutes, the Eagles took control with a 16-5 run and never looked back as they built a 46-27 lead at the break. USI led by as many as 20 points, 44-24, after a three-point bomb by senior guard Joe Laravie with 1:44 on the clock. USI junior guard Mateo Rivera was on fire during the initial 20 minutes, leading the way with 12 points on five-of-six from the field, two-of-three from downtown.
In the second half, the Eagles hit the cruise and never led the lead creep below 14 points prior extending the margin to as many as 26 points, 71-45, with 8:54 to play when senior guard Darnell Butler hit a jumper just outside of the paint. The Hawks would chip away at the margin, narrowing to gap once more to 14 points, 76-62, with 3:39 left before the Eagles closed out the 17-point, 84-67 win.
USI was dominant on the glass in the victory, posting a 54-34 advantage that allowed it win the battle in the paint, 20-10, and in second chance points, 17-5.
Individually, USI senior guard/forward Kobe Caldwell led five Eagles in double-digits with a season-high 18 points. Caldwell was six-of-10 from the field, a red-hot four-of-seven from beyond the arc, and perfect in two attempts from the stripe.
Rivera added three second-half points to finish with 15 points and completed his second career double-double with a season-high 10 rebounds. Junior forward Josh Price completed his sixth double-double performance of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
Laravie and freshman guard Chance Coyle rounded out the double-digit scorers with 11 points each.
USI hits the road for the next four games, beginning Thursday at the University of Missouri-St. Louis for a 7:30 p.m. contest in St. Louis, Missouri. The Tritons, who sit on top of the GLVC standings, saw its record go to 18-2 overall and 9-1 in the GLVC after a 77-63 victory at Lewis University this afternoon in Romeoville, Illinois.
USI leads the all-time series versus UMLS, 38-12, after splitting a pair of games last season. The Tritons took the regular season contest, 73-61, at the Mark Twain Center in St. Louis, while USI bounced back to win a GLVC Tournament first round game, 87-61, in Edwardsville, Illinois.
Caldwell is USI’s top returning scorer versus the Tritons, averaging 13.0 points. He also averaged a team-best 6.5 rebounds per contest.
