@#14 Southern Indiana (15-3, 8-3 GLVC): 86
SIU Edwardsville (9-9, 5-7 GLVC): 62

Evansville, IN—The #14-ranked University of Southern Indiana men's basketball team outscored Southern Illinois University Edwardsville by 23 points in the first half and cruised to an 86-62 victory Saturday afternoon at the Physical Activities Center. USI raises its record to 15-3 overall and 8-3 in the GLVC, while SIUE falls to 9-9 overall and 5-7 GLVC.

The Screaming Eagles, who swept their three-game homestand, held the Cougars to 28.6 percent from the field in the first half (8-28) and jumped out to a 41-18 lead by intermission. The Eagles used runs of 16-4 and 17-5 to build three 23 points leads in the first half.

USI had its best contest from the field in nine games, hitting 56.9 percent from the field (33-58), and from long range, hitting 45.5 percent from beyond the three-point arc (10-22).

Eagles' junior guard Cris Brunson (Evansville, Indiana) led the way Saturday afternoon with 24 points just two points shy of a career high. The 24 points also moved Brunson into the top-20 all-time at USI in scoring with 982 points in just two-plus seasons.

Brunson was joined by three other Eagles in double figure scoring. Freshman forward Geoff Van Winkle (Ferdinand, Indiana) followed Brunson with 14 points, including four three-points field goals. Senior forward Billy Harris (Carbondale, Illinois) added 13 points and grabbed a game-high eight rebounds, while senior guard Joe Gordon (Palm Bay, Florida) dropped in 12 points.

The Eagles fly north next week for a pair of conference road games. USI will start the road trip with the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in Kenosha, Wisconsin, Thursday, January 29, and conclude the road swing at Saint Joseph's College in Rensselaer, Indiana, Saturday, January 31.

Following next week's road trip, the Eagles will spend nearly the whole month of February at home and play five of the seven remaining regular season games at the PAC.