#15 Southern Indiana (5-3): 82
@Ferris State (7-2): 93

BIG RAPIDS, Mich.– The 15th-ranked University of Southern Indiana men's basketball team continued to struggle on the road, falling at the hands of Ferris State University in the Lions Club Holiday Classic Monday evening in Big Rapids, Michigan. USI falls to 5-3 overall, 1-3 on the road, while Ferris State goes to 7-2 in 2004-05.

Ferris State used 10 first half turnovers by the Screaming Eagles to establish control of the game and led 41-40 at the intermission. USI enjoyed its largest lead of the game, 18-15, when the Bulldogs used a 7-0 run to take the lead for good at 22-18. Sophomore forward Geoff Van Winkle (Ferdinand, Indiana) and freshman guard Carl Richburg (Mason, Ohio) kept the Eagles in the game with 11 points and eight points, respectively, in the first half.

Hot shooting by Ferris State kept the Eagles from getting on track to start the second half. The Bulldogs hit eight of their first nine shots in the second half to build a 56-48 lead with 16:48 to play in the game.

USI climbed back into the game, cutting the lead to three, 66-63, but that would be as close as the Eagles would get. The Bulldogs kept the pressure on, forcing the Eagles into 12 second turnovers. Ferris State also shot 57.6 percent (19-33) in the second stanza.

Van Winkle would finish the game with a career-best and game-high 25 points to lead the Eagles. Richburg followed Van Winkle with a season-best 12 points, while senior center Randy Holbrook (St. Louis, Missouri) dropped in 11 points and junior forward Chris Thompson (Starke, Florida) added 10 points.

USI senior center Reque Newsome (St. Petersburg, Florida), Van Winkle, and Thompson led the Eagles on the boards with eight rebounds each.

The Screaming Eagles complete action in the Lions Club Holiday Classic by playing Wayne State University Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. (CST). Wayne State raised its record to 5-2 overall after defeating University of Indianapolis in overtime, 74-68.