EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men's Basketball team opened the 2017-18 regular season campaign with a tough 77-73 loss to Augustana University during the first day of the Small College Basketball Tournament Friday evening at the Ford Center. USI starts the season 0-1, while Augustana begins 2017-18, 1-0. 
 
In the first half, the Eagles struggled early as the Vikings built a 12-point lead, 28-16, with 11:30 left before halftime. USI caught fire in the final 10 minutes, using a 10-2 run to chop the deficit to four points twice, 30-26 and 33-29, before Augustana went into the locker room with a 39-32 advantage.
 
USI junior guard Alex Stein (Evansville, Indiana) had the hot hand in the first stanza with 13 points on five-of-seven from the field, two-of-four from beyond the arc, and one-of-two from the line. The Eagles, as a team shot 46.4 percent from the field in the opening 20 minutes.
 
The second half saw the Eagles fly out of the locker room and surge with a 9-2 run to tie the game, 41-41, with 17:52 to play. The teams would battle back-and-forth before USI took its largest lead of the game at 10:48, 55-50, on a three-point bomb by senior guard Marcellous Washington (Lexington, Kentucky).
 
The Vikings responded with an 8-0 run of their own to recapture the lead, 58-55. The two squad would trade leads until Augustana broke the tenth tie of the game with a 6-0 run to lead 72-66 with 1:17 remaining.
 
Stein and Washington hit buckets to cut the deficit to 74-71, but the Eagles could get no closer in the final 10 seconds as the Viking closed out a 77-73 final. Overall in the contest, there were 10 ties and 13 lead changes.
 
Individually, Stein finished the game with a game-high 26 points on 10-of-19 from the field, two-of-five from downtown, and four-of-five from charity stripe in 38 minutes of action. Washington followed with 21 points on six-of-17, three-of-nine long-range buckets, and a perfect six-of-six from the line, also in 38 minutes on the court.
 
USI, as a squad, out rebounded the Vikings, 37-36, and shot 45 percent from the field (27-60) during the 40 minutes.
 
The Eagles conclude the SCB Hall of Fame Classic tomorrow night when they play long-time rival Kentucky Wesleyan College at 6 p.m. The Panthers started their season in the classic's final game of day one versus Montevallo College at the Ford Center.
 
USI trails the all-time series with KWC, 49-41, after winning four of the last six meetings since 2011-12.