EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Women's Basketball returns home to Screaming Eagles Arena Thursday and Saturday when the Screaming Eagles host Tennessee State University and Tennessee Tech University in Ohio Valley Conference action.
Game time on both days is 5 p.m. Both matchups can be seen live with a subscription to ESPN+ and heard on 95.7 FM The Spin (
http://957thespin.com). Saturday's game against Tennessee Tech can also be heard on 97.7FM WREF.
Thursday's USI-TSU game is Fan Appreciation Night at Screaming Eagles Arena. The first 500 fans get a voucher for a free hot dog and the first 300 fans through the door get a USI foam #1 finger.
Southern Indiana (7-5, 2-0 OVC) swept its opening weekend of the OVC season, picking up two road wins at Southeast Missouri State University and Lindenwood University. After notching a convincing 75-37 win at Southeast Missouri last Friday, USI completed the weekend sweep with a 71-68 victory at Lindenwood on Sunday. The win against the Lions was the Eagles' third consecutive win, matching a season-best winning streak, and was USI's fourth win in the last five contests. Plus, it gave USI its first 2-0 start in conference play since the 2021-22 season in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.
Sunday's matchup against Lindenwood was virtually even throughout with nearly identical stat lines for both teams. Most of the game was within one or two possessions, and the two sides flirted with field goal percentages around 50 percent. The Screaming Eagles claimed the biggest lead of the game of seven points. Southern Indiana captured the win after late free throws and two missed looks before the buzzer by Lindenwood.
Four Screaming Eagles scored in double digits at Lindenwood with senior forward
Meredith Raley (Haubstadt, Indiana) leading the way with 21 points, one off her season high. Junior guard
Vanessa Shafford (Linton, Indiana) tallied 17 points, senior forward
Madi Webb (Bedford, Indiana) chipped in 12 points, and sophomore guard
Ali Saunders (Depauw, Indiana) had a season-high 10 points.
Shafford has scored 10-plus in the Eagles' last 10 games, matching her best such streak from last season. In the 10-game stretch, Shafford is averaging 15.6 points per outing on 49.6 percent shooting overall and 40 percent from long range.
Raley has also been on a roll lately, scoring 10 or more in the last three games and four of the last five, including two 20-point outings. In the last three games, Raley is averaging a team-best 18 points and 7.7 rebounds per game while shooting a scorching 63 percent from the floor. Before the 21 points last Sunday at Lindenwood, Raley preceded that performance with a double-double of 11 points and 13 rebounds at Southeast Missouri last Friday and a season-high 22 points against Brescia University (KY) on December 22.
Freshman forward
Chloe Gannon (Manchester, Tennessee) had her streak of scoring exactly 13 points in consecutive contests snapped last Sunday at Lindenwood. Before the meeting against the Lions, Gannon scored exactly 13 points in three straight games between December 17 and December 29. The career-high 13 points for Gannon are the most by a USI freshman since Shafford had 15 points against Rockhurst University in February 2022. The three-game stretch of 13 points was also the first time a USI player scored the same exact total of 10 or more points in three straight games since Ariel Barnes did so as a junior during the 2012-13 season. Barnes just so happened to also score 13 points in three consecutive games between January 31 and February 7 in 2013.
On the season, Shafford paces USI at 14.3 points per game with Raley second at 11.6 points. Both are shooting above 45 percent from the field, placing both among OVC leaders. As a team, USI averages 68.7 points on 42.9 percent shooting, which is second-best in the conference. Additionally, the Eagles are third in the conference with 38.3 rebounds per game.
Tennessee State visits USI with a 4-8 overall record and a 1-1 mark in OVC play. Following a three-game skid in December, the Tigers have won two of the last three games. Tennessee State split its two opening OVC matchups last week, falling 75-69 against the University of Tennessee at Martin last Thursday before an 83-78 victory against the University of Arkansas at Little Rock last Saturday. The Tigers average 56.9 points per game on 36.8 percent shooting and are led in scoring by senior guard Sanaa' St. Andre and junior guard Saniah Parker with 11.6 and 10 points per contest, respectively.
Tennessee Tech is 5-8 this season and dropped both of its first two OVC games last week, which snapped a three-game winning streak for the Golden Eagles heading into conference action. The Golden Eagles were edged out, 59-57, against Little Rock and fell 67-58 against UT Martin last week. Tennessee Tech has registered 66.7 points per outing on 40.6 percent shooting. The reigning OVC Tournament champions are led in scoring by graduate guard Maaliya Owens at 15.3 points per game. Owens was an All-OVC First Team selection last season and the OVC Preseason Player of the Year before the 2023-24 campaign.
USI and Tennessee State halved their first all-time meetings last season, splitting road wins. The Tigers won 59- 55 inside Screaming Eagles Arena last year before USI concluded the regular season with a 67-61 win in Nashville, Tennessee. Raley led USI with 23 points against the Tigers at home last season, while Shafford and senior guard
Lexie Green (Indianapolis, Indiana) tallied 17 and 13 points, respectively, in the road victory.
Tennessee Tech took both first-time matchups against Southern Indiana last season, capturing a 79-59 win in Cookeville, Tennessee, and a 78-57 win inside Screaming Eagles Arena. Raley had a dozen points at Tennessee Tech and Shafford posted a double-double of 21 points and 11 boards in the home game against the Golden Eagles last season.
Tickets for the TSU and TTU games are on sale and can be purchased by visiting the
USI Ticket Office online. For more information, call the USI Ticket Office at 812-465-1189.
