EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men's Basketball visits Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Thursday for its only matchup in the Ohio Valley Conference this week. Tipoff Thursday at the First Community Arena in Edwardsville, Illinois, is set for 7 p.m.
 
Fans can track your Eagles all season by visiting the schedule on USIScreamingEagles.com for links to follow all of the action on the ESPN+, ESPN 97.7FM (http://listentotheref.com), and 95.7FM The Spin (http://957thespin.com/).
 
USI (5-12, 2-2 OVC) has split the first four conference games, including a split at home last week.  The Eagles opened home OVC action with a 69-67 victory over Tennessee State University, but faltered late against Tennessee Tech University, 73-59, in the homestand finale.
 
Junior guard Jeremiah Hernandez (Chicago, Illinois) led the Eagles in scoring last week with 19.0 points per game, shooting 54.2 percent from the field (13-24) and 83.3 percent from the stripe (10-12). Sophomore guard/forward AJ Smith (Edwardsville, Illinois) followed with 12.5 points per contest, while grabbing a team-best 7.5 rebounds per game.
 
Hernandez leads the team through 17 games with 14.8 points per game, which ranks ninth overall in the OVC. Smith follows with 13.1 points and a team-best 9.3 rebounds per outing, while posting a team-high seven double-doubles.
 
The Cougars of SIUE (8-8, 1-2 OVC) lost its only conference game last week, falling at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, 88-80. SIUE has lost its last two games and three of the last five.  
 
USI leads the all-time series with SIUE, 45-22, but the Cougars had the upper hand last season. SIUE and USI split the season series with each winning on its home floor before the Cougars took the deciding game of 2022-23 by defeating the Eagles in the first round of OVC Championship.
 
Following the trip to SIUE, USI returns to Screaming Eagles Arena to start a three-game homestand next week. The Eagles start the homestand by hosting Little Rock January 18 at 7:30 p.m. and continue the three-game set with Morehead State University January 20 at 3:30 p.m. The homestand concludes January 25 when USI hosts Western Illinois University for the first OVC game between the two programs.
 
Tickets for the homestand are on sale and can be purchased by visiting the USI Ticket Office on-line. For more information, call the USI Ticket Office at 812-465-1189.