EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Women's Basketball continues its road trek in Kentucky, stopping at Murray State University Tuesday. The two sides will play an Education Day matinee starting at 11 a.m. from the CFSB Center in Murray, Kentucky.
 
Tuesday's game can be seen on ESPN+ and heard on The Spin 95.7 FM.
 
Southern Indiana (1-1) will play its second game in five days in Kentucky when the Screaming Eagles face the Racers. USI is coming off its road opener at No. 17 University of Louisville last Friday. The Cardinals bested the Eagles 75-51 in the contest, USI's first game at the Division I level against a top-25 opponent and first against an Atlantic Coast Conference school.
 
Against the Cardinals, USI trailed by one, 22-21, at the end of the first quarter and outscored Louisville in the fourth quarter, 15-13. A significant difference in the game came in the second period when Louisville posted 21 points and held the Eagles to only four points. However, Southern Indiana's defense also forced Louisville into 19 turnovers. Plus, there were only four offensive fouls in the game, and all four were charges taken by the Eagles' defense. Southern Indiana was led in scoring for the second consecutive game outing by junior guard Ali Saunders, who matched a game-high 15 points. Graduate forward Meredith Raley added 10 points.
 
Through two games to start the 2024-25 season, Saunders tops the squad at 16.5 points per game and nine assists. Saunders led the Eagles by playing 65 of 80 possible minutes in last week's two games. The junior also contributed on the defensive end with nine steals. Raley finished week one behind Saunders in scoring with 13.5 points per game.
 
Murray State is off to a 1-0 start after going over the century mark with a 104-60 home victory last Thursday against Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. The Racers did just that against the Cougars – race. Murray State took 77 shot attempts and knocked down 38 for nearly 50 percent in the game, including 14 made three-pointers. Murray State gained extra possessions by forcing SIUE into 27 turnovers, which led to 27 points off turnovers and 24 fast-break points for the Racers. The Racers scored 30-plus in two quarters. Murray State had five players score 10 or more, including graduate forward Katelyn Young with a double-double of 23 points and 10 rebounds. Senior combo guard Ava Learn tallied 21 points.
 
Last season, Murray State ranked top five in the nation at 84.5 points per game and among the top in possessions per game. Young was an All-MVC First Team selection after leading the team with 19.5 points and 7.9 rebounds per game.
 
Head to head, Murray State leads the all-time series against Southern Indiana, 5-1. The Racers ended up on the positive end in last season's matchup at USI, 93-73. For Southern Indiana, graduate forward Madi Webb had 14 points and senior guard Vanessa Shafford registered a double-double of 11 points and 10 boards. Murray State also had the upper hand in USI's last visit to the CFSB Center in 2022, 77-59. Raley had a team-high 15 points for the Screaming Eagles in that contest.
 
Following Tuesday's game, Southern Indiana returns to Liberty Arena, home of the Screaming Eagles, for three consecutive home games. The Screaming Eagles host a pair this coming weekend against Indiana University Southeast Friday at 6 p.m. and Saint Louis Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets are on sale now at USIScreamingEagles.com.