EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men's Basketball was stunned by Lindenwood University, 67-63, Thursday evening at Screaming Eagles Arena. The Screaming Eagles fall to 8-22 overall and 5-12 in OVC play, while the Lions are 9-21 overall, 3-14 OVC.
 
Despite the loss, USI is still in the hunt for a berth in the OVC post-season tournament. A USI win or a Tennessee Tech University loss on Saturday will put the Eagles into the OVC Tournament. TTU plays at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock in the early game Saturday, while USI hosts Southeast Missouri State University for the final game of the 2023-24 OVC schedule that night.
 
The top eight teams at the end of OVC play advance to the league tournament March 6-9 at the Ford Center in Evansville.
 
USI and Lindenwood traded buckets through the first 12 minutes before a 9-1 run put the Eagles up by six, 18-12. The Lions would battle back to close the gap and tie the score, 20-20 with 5:53 left in the opening half.
 
Sophomore guard Ryan Hall (Kettering, Ohio) quickly gave USI back the lead, 29-20, and control of the game with back-to-back-to-back three-pointers at the 4:20 mark before halftime. The USI run extended to 12-1 with 2:59 to play when Hall hit his fourth-straight three-point bomb to give the Eagles a 32-21 advantage.
 
Hall would add his fifth three-pointer to put USI up, 35-26, but Lindenwood would score the final five points of the half to send the Eagles into halftime with a 35-31 advantage. Hall finished the opening half with a team-high 17 points.
 
To start the second half, USI pushed the margin back to seven points twice (40-33 and 42-35) in the first three minutes. Lindenwood would rally back and cut the USI lead to one, 42-41, with 16:23 to play and would later tie the score, 46-46, with 12:32 left.
 
USI sophomore guard/forward AJ Smith (Edwardsville, Illinois) put the Eagles back in front, 48-46, with a pair of free throws, but Lindenwood responded with a three-pointer at 9:44 and took its first lead since early in the first half, 49-48.
 
After the lead went back-and-forth three times in three minutes, the Eagles moved back into the lead, 54-53, on a pair free throws from sophomore guard Jack Campion (Milton, Wisconsin) as USI went on a 7-2 run to lead 59-55. Lindenwood, however, was not done as it would outscore USI, 12-4, in the final 2:46 to defeat the Eagles for the first time in the series between the programs, 67-63.
 
In the scoring column, Hall led USI with a career-high 22 points after adding five points in the second half. The sophomore guard was eight-of 15 from the field and six-of-10 from beyond the arc. The six three-point field goals made were the most by an Eagle since Jelani Simmons dropped six on Little Rock in February of last year.
 
Smith followed Hall in the scoring column with 16 points and was the only other Eagle to reach double-digits. He was five-of-10 from the field, including a three, and five-of-six from the stripe.
 
Next Up For USI:
USI concludes the 2023-24 regular season with Senior Day versus Southeast Missouri State University Saturday. The USI-SEMO is set for a 7:30 p.m. contest, following Senior Day activities after the women's game.
 
The SEMO Redhawks are 8-22 overall, 3-14 OVC, after losing at Morehead State University, 72-50, tonight on the road. The Redhawks have lost six-straight after tonight's action.
 
USI, which trails the all-time series with the Redhawks, 5-3, lost the opening game of the season series with SEMO in 2023-24, falling in overtime, 93-91, on a last second shot in the extra period. USI junior guard Jeremiah Hernandez (Chicago, Illinois) led the Eagles with a career-high 35 points, while sophomore guard/forward AJ Smith had a double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds.
 
Fans can find all the ways to follow USI Basketball action by visiting USIScreamingEagles.com.