EVANSVILLE, Ind. - University of Southern Indiana Women's Basketball heads on the road for the first time this season when the Screaming Eagles travel to Saint Louis University on Wednesday for a 7 p.m. tipoff.
Wednesday's game can be seen through Billikens All-Access (link accessible through usiscreamingeagles.com) and heard on The Spin 95.7 FM.
The Screaming Eagles (1-1) are coming off a 79-77 loss at home last Friday against Murray State University. A back-and-forth battle between the two sides came down to the wire. After senior guard
Ali Saunders hit a game-tying three with two seconds left, Murray State had just enough time to score a buzzer-beating layup to get the win.
After missing the season opener against Franklin College, Saunders led USI with 23 points against Murray State for the most points she has scored while in a USI uniform. Junior guard
Sophia Loden dropped a career-high 21 points and pulled down a career-best 12 rebounds for her first career double-double.
Loden paced the Screaming Eagles in the first week of the regular season, averaging 16 points and nine rebounds over the first two games. In the season opener against Franklin, Loden had an all-around performance of 11 points, six boards, five assists, and five steals.
Junior forwards
Chloe Gannon and
Amiyah Buchanan also tallied double figures in each of the first two games last week. Gannon notched 17 points against Franklin and 10 against Murray State. Buchanan was consistent, netting 10 points in each contest.
Saint Louis (1-2) concludes a three-game homestand with Wednesday's game against USI. The Billikens dropped their first two games of the season before picking up a 62-58 home win last time out on Sunday against the University of Northern Iowa. Saint Louis came from behind in the fourth quarter to get past the Panthers.
Graduate guard Alexia Nelson led the Billikens with 17 points, while fellow graduate guard Zya Nugent posted a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Nugent and Nelson lead the Billikens in scoring on the season with 17.7 and 13.7 points, respectively.
USI and Saint Louis meet for the ninth time in series history, with the Billikens leading the all-time series, 5-3. The two teams have split home wins since renewing the series in 2023. USI won at home inside Liberty Arena last season, 71-59. Loden and Saunders tallied 12 and 11 points, respectively, in last season's matchup.
Following Wednesday's road game, USI will be back home for the next two games over the next couple of weeks. The Screaming Eagles' next game will be against Indiana University East on Monday, November 17, at 6 p.m. inside Liberty Arena.
