EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men's Basketball lost an overtime battle with Eastern Illinois University, 59-51, Thursday evening at Liberty Arena. The Screaming Eagles go to 4-14 overall and 1-7 in the OVC, while the Panthers are 8-11, 4-4 OVC.
 
USI senior guard Ismail Habib hit a three-pointer and junior forward Tolu Samuels posted a layup to get the Screaming Eagles a 5-0 lead to start the game. The Eagles would extend the lead to seven, 11-4, with 12:26 left in the half.  
 
After hitting an offensive drought for five minutes, USI junior guard Amaree Brown added four free throws on back-to-back trips to push the lead to eight, 15-7. The Eagles would go on to extend the margin to 10 points, 24-14, on a driving layup by senior forward Ola Ajiboye.
 
The Panther, however, would chip away at the USI lead and close to within three at the intermission, 27-24.
 
EIU would start the second half by knotting the score 29-29 in the first three minutes of the second half. USI would re-extend the margin to five points twice before the Panthers muscled their way back into a tie, 39-39, with 10:20 left.
 
After USI regained the advantage, 41-39, on a driving layup by Habib, EIU scored five unanswered to take its first lead of the game, 44-41. Senior guard Steven Clay put the Eagles back into a tie, 44-44, on a three-pointer, while Samuels gave the Eagles back the lead, 46-44, on a dunk with 4:11 to play.
 
The Panthers would outscore the Eagles in the final four minutes, 6-4, and force overtime. USI had the ball with 13 seconds to play but was not able to convert before the final buzzer in regulation.
 
In overtime, USI got the initial lead, 51-50, on a free throw by Brown before EIU took command to win the overtime 9-1 and the game, 59-51.
 
Brown and Habib led the Eagles in scoring with 17 points and 12 points, respectively. Samuels recorded his seventh double-digit game on the boards with a game-high 11 rebounds.
 
Next Up For USI:
USI finishes the first half of the four-game homestand Friday at 7:30 p.m. when Western Illinois comes to Liberty Arena. Western Illinois saw its record go to 4-16 overall and 0-9 in the OVC after falling 71-66 at Morehead State tonight.
 
The USI-WIU game was moved from Saturday to Friday due to the forecast of a winter weather storm this weekend.
 
The Hoops for the Troops/Military Appreciation pregame and festivities, which were scheduled for Saturday, have been canceled. The veteran ticket promotion (limit five per person) is still available for the doubleheader with proof of military service.
 
USI trails the all-time series with WIU, 6-2, after the squads split the series last season. The Screaming Eagles took the opening game at Liberty Arena, 78-66, but lost the meeting in Macomb, Illinois, 87-62.