EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men's Basketball could not hold on to its first-half momentum and lost to Southeast Missouri State, 90-65, Saturday afternoon at the Show Me Center in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. The Screaming Eagles go to 5-19 overall and 2-12 in the OVC, while the Redhawks are 15-10, 10-4 OVC.
 
USI connected on five of the first 11 shots and had an early lead, 11-8, before six minutes were gone in the contest. SEMO would rally back to jump in front, 19-14 with an 11-3 run, before a second offensive run by USI to regain the lead, 24-21, when senior guard Cardell Bailey broke a tie with a three-pointer from downtown.
 
The final five minutes of the first half belong to senior guard Ismail Habib, who scored 11 of his team-high 14 first-half points after the 5:30 mark. He also scored the final bucket of the half by driving the length of the court after a three-point play by SEMO with seven seconds left.
 
USI, as a team, also connected on six-of-11 in the final 5:30 to post the halftime advantage, 42-39. The Eagles shot 50 percent from the field during the half (16-32) during the first 20 minutes.
 
Habib was joined in double-digits in the first half by junior guard/forward Amaree Brown, who posted 11 points.
 
The second half started the second half with a reversal of fortune as the Redhawks scored seven-straight points to get into the lead, 46-42, before USI could get two shots at the bucket.
 
After USI knotted the game at 46-46 with 17:45 remaining on a three-pointer by Bailey and 48-48 on a layup by Brown, the Eagles hit an offensive slump for the next 7:20 minutes as the Redhawks built a 19-point lead, 67-48, with 8:59 to play.
 
The final 8:31 of the contest was much tighter as USI tried to get something going, but was outscored, 23-17, as SEMO closed out the 90-65 decision.
 
In the scoring column, Habib added four points in the final eight minutes to lead the Eagles in scoring with 20 points. The 20-point game was the eighth of the year for Habib, who was seven-of-11 from the field, including two from long range, and four-of-four from the stripe.
 
Brown followed with 17 points and a team-best, season-high five assists. Bailey rounded out the double-digit scorers for the Eagles with 10 points.
 
Next Up For USI:
USI returns to Liberty Arena for the final two regular-season home games of 2025-26 next week. The Eagles begin the homestand by hosting Tennessee State Thursday at 8 p.m. due to the game airing live through Gray Media (WFIE-14) as a regional game.
 
The USI-TSU game will be presented by Ascension St. Vincent. Ascension will be promoting heart health with information and free blood pressure screenings.
 
Tennessee State is 16-8 overall and 10-4 in the OVC after trouncing Western Illinois at home this afternoon, 83-56. The Tigers have their last two and five of the last eight games.
 
The series between USI and TSU is tied, 6-6, after the Tigers grabbed the first meeting of the year, 73-67, in Nashville, Tennessee. TSU has grabbed four of the last five from the Eagles over the last three years.
 
The Eagles will celebrate Senior Day in February when they host Tennessee Tech. The game time has been moved to a 4 p.m. tipoff due to the women's basketball being aired on ESPNU. USI also encourages its fans to wear red for a special "Red Out" game.
 
Tennessee Tech saw its record go to 10-15 overall and 5-9 in the OVC after falling at home versus Eastern Illinois, 60-54, at home today. TTU has won three of its last four games after today's action.
 
TTU leads the all-time series with USI, 5-2, after the Screaming Eagles won in Cookeville, Tennessee, in January, 71-54. The teams have split the last four meetings.