WEDNESDAY'S SCORES
Southern Indiana 71, @Bellarmine 69
@Southeast Missouri 93, Crowley’s Ridge 38
Howard 88,
Tennessee State 84 (OT) (Atlanta, Ga.)
Green Bay 87,
@Western Illinois 73
SOUTHERN INDIANA 71, BELLARMINE 69
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - University of Southern Indiana junior guard Jack Campion hit the game-winner with 1.4 seconds on the clock to give the Screaming Eagles a 71-69 victory at Bellarmine University Wednesday evening at Knights Hall in Louisville, Kentucky. The Screaming Eagles are 1-3 to start the year, while the Knights go to 0-3 in 2024-25.
With the game tied, 69-69, Campion, who had five points, took the ball on the left wing and drove into the top of the key to hit the game-winning pull-up jumper to give USI its first win of the season.
The game started with USI spotting Bellarmine a 6-0 lead, but got the offense rolling to tie the game, 8-8, and take the lead, 10-8, on a pair of free throws by sophomore forward Stephen Olowoniyi. The Eagles would expand the lead to 18-12 when junior guard Jayland Randall hit a running lay-up with 11:46 remaining in the half.
After USI posted its largest lead of the opening half, 21-14, the Knights rallied and got the final jumpers of the half to take a 31-30 advantage into the break.
The second half began with a Bellarmine offensive surge to take a 50-35 lead on a 19-4 run. The Knights would run the margin to 19 points, 56-37, with 10:09 to play in the contest.
USI started the comeback with a 17-2 run, cutting the deficit to 58-54 with 5:59 remaining. The Eagles were six-of-seven from the field, including a pair of three-pointers and three-of-four from the stripe during the second-half explosion. Randall led the way with five points, while Olowoniyi and junior guard Damoni Harrison added four points each during the run.
The Eagles continued to close the gap until Randall knotted the score at 69-69 with 47 seconds left on the clock. USI would hold defensively and set the stage for Campion with 15.6 seconds left.
For the game, Randall led three Eagles in double-digits with 21 points on eight-of-15 from the field, including two from downtown, and three of three from the line. Olowoniyi and Harrison followed with 14 points and 10 points, respectively.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 93, CROWLEY'S RIDGE 38
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - – Damarion Walkup scored a game-high 23 points and Teddy Washington, Jr. and BJ Ward each turned in a double-double to lead Southeast Missouri (1-2) to a dominating 93-38 win over Crowley's Ridge College Wednesday.
Washington, Jr. and Ward each posted the first double-double of their careers with Washington, Jr. going for 18 points and 10 rebounds and Ward collecting 11 points and 10 boards.
It didn't take long for SEMO to put the game out of reach.
The Redhawks limited CRC to only six field goals and 17 points in the opening stanza en route to their commanding 47-17 halftime advantage.
At one time, the Pioneers missed 12-straight shots and didn't score for over six minutes.
Meanwhile, SEMO opened the game with a 26-5 run and never turned back.
Washington, Jr. and TJ Biel paved the way with 11 and 10 points, respectively, in the game's opening stanza.
Washington, Jr.'s transition layup jumpstarted the Redhawks less than a minute into the contest and BJ Ward's pullup jumper later gave SEMO its first double-digit lead at 16-5 with 14:42 left in the first half.
With less than 10 minutes remaining, Washington, Jr. buried a 3-pointer to widen SEMO's lead to 26-5.
The Redhawks went ahead by 30 on Elliot Lowndes' tip-in and went up by as many as 33 in the final three minutes before heading into the intermission.
SEMO held CRC under 10 points for the first 17:50 of the game and gave up its fewest points in a first half since Chattanooga had 17 on Nov. 17, 2018. The Pioneers shot just 20.7 percent (6-of-29) from the field in the first half, as well.
The Redhawks continued to pour it on in the second half outscoring the Pioneers, 46-27, to finish off their lopsided win.
Walkup shot 8-of-14 from the field and buried four 3-pointers along the way. He scored double figures for the second time off the bench this season.
Washington, Jr. was 8-of-15 from the floor and Ward hit 4-of-8 field goals. Ward's 10 rebounds marked a new career-best.
Biel rounded out SEMO's four players in double figures with 10 points.
As a team, SEMO drained 11 three-pointers finishing with more than 10 threes in a game for the second-straight contest. The Redhawks shot 48.7 percent (37-of-76) from the field overall and outrebounded CRC by a count of 50-24.
The Redhawks improved to 25-9 in home-openers since joining the NCAA Division I ranks in 1991-92 and won their 38th-straight game over a non-Division I opponent.
HOWARD 88, TENNESSEE STATE 84 (OT)
ATLANTA - The Tennessee State men's basketball team rallied from an early deficit and forced overtime, but fell to Howard, 88-84, at the HBCU All Stars Challenge hosted by Georgia State on Wednesday.
The Tigers (1-3) had three players score in double figures, led by Brandon Weston, who put together a double-double with 26 points and 11 rebounds. Justus Jackson added 22 points and Aaron Nkrumah helped out with 12 points and three steals.
Tennessee State out-rebounded Howard 39-30 in Wednesday's game, paced by Weston's 11 boards. The Tigers also collected 13 offensive rebounds and scored 15 second chance points.
The Tennessee State defense was a problem in Wednesday's game, forcing 14 Howard turnovers while committing 12. Those takeaways turned into 18 points on the other end of the floor. Nkrumah's three steals led the way individually for the Tigers.
After falling behind 35-28, Tennessee State went on an 8-0 run with 3:32 left in the first half, culminating in a three from Jackson, to take a 36-35 lead. The Tigers then surrendered that lead and entered halftime down 42-41.
Howard kept widening its lead after intermission, constructing a 75-68 advantage before Tennessee State went on a 7-0 run to even the score at 75 all with 10 seconds to go in the contest, Neither team was able to finish the game in regulation and the contest headed to overtime tied at 75-75.
Howard then edged ahead in overtime, leaving Tennessee State behind 88-84 at the final buzzer.
GREEN BAY 87, WESTERN ILLINOIS 73
MACOMB, Ill. - The WIU Men's Basketball team fell in their home opener to Green Bay by a score of 87-73. The Leathernecks started out slow trailing 18-7 early in the first half behind three threes in the first five minutes of the game for the Phoenix. Green Bay was able to build off of that lead later in the half going on a 13-6 run which included three baskets coming in the paint making it 31-16 in favor of Green Bay. In the first half, the Phoenix won the points in the paint battle outscoring the Leathernecks 22-10 in that category. At the break, Green Bay would take a 21 point lead into the locker room by a score of 47-26.
Despite trailing early, WIU showed resilience in the second half, outscoring Green Bay 47-40. Ryan Myers scored 26 points and was instrumental in the second-half surge, going 5-of-6 from three-point range. Sean Smith supported the effort with 21 points and pulled down four rebounds in 36 minutes. Tay Knox was a force on the boards, securing 12 rebounds, which helped Western Illinois out-rebound Green Bay 40-35. The Leathernecks offensive rebounding also created second-chance opportunities, leading to 16 points. WIU struggled from the free throw line as a team shooting under 40% (7-18) from the line. The Leatherneck defense was able to force 8 turnovers which led to nine points, all of them coming in the second half.