Game Notes

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Looking for its first win at SIU Arena since the 2001 season, the University of Evansville men’s basketball team will face Southern Illinois in Carbondale on Wednesday evening at 7 p.m.
 
Overtime has been good to the Aces and it happened once again on Sunday as UE topped Drake by a final of 84-78 at the Ford Center.  Down by nine at the half, UE opened the second frame up on a 7-0 run while Colt Ryan hit the game-tying three with 30 seconds remaining.  It marked the end of a three-game slide against the Bulldogs while improving Evansville’s overall record at home to 12-2 and 7-0 in MVC games.
 
Since coming to the University of Evansville in 2009, Colt Ryan has produced numerous special moments and that continued on Sunday against Drake as he reached 2,000 points in his career with a season-high 33-point outing.  He is just the 14th player in Missouri Valley Conference history and the third to do so for Evansville.
 
Ryan’s tally currently stands at 2,027 placing him third on the UE list, just 26 points away from passing Marcus Wilson for 2nd on the list; his tally in MVC history is 13th overall.  Against Drake, Ryan surpassed the 2,000-point mark in style, recording a season-high 33 points; in the 14 games since facing Butler, he has posted an average of 22.9 points per game after struggling to begin the year as he averaged 12.4 points in the first 11 contests.
 
Egidijus Mockevicius has grown his game by leaps and bounds since the beginning of the season; averaging 4.7 rebounds per game on the season, the freshman has kicked it into high gear over the last six games, averaging 7.6 per contest, including a career-high of 13 against UNI; over that span, Mockevicius has also hauled in 3.4 offensive rebounds per outing.
 
Evansville is one of the most unselfish teams out there; led by Troy Taylor’s four assists, the Aces rank 25th in the nation, averaging 15.8 per game.  Sunday’s contest against Drake saw UE players looking to find open teammates first; UE recorded 22 assists on 26 baskets, upping their assisted basket percentage to 64%, 11th overall in D1.  Colt Ryan has also averaged 4 assists per game and ranks sixth in the league with his total; he is the only player in the MVC to rank in the top six for points (2nd with 18.8), assists and steals (5th w/1.7).
 
Southern Illinois enters Wednesday’s game with a 9-15 record while going 2-11 in the MVC; the Salukis picked up a huge win last week, taking down nationally-ranked Wichita State at SIU Arena by a final of 64-62.  The Salukis do a solid job of taking care of the ball, averaging just 12 turnovers per game, 69th in the country; they also rank near the top in turnovers forced, as their opponents average 15.1 per game, 55th overall.  Their 8.1 steals per games ranks second in the MVC.  Desmar Jackson tops the SIU scorers with 15.9 points per game while Jeff Early averages 11.5 points and a team-high 7.4 boards.
 
When SIU and UE met on January 5, the Aces finished with their third home win in a row of the Salukis as they took an 85-68 win.  Colt Ryan scored a then-season high of 26 points as he hit eight out of 13 shots and was 7-7 from the line; Jeff Early registered a double-double for SIU with 18 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.  Up by six at the half, the Aces roared out in the second frame, shooting 61.5% to pull away for the win.  Three-point shooting played a large role as UE finished at 9-of-18 while Southern Illinois was 2-11, 18.2%.
 
After its annual trek to Carbondale, UE will be back home for a pair of contests, beginning at 2 p.m. Saturday against No. 23 Creighton.  Fans are encouraged to wear their purple as the Aces look to set a season attendance high versus the Bluejays!