Game Notes - Live Video - Live Stats
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The fifth postseason berth in seven years for the University of Evansville men's basketball team will begin on Wednesday as the Purple Aces will meet IPFW for the first time in program history.
Averaging 19.0 points per game, D.J. Balentine led the Valley in scoring for the second season in a row. He became just the 12th player since 1956 to lead the league in scoring in consecutive seasons joining the likes of Larry Bird and Oscar Robertson. Egidijus Mockevicius also lead the Valley in rebounding once again with 9.8 per game; the last to lead the league in rebounding in consecutive seasons was Jackie Carmichael of Illinois State in 2012 and 2013.
Great seats are still available and cost just $15 for adults and $5 for children. The Carson Center Ticket office will be open through Wednesday afternoon while tickets will be available at the Ford Center leading up to the game. You can also purchase at www.Ticketmaster.com.
Evansville has had the leading scorer and rebounder in the MVC in back-to-back years; the only other time in conference history that one team has had the leading scorer and rebounder in consecutive seasons came in 1978 and 79 and it was one player to do both – Larry Bird.
With one guaranteed game remaining in the 2014-15 season, the Aces stand at 19-12 and are looking for their 20th win. Evansville has won 20 games just twice since the 1993-94 season. In its Division I era, UE has won 20 games on 8 occasions and has done so 19 times in its storied history.
Three postseason tournaments in 2015 will feature use of a 30-second shot clock as the NIT, CBI and CIT will enact the rule to see how it works. The rule is looked at as a potential way to increase offense; last year, DI NCAA teams averaged 67.5 points per game, the least since 1951-52.
On March 6, the Aces faced off against one of the hottest teams in the Missouri Valley Conference - Illinois State. UE led by as many as nine points in the first half before the Redbirds roared back to lead by eight midway through the second half. The Aces came up just short, falling 71-67 after shooting 29.6% in the second half. D.J. Balentine led the Aces with 17 points while Egidijus Mockevicius had 14 and Mislav Brzoja finished the game with 11.
IPFW makes its first trip to Evansville with a 16-14 record and a 9-7 season in the Summit League. The Mastodons came on strong as the season wore down, winning 8 of the final 10 games of the regular season before falling to South Dakota in the first game of the conference tournament. At one point, they won seven in a row from Jan. 24 through Feb. 19. Three players finished the season in double figures for IPFW, led by Steve Forbes; he posted 13.9 points per game along with a team-best 6.1 rebounds. Joe Edwards was next up with 11.9 PPG.
