EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Less than 48 hours after defeating #1 Kentucky, the University of Evansville men's basketball team is back on the floor, welcoming IU Kokomo to the Ford Center on Thursday evening at 6 p.m. ESPN3 will have the broadcast.
Setting the Scene
- The Purple Aces look to improve to 3-0 as they take on the IU Kokomo Cougars for the first time
- Evansville is coming off of the biggest win in the program's Division I history, defeating top-ranked Kentucky on Tuesday evening at Rupp Arena
- Despite being a 25-point underdog, the Aces led the Wildcats for 29:34 of the 40 minutes while trailing for just under six minutes
- K.J. Riley led everyone with 18 points as he was 2-2 from outside and 8-8 from the free throw line
- For the second game in a row, Sam Cunliffe recorded 17 points; he drained six buckets but his most important points came in the final seconds as his two free throws put the finishing touches on the 67-64 win
Last Time Out
- One of the biggest days in program history saw the Purple Aces take down #1 Kentucky by a 67-64 final on Tuesday night
- Evansville held the lead for nearly 75% of the game; the Aces held a 34-30 lead at the half and went up by as many as eight points in the game; UK never led by more than three
- Senior K.J. Riley led by example, pouring in a game-high 18 points; he was 2-2 from outside and 8-8 from the line
- Sam Cunliffe posted another 17-point outing and hit the two biggest free throws of the game with six seconds left
Leftovers from Kentucky
- In his first trip to the arena he called home as a player, Aces head coach Walter McCarty led his UE squad to the 3-point win over the Wildcats
- In the second half of the contest, the Aces were a perfect 6-for-6 from the charity stripe; for the game, UE was 12/13 from the line
- Evansville's defense held the Wildcats to just 37% shooting; last season - just one team fared better - that came on March 2, 2019 when #7 Tennessee held Kentucky to 31.8%
- K.J. Riley and Sam Cunliffe have both posted double figures in both contests; they are a combined 17-for-19 from the line on the season
- UE attacked the offensive glass, hauling in 11 offensive rebounds while holding UK to just eight; this season - 24.6% of the Aces rebounds have come on the offensive side, last year that number stood at 20%
Scouting the Opponent
- IU Kokomo stands at 6-1 overall, but have only played five true games; the additional two wins come from games scheduled later in the season against Cincinnati Christian that were forfeited
- Trequan Spivey is the leading scorer for the Cougars, averaging 18.8 points per game; he is a solid shooter, checking in at 53.3% while playing over 36 minutes per game
- Allante Harper averages 12.4 points and has hit a team-high 13 triples
- Desean Hampton paces IU Kokomo with 9.6 rebounds per contest
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