EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Following a pair of exhibition games, it is time for the real thing as the University of Evansville men's basketball team opens up the 2021-22 regular season on Tuesday against the University of Cincinnati. Set for a 6 p.m. CT tip, ESPN+ will have the coverage from Fifth Third Arena.
Setting the Scene
- Four starters highlight an experienced group that heads into the 2021-22 season with Evan Kuhlman, Noah Frederking, Jawaun Newton and Shamar Givance back in the lineup
- The lone starter to graduate as Jax Levitch, who started last season for UE as a graduate transfer
- Six newcomers join the team including four freshmen, a sophomore and a junior
- Only a year removed from an 0-18 mark in the Missouri Valley Conference, the Purple Aces won seven league games a season ago...UE is just the second team in MVC history to follow a winless conference season with seven victories
- Southern Illinois was 0-16 in 1980-81 but rebounded to go 7-9 a year later
- The 7-game improvement for UE is the best that the conference has seen since Loyola went from eight league wins in 2016-17 to 15 a season later
- Evansville was the first team to jump from 10th in the MVC standings to a top five seed since Drake went from 10th in 2017 to 4th place in 2018
Last Time Out
- Thursday's exhibition finale saw the Purple Aces take a 74-64 win over Kentucky Wesleyan at the Ford Center
- Shamar Givance led the way with 16 points while hitting 9 of his 10 free throws
- Blaise Beauchamp scored 15 while Evan Kuhlman had 12 points and a game-high 8 rebounds
- The Aces finished the game shooting 46.9% from the field while going 12-of-24 from outside
Season Openers
- Tuesday will tip off the 103rd season of Aces basketball
- In 102 previous season openers, the Aces are 67-35
- UE is in search of its first season-opening road win since a 63-51 win over Western Michigan in 1994
- Since then, the Aces have opened the season on the road just five times, dropping each contest
- This will mark the first time UE has opened the season against a school from Ohio since Nov. 17, 2001 - an 87-64 home win over Youngstown State
- The last time UE opened its season on the road in Ohio came against Miami University on 11/24/90 - a 93-82 Aces victory
New Guys Chipping In
- Exhibition games provide the opportunity to try out multiple different lineups while newcomers are able to work their way onto the floor
- Antoine Smith Jr. was in the starting lineup against Mount St. Joseph and finished with 13 points and 3 rebounds in 26 minutes of action before adding 8 points and 5 boards against Kentucky Wesleyan
- While technically not a newcomer as he played two games last season, Emmette Page was 5-of-6 from the field on his way to 14 points in the preseason opener...he led the team with three steals while adding a rebound and an assist
- Blaise Beauchamp was a perfect 4-for-4 from the line on his way to a 9-point game against MSJ before registering 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting against KWC
Scouting the Opponent
- Cincinnati returns three starters and seven letterwinners from last year's team who was 12-11 overall while going 8-6 in American Athletic Conference action, finishing in 5th
- Their top returning scorer is Jeremiah Davenport, who finished the season averaging 11.7 points per game, second on the team
- Davenport was tied for second on the team with 5.0 rebounds per contest
- Mika Adams-Woods returns with his 8.6 PPG average and was one of the top free throw shooters, hitting 87.3% of his attempts
- UC is led by Wes Miller, who is in his first season at the helm of the program following a decade at UNC Greensboro
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