SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Freshman Chuck Bailey III scored a career-high 27 points in Wednesday's Missouri Valley Conference opener as the University of Evansville men's basketball team dropped a 90-78 decision at JQH Arena.

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Box Score

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Bailey recorded 22 of his 27 points in the second half while helping the Purple Aces stage a late comeback.  Ben Humrichous scored 14 points while Kenny Strawbridge Jr. finished the evening with nine.  Yacine Toumi led the way with 8 rebounds while Tanner Cuff had an excellent all-around performance with 8 assists, 7 points and 7 boards.
 
"Missouri State had a good game plan; they came right out and punched us in the mouth," UE head coach David Ragland said.  "We responded the right way and never gave up tonight.  This league is just so physical and it was a good experience for our guys to get a taste of that."
 
Cam Haffner opened the game with a 3-pointer, but Missouri State hit their first of seven first-half triples on the other end to tie the game.  UE took a 5-3 lead on an Antonio Thomas basket before going up 7-5 on a Kenny Strawbridge Jr. jumper at the 17:49 mark.
 
Missouri State responded with a 7-0 run to take a 12-7 edge before Ben Humrichous knocked down an outside shot to make it a one-possession game.  On the strength of five offensive rebounds in the opening five minutes, MSU pushed its lead to 19-12.  Evansville stepped up its defense, holding the Bears scoreless for a 4-minute stretch as they forced five missed shots and a turnover.  Chuck Bailey III connected on a triple while Joshua Hughes added his first basket to make it a 19-17 game at the midway point of the half.
 
After the Bears wrestled away a 27-21 advantage, Tanner Cuff took matters into his own hands.  Scoring five in a row, Cuff got his squad within one point with 6:33 remaining in the period.  MSU quickly responded, embarking on a 16-2 run to take their largest lead of 44-28 in the final minute.  Strawbridge hit a jumper in the final Aces' possession to make it a 44-30 contest at the break.
 
In the opening moments of the second half, SMS pushed its lead to 18 points, but UE kept up the pressure.  Gage Bobe connected from long range while Bailey added a field goal to cut the deficit to 50-36 with 15:38 showing on the clock.  The Bears countered with an 11-2 rally to go up 61-38 inside of the 12-minute mark.  Evansville continued to show its fight as Bailey registered 22 of his 27 points in the final half to get the Aces back within 10 points.
 
Unfortunately, the comeback fell just short as UE fell by a final of 90-78. The defense for the Aces stepped up in the second half, forcing 10 turnovers as the worked to overcome the deficit. 
 
UE returns home on Saturday to face Northern Iowa at 1 p.m.