SIU looks to end non-conference season with a win against a struggling USI team.
Meet the Screaming Eagles:
Southern Indiana is in it's 2nd year playing Division 1 Basketball and 4th season overall under head coach Stan Gouard. Last season, USI saw some success in their inaugural D1 season beating SIU and Indiana State at home and starting the season 13-9 overall and 6-3 in the OVC before losing 8 of their last 11.
The portal came for Southern Indiana and hit them hard. The Screaming Eagles are 312th in minutes continuity from last year (19.5%). The big loss was Isaiah Swope who headed North for Indiana State. They also lost Tyler Henry to Louisiana Tech and a few other key players to graduation. USI was picked 9th of 11 in the OVC Preseason Media poll ahead of Lindenwood and Eastern Illinois.
Southern Indiana has 3 wins this year and they're all against non D-1 competition. They did go to Duke and give them a bit of a scare with a halftime lead but ended up losing by 18. Indiana State beat them 98-54 last week in Terre Haute.
It's been as bad as it gets for Southern Indiana on the offensive end this year. The Screaming Eagles are 357th out of 362 D1 teams in adjusted offensive efficiency (91.2). USI is 295th in the country in 3 point % (29.8%), 344th in the country in 2 point % (43.6%), 337th in effective field goal % (44.0%). They're also 344th in the country in turnover % on the offensive end (21.7%) and 304th in the country in steal % on the offensive end (11.3%).
On the defensive end, Southern Indiana is 16th in the country in average possession length playing defense (16 seconds per possession). They're 137th in the country in 3 point % against (32.3%), 77th in the country in 2 point % against (46.8%), and 84th in the country in effective field goal % against (47.4%). One struggle for them on the defensive end has been the lack of creating turnovers. USI is 337th in the country in turnover % (14.0%) and 306th in the country in steal % (7.7%).
The leading scorer for Southern Indiana is 6-4 Junior Jeremiah Hernandez averaging 12.8 points per game. Hernandez attended St. Viator High School in Arlington Heights, IL and chose Kent State over offers that included SIU. Hernandez struggled in his 2 seasons at Kent St and ended up at USI last season where he struggled coming off the bench. This season has seen an increased role for Hernandez and with it some better shooting numbers and increased production overall. Hernandez is 150th in the country in fouls draw per 40 minutes (5.6) and 301st in the country in free throw rate (44.1%) and when he's getting to the line, he's making his free throws (32-41, 78%).
The 2nd leading scorer for the Screaming Eagles and the leader in rebounding is 6-6 Sophomore AJ Smith averaging 11.4 points per game and 9.5 rebounds per game. Smith averaged just 6.2 minutes per game last year in the 17 games he played but is averaging 29.4 minutes per game this season. Smith is 45th in the country in defensive rebounding % (25.4%).
The leader in assists for USI is 5-11 Sophomore Jack Campion averaging 4 assists per game. Campion is another player that's seen improvements with increased playing time and while he's struggled with his shot, he's 7th in the country in assist rate (40.8%) and 282nd in the country in steal % (3.1%).
6-9 Sophomore Kiyron Powell was a 3 star recruit out of Benjamin Bosse High School in Evansville and started his collegiate career at Houston before transferring to USI after redshirting. Powell is 158th in the country in offensive rebounding % (11.4%), 419th in the country in defensive rebounding % (17.8%), and 27th in the country in block % (10.0%).
Other players to watch out for include 6-7 Junior Jack Mielke who has been USI's best shooter so far this season. Mielke is from Downers Grove, IL and is 366th in the country in 3 point % (20-51, 39.2%), 266th in the country in effective field goal % (56.7%), and 424th in the country in true shooting % (57.4%). 5-11 Junior Sam Mervis is an Indiana State transfer in his 2nd year at USI and is 79th in the country in assist rate (30.7%).
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No Division 1 wins for USI heading into Christmas ... ouch. With all due respect to Rodney Watson's USI history and the fact that they kicked Southern's ass last year, this is a really bad opponent that the Salukis need to beat decisively.
Stay healthy, be intentional about cultivating depth heading into Valley play (please no 35+ minutes for XJ or Brown) and wrap up what would be a pretty good overall non-conference performance, especially relative to the modest expectations for this team.
No Division 1 wins for USI heading into Christmas ... ouch. With all due respect to Rodney Watson's USI history and the fact that they kicked Southern's ass last year, this is a really bad opponent that the Salukis need to beat decisively.
Stay healthy, be intentional about cultivating depth heading into Valley play (please no 35+ minutes for XJ or Brown) and wrap up what would be a pretty good overall non-conference performance, especially relative to the modest expectations for this team.
Agree that we should be well ahead of this team, allowing for extended playing time and lineup experimentation. I'd really love to see Ebube and Hensley on the floor at the same time. Heck, why not Ebube, Rupert AND Hensley? Regardless, time to let others play, even if we do have a week off after this game. My concern is that XJ will want to "get his" in order to keep his scoring average up, which I actually understand as it may pay off for him in the future.
I wouldn't consider XJ a "get his" kind of guy. He is an unselfish player. He averages just under 6 assists a game. I think XJ just wants to win. The guy is a winner.No Division 1 wins for USI heading into Christmas ... ouch. With all due respect to Rodney Watson's USI history and the fact that they kicked Southern's ass last year, this is a really bad opponent that the Salukis need to beat decisively.
Stay healthy, be intentional about cultivating depth heading into Valley play (please no 35+ minutes for XJ or Brown) and wrap up what would be a pretty good overall non-conference performance, especially relative to the modest expectations for this team.
Agree that we should be well ahead of this team, allowing for extended playing time and lineup experimentation. I'd really love to see Ebube and Hensley on the floor at the same time. Heck, why not Ebube, Rupert AND Hensley? Regardless, time to let others play, even if we do have a week off after this game. My concern is that XJ will want to "get his" in order to keep his scoring average up, which I actually understand as it may pay off for him in the future.
Speaking of numbers, anyone know why Trent is not listed in the 3 pt% leaders stats? I believe he is still above 50 percent and not showing on espn or cbs sites
while watching X at time this year when he drives the lane he is always looking to dish sometimes almost to unselfish trying to make a great pass instead of the easy passI wouldn't consider XJ a "get his" kind of guy. He is an unselfish player. He averages just under 6 assists a game. I think XJ just wants to win. The guy is a winner.No Division 1 wins for USI heading into Christmas ... ouch. With all due respect to Rodney Watson's USI history and the fact that they kicked Southern's ass last year, this is a really bad opponent that the Salukis need to beat decisively.
Stay healthy, be intentional about cultivating depth heading into Valley play (please no 35+ minutes for XJ or Brown) and wrap up what would be a pretty good overall non-conference performance, especially relative to the modest expectations for this team.
Agree that we should be well ahead of this team, allowing for extended playing time and lineup experimentation. I'd really love to see Ebube and Hensley on the floor at the same time. Heck, why not Ebube, Rupert AND Hensley? Regardless, time to let others play, even if we do have a week off after this game. My concern is that XJ will want to "get his" in order to keep his scoring average up, which I actually understand as it may pay off for him in the future.
SIU is 17.5 point favorites
Ant timetable on when A.J. Ferguson will be playing again?
Ant timetable on when A.J. Ferguson will be playing again?
Sometime soon after Christmas Break is all I know.
Speaking of numbers, anyone know why Trent is not listed in the 3 pt% leaders stats? I believe he is still above 50 percent and not showing on espn or cbs sites
That's weird. He's not even listed on NCAA.com's national stats either. His 3pt% (.509) would be third nationally. Its not as if he hasn't taken/made enough of them. The third place guy has made the same amount on one more attempt (27-54).
"The bureaucratic mentality is the only constant in the universe." ~Dr. Leonard H. McCoy
Brown is showing up as 36th in the country on KenPom (24-49, 49%) which doesn't include the D2 game. He might not qualify on ESPN's list, he's at 4.8 3 point attempts for game, the cut line might be 4.9?
Sheppard of UK is #1 and only 4.1 avg attempts. Brown was on there earlier this season and has vanished although he should be #3. I don't get it
Furthermore, ESPN has Blake Preston from Northwestern ranked dead last at #2982 with an avg 0.0 attempts per game
