Midnight Madness kicked off the men’s and women’s basketball seasons. The Athletics Department faced the two teams off against each other in increasingly hilarious games and challenges.

The stands were packed like sardines. Everyone walking between the seats and trying to find a place to sit had to crawl over the called for seats to get to the ones that were free.

“I think this is going to be a great time and a time when the student body realizes the fun they can have in their arena,” Rodney Watson, the head coach for the men’s basketball team, said.

Even Archie the Eagle could be seen running back and forth in front of the stands and giving people in the front row high fives.

The cheerleaders flew through the air, doing dangerous jumps and flips. Then the dance team came up and gave a show-stopping performance.

Then the lights went out and the arena went dark. The spotlight came on and the first basketball player came out.

The entire arena was screaming ear-shattering cheers. People screamed the names of their favorite players or the best dance moves when the players were announced.

Every once in a while people were taken from the crowd to participate in various games like Knockout, Oreo, and Junk in the Trunk.

The night ended with a brilliant dance-off between the two basketball teams. Both teams danced valiantly with more emotion and fervor than expected, but in the end, the women’s team won the dance-off to the loudest scream of the night.

Midnight Madness truly showed why USI teams are called the Screaming Eagles.