After being on the road for the past three games, the USI men’s basketball team hosted its second home game of the season against the University of South Dakota. It was the first time the two teams had competed since 1994, when Stan Gouard, men’s basketball head coach, was making All-GLVC teams and leading the team to NCAA Division II appearances.
Early in the game, the University of South Dakota Coyotes got a quick two, but USI responded to tie the game within the first two minutes. Scoring went back and forth, with the game tied at seven and a little over 15 minutes remaining.
Then, the Screaming Eagles hit a few quick points to take control of the game, including a bucket beyond the arc by Jayland Randall, junior guard. Randall led Southern Indiana in scoring and had a career-high 24 points in last night’s game.
The lead was short-lived, as the Coyotes took over nearly eight minutes into the game with a three by Kaleb Stewart, senior guard. Stewart was a key contributor to South Dakota’s offense, making five of their seven successful three-pointers.
USI’s Stephen Olowoniyi, sophomore forward, responded with a bucket in the paint to put the Screaming Eagles ahead, and they could keep it that way for the rest of the first half.
However, both teams played until the buzzer. With 16 seconds left on the clock, Randall hit a clutch three, making the score 41-33. On the other end of the court, Stewart attempted a three and missed, but Cameron Fens, junior center, put the offensive rebound back up in the final two seconds.
USI kicked off scoring in the second half with a three from Jack Mielke, graduate forward, assisted by Jack Campion, junior guard. While Campion may not have led the Screaming Eagles in scoring, he ran the offense. Campion had nine assists, nine points, three steals and an impressive zero turnovers. His defense was critical, setting the tone for how the Screaming Eagles would defend South Dakota.
With just over eight minutes to go, Randall drew a foul and hit both free throws, giving USI its biggest lead of a 16-point difference.
However, in the final two minutes, South Dakota got within five. Campion seemed unphased, hitting the most clutch of jumpers and giving USI a seven-point difference. South Dakota’s Stewart responded with a layup to make it a two-possession game with just over 30 seconds.
USI stayed composed, finding Mielke, who drew an intentional foul after running crucial time off the clock. He would go perfect from the line, making both free throws.
South Dakota’s next possession would go empty, and Campion scored a fastbreak layup to close them out.
USI took its first home victory, scoring 92-83.
Sports Guy’s Key Takeaways
Throughout the game, USI seemed confident and composed, and quite frankly, the talent is starting to gel. Damoni Harrison, junior guard, and Randall have built a 1-2 punch on the wings. Both can shoot and create shots off the dribble, which will create a lot of nightmares for opposing teams.
Campion played a nearly flawless game, scoring nine points, dropping nine assists and committing no turnovers. I would also like to retract my assertion that Campion shouldn’t be the starting point guard. He’s been excellent the last couple of games.
Randall praised Campion for his play.
“When you have a point guard being able to handle pressure, and we’re able to trust that he’s going to get us the ball offensively, and he’s going to hold his end defensively, you can’t ask for anything better,” he said.
Randall saw great benefit from Campion’s play, as he scored 24 points on 58% and hit three three-pointers tonight.
He described his process going into games like this one.
“It’s the end of the day, playing at 7 p.m., it’s my time to shine,” Randall said.
He also said he looks to be himself and can get into the zone often.
“After I see a couple shots go in, I think there’s no shot I can’t make,” he said.
This confidence can rub off on his teammates, like Jared Washington, junior guard, who dropped 16 points off the bench on 60% shooting and played stellar defense.
Olowoniyi, despite being shorter than the opposing center, Cameron Fens, who stood at 7 feet, Stephen stayed composed, keeping his opponent in check and held his ground in the paint, blocking three shots and stealing a ball as well. He described his work as heavily based on “repetition,” which he has built with Doug Novsek and John Aldridge, men’s basketball assistant coaches. Stephen also scored 14 points on 58% shooting, staying active and ready on offense and making runs at the rim when available.
Injury Updates
Alex Horiuk, junior center, sustained a shoulder injury but returned to the game wearing a shoulder brace.
Braxton Jones, junior guard, made his season debut, scoring two points and stealing a ball in nine minutes of play. He will continue to see more minutes as Gouard and the coaching staff ramp up his minutes and he returns from a tough injury.
On the post-game show hosted by Brad Klein, Gouard said Nick Hittle, graduate forward, is still a couple of weeks away from returning. Once he returns, I expect him to serve as a key reserve in the much-needed center position.