Golden Eagles Overcome 17-Point Deficit to Edge Southern Illinois, 72-69

Saturday, December 7

Reed Green Coliseum

2 p.m. CT

Southern Miss

3-7

Southern Illinois

4-6

SIU

Southern Miss

Golden Eagles Overcome 17-Point Deficit to Edge Southern Illinois, 72-69

12/7/2019 5:39:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Final Stats (PDF)

HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- LaDavius Draine and Tyler Stevenson combined to go 4-for-4 at the foul line in the final 26 seconds, and Southern Miss overcame a 17-point, first-half deficit to claim a 72-69 win over Southern Illinois on Saturday afternoon.

Trailing 69-68 with 32 seconds left, Leonard Harper-Baker collected his career-high, fifth steal of the day. Stevenson was then fouled under the basket with 26 ticks remaining, sinking each attempt to flip the lead back to Southern Miss, 70-69. As SIU raced for its potential game-winning shot, Draine reached in for a swipe of his own and sank two more foul shots with six seconds left. The Salukis' final shot attempt hit off the front rim.

"We were missing some key guys due to foul trouble, but I was real pleased we found a way to win," head coach Jay Ladner said. "It was looking dark there for a few minutes. You have to give SIU credit for taking advantage and hitting some key shots. I thought the most telling statistics were that we have not gotten to the foul line much all season. We got there 20 times, and that was a step forward. SIU in the first half shot 65 percent, and we knew that was a key at halftime. We were only down eight, and we felt we could turn it around. Right off the bat, we got some steals that turned into easy baskets."

The Golden Eagles (3-7) were not the only team to have a large advantage. Southern Miss, for a 26-minute stretch midway through the day, outscored the Salukis 58-31. It was capped off on a Harper-Baker breakaway steal and dunk, making it a 65-55 margin with 4:43 to play. SIU reeled off eight-straight points to lead 69-67 with 1:27 to go (helped by three-straight free-throws on a fouled deep attempt), but that would be its final points.

Despite the high emotions on the line, Ladner found one way to inspire the team, even after a tough turnover.

"Things can be so tense late, especially with those young guys, so I told him 'LaDavius, you realize that black line is out-of-bounds and you can't play on that side,'" Ladner said. "They all laughed, which is very odd for us to do during a timeout. The timing was right since we were tense, and I was trying to break the ice. They all smiled and got back to it."

Southern Illinois (4-6) jumped out to a 24-7 lead in the first nine minutes. Harper-Baker's triple at 3:45 gave the home team its first lead of the day, completing a 21-3 run. The Salukis came roaring back to lead 42-34 at the break.

The Golden Eagles rallied from the Salukis' 65-percent shooting in the first period to limit them to 34.8 in the second. On the flip side, Southern Miss improved upon its 53.8 percent clip to go 13-for-21 (61.9 percent) in the second half. Fourteen of its 20 free-throw attempts came then as well.

Southern Miss will have a week off for exams before hosting North Florida at 2 p.m. on Saturday, looking for revenge after a 66-63 defeat in Jacksonville on Nov. 14.

NOTABLE
-This was the first game against a Missouri Valley Conference member in Hattiesburg since Bradley on Dec. 21, 2005.
-It was also the first all-time meeting between the schools.
-The Golden Eagles produced a season-high 13 steals, and it was their first victory when trailing at the half.
-Leonard Harper-Baker (20 points, 11 rebounds) posted his seventh double-double and third of the season.
-He went 9-for-11 from the field and was one point shy of the career-high at FIU in January, when he went 10-for-11.
-Harper-Baker's five steals were a career-high. He entered the day No. 21 nationally with 21 steals.
-Tyler Stevenson has four consecutive double-figure scoring games after going 5-for-5 for 15 points. His five free-throw makes on seven attempts tied a career-high.
-Gabe Watson came off the bench for the second time this season and produced 14 points, five assists and four steals, the latter a career-high.
-Angel Smith made his first-career start. Southern Miss has utilized six different lineups in its 10 games.