University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Saturday, February 1
Reed Green Coliseum
2 p.m. CT
Southern Miss
vs
Charlotte
Photo by: Joe Harper
Golden Eagles Host Charlotte on Saturday
1/31/2020 3:17:00 PM | Men's Basketball
HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- The Southern Miss men's basketball team will open February at home with a Saturday 2 p.m. game versus Charlotte.
Lee Roberts and Larry Boyd will carry the game on ESPN Plus, while John Cox has the call on the Southern Miss Learfield IMG Sports Network (Rock 104.5 in Hattiesburg/Laurel) and Gameday app.
This game is also a whiteout, with the first 500 fans receiving a white t-shirt.Â
Game Notes
– Runs were the story in Southern Miss' 68-58 loss to Old Dominion on Thursday. The Monarchs were shooting just 24.3 percent from deep in C-USA play, then started the night 6-for-9 to build a 26-11 lead. Southern Miss roared back to a 47-46 advantage with 9:13 left, but the Monarchs unleashed a 17-0 run to take the win. The Golden Eagles had just nine turnovers against the Monarchs, the third time they've been in single-digits (also against UTEP and Rice). Watson and Leonard Harper-Baker combined for 11 assists and no turnovers.
– Southern Miss used seven players for the third time this season (South Alabama, UAB) and second in three games. Of the other four other players dressed, three are walk-ons and the fourth, Jeffery Armstrong, is redshirting. Gabe Watson has sat only three minutes the last three games, all in the first half at Middle Tennessee after a hit to the jaw, and has hit the 40-minute mark three times (by comparison, recent standouts Cortez Edwards and Tyree Griffin had a combined eight in their Golden Eagle careers). Harper-Baker also played a career-high 38 minutes Thursday and finished one rebound shy of his eighth double-double.
– Last year's meeting saw Griffin nail a three from the wing with a second left to give Southern Miss a 63-60 win in Charlotte. The 49ers were held without a field goal for the final 4:10 after leading by nine at the 12:52 mark. Coupled with the 72-54 win in 2018, it was the first time in the 36-game series history that the Golden Eagles won two in a row.
– Southern Miss, in league play, leads C-USA with an 82.3 free-throw percentage (116-for-141). It was at 68.6 percent in non-conference action. The 74.7-percent clip for the year would be a program record, besting the 2011-12 NCAA Tourney squad (73.6). Several notable improvements have been made with three of the six returners. Watson is up 12.4 percent, Tyler Stevenson 24.2 and Jacdonmi 44.2 (was 4-for-12, now 31-for-39).
– Stevenson's home splits have been quite favorable. leading the team in scoring (16.8 ppg), field-goal percentage (60.5), free-throw makes (30) and percentage (75.0). He also has just eight turnovers in 283 minutes. In league play, the former walk-on is fourth with 8.3 rpg. He averaged 2.3 for his entire freshman season. His 18 points and 10 rebounds against ODU marked his third double-double of the year.
– Draine has 156 three-pointers in his career, which ranks fourth in school history. He has made a career-high seven twice, first against UTEP last season and also against Tougaloo on Dec. 21. Next up is Neil Watson at 164 from 2011-14. He had five treys against the Monarchs (four in the second half) on a career-high 11 tries, marking the third time this season and fifth of his career in which he's made five. Draine has also made his last 20 foul shots, all in league play, and it leads C-USA as well (missed his final attempt in Tougaloo game). It's the sixth-longest streak in school history and the best since Kourtlin Jackson (22) from Feb. 27 - March 5, 2016.
– The 49ers have rallied to a solid start in Ron Sanchez's second season at the helm (12 wins already after eight in his first). In C-USA play, the 49ers are third in scoring defense (62.6 ppg) and in field-goal offense (46.2 percent).
– First-year Southern Miss assistant Dalonte Hill played three years at Charlotte before spending his final season at Bowie State. The 2001 Charlotte grad helped the team to the NCAA Round of 32 his freshman year and also suffered a serious knee injury in Reed Green Coliseum, when Kyle Roane was serving as an assistant for then-head coach James Green. Hill began his coaching career with the 49ers and was part of NCAA tourney teams in 2004-05, coaching two All-Americans and a C-USA Player of the Year (Eddie Basden). Second-year trainer Chris Clapton is also a 2008 Charlotte grad and worked there from 2010-14.
Lee Roberts and Larry Boyd will carry the game on ESPN Plus, while John Cox has the call on the Southern Miss Learfield IMG Sports Network (Rock 104.5 in Hattiesburg/Laurel) and Gameday app.
This game is also a whiteout, with the first 500 fans receiving a white t-shirt.Â
Game Notes
– Runs were the story in Southern Miss' 68-58 loss to Old Dominion on Thursday. The Monarchs were shooting just 24.3 percent from deep in C-USA play, then started the night 6-for-9 to build a 26-11 lead. Southern Miss roared back to a 47-46 advantage with 9:13 left, but the Monarchs unleashed a 17-0 run to take the win. The Golden Eagles had just nine turnovers against the Monarchs, the third time they've been in single-digits (also against UTEP and Rice). Watson and Leonard Harper-Baker combined for 11 assists and no turnovers.
– Southern Miss used seven players for the third time this season (South Alabama, UAB) and second in three games. Of the other four other players dressed, three are walk-ons and the fourth, Jeffery Armstrong, is redshirting. Gabe Watson has sat only three minutes the last three games, all in the first half at Middle Tennessee after a hit to the jaw, and has hit the 40-minute mark three times (by comparison, recent standouts Cortez Edwards and Tyree Griffin had a combined eight in their Golden Eagle careers). Harper-Baker also played a career-high 38 minutes Thursday and finished one rebound shy of his eighth double-double.
– Last year's meeting saw Griffin nail a three from the wing with a second left to give Southern Miss a 63-60 win in Charlotte. The 49ers were held without a field goal for the final 4:10 after leading by nine at the 12:52 mark. Coupled with the 72-54 win in 2018, it was the first time in the 36-game series history that the Golden Eagles won two in a row.
– Southern Miss, in league play, leads C-USA with an 82.3 free-throw percentage (116-for-141). It was at 68.6 percent in non-conference action. The 74.7-percent clip for the year would be a program record, besting the 2011-12 NCAA Tourney squad (73.6). Several notable improvements have been made with three of the six returners. Watson is up 12.4 percent, Tyler Stevenson 24.2 and Jacdonmi 44.2 (was 4-for-12, now 31-for-39).
– Stevenson's home splits have been quite favorable. leading the team in scoring (16.8 ppg), field-goal percentage (60.5), free-throw makes (30) and percentage (75.0). He also has just eight turnovers in 283 minutes. In league play, the former walk-on is fourth with 8.3 rpg. He averaged 2.3 for his entire freshman season. His 18 points and 10 rebounds against ODU marked his third double-double of the year.
– Draine has 156 three-pointers in his career, which ranks fourth in school history. He has made a career-high seven twice, first against UTEP last season and also against Tougaloo on Dec. 21. Next up is Neil Watson at 164 from 2011-14. He had five treys against the Monarchs (four in the second half) on a career-high 11 tries, marking the third time this season and fifth of his career in which he's made five. Draine has also made his last 20 foul shots, all in league play, and it leads C-USA as well (missed his final attempt in Tougaloo game). It's the sixth-longest streak in school history and the best since Kourtlin Jackson (22) from Feb. 27 - March 5, 2016.
– The 49ers have rallied to a solid start in Ron Sanchez's second season at the helm (12 wins already after eight in his first). In C-USA play, the 49ers are third in scoring defense (62.6 ppg) and in field-goal offense (46.2 percent).
– First-year Southern Miss assistant Dalonte Hill played three years at Charlotte before spending his final season at Bowie State. The 2001 Charlotte grad helped the team to the NCAA Round of 32 his freshman year and also suffered a serious knee injury in Reed Green Coliseum, when Kyle Roane was serving as an assistant for then-head coach James Green. Hill began his coaching career with the 49ers and was part of NCAA tourney teams in 2004-05, coaching two All-Americans and a C-USA Player of the Year (Eddie Basden). Second-year trainer Chris Clapton is also a 2008 Charlotte grad and worked there from 2010-14.
Players Mentioned
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