University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Wednesday, December 2
Reed Green Coliseum
7 p.m.
Southern Miss
vs
William Carey
Southern Miss to Host William Carey in Men's Basketball Home Opener
12/1/2020 1:54:00 PM | Men's Basketball
HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- The Southern Miss men's basketball team is set to host crosstown foe William Carey on Wednesday (7 p.m.) in the Golden Eagles' home opener.
Fans can tune in through CUSA.tv for the live video stream or the Southern Miss Learfield IMG Sports Network (Rock 104.5 in Hattiesburg/Laurel) and Gameday app. John Cox will have the call on each platform.
Per Conference USA regulations, Reed Green Coliseum's capacity will be limited to 1,200 fans. Those looking to catch the team in person this season must be season-ticket holders and can be advised of the below policies. Further information will be available on SouthernMissTickets.com and communicated through department social media channels.
–    Saturday's 66-51 defeat at Jacksonville showed some newness from the Golden Eagles in their first non-intrasquad competition, falling behind 21-9 before rallying to within 23-20 before JU hit a three before halftime. Southern Miss was down 47-43 with 6:28 left, but the Dolphins scored seven-straight points to get the home-court separation they needed. Jaron Pierre, Jr. came out firing off the bench, scoring eight points and hitting a three-pointer when the game was tight midway through the second half. The freshman ultimately played 25 minutes.
–    LaDavius Draine enters the game with 923 points and seeking to become the program's 38th member of the 1,000-point club. The most-recent addition was Cortez Edwards, who reached the milestone in November 2018 at Troy. Draine also has 178 three-pointers to his name, which is 16 away from Casey Fisher (1984-88). Bernard Haslett holds the record (316 from 1990-94).
–    Southern Miss did not have its best luck shooting, but a bright spot was the squad winning the rebounding battle 49-40. The 21 offensive boards marked its most since the 2015-16 opener at Memphis, and seven of the nine wins last year came when winning that category. This year's team has definitely been bolstered by more height and depth in the post, particularly with the additions of Tyler Morman (6-8), DeAndre Pinckney (6-8) and Denijay Harris (6-7).
–    Seven Golden Eagles made their debuts Saturday. Tae Hardy led the way with 15 points and seven rebounds, playing 29 minutes despite coming out to tend to a facial injury early in the game. Harris also had seven rebounds in 17 minutes off the bench. It was his first game of at any level since November 2018 at SW Mississippi CC. After an early-season injury, he enrolled at Southern Miss in January 2019 and took a medical redshirt last season.
–   The starting lineup featured three newcomers: Pinckney, Hardy and Justin Johnson. Hardy was the first commit of the class and led Pearl River CC to the nation's only undefeated record. Johnson and Pinckney became friends through the high school ranks and were rated in the top-16 for national junior-college recruiting. The last time Southern Miss had three newcomers start an opener was in 2015 at Memphis (Raheem Watts, Tim Rowe, Kourtlin Jackson).
–   The Golden Eagles' 71.9-percent clip from the foul line last year ranked sixth in school history. Included in that was Draine making 23-straight to start C-USA play, the fifth-longest streak by in program history, and Tyler Stevenson improving by 20.8 percent. Stevenson also came up big with a pair of free-throws in the final 30 seconds of both the SIU and FAU wins last year.
–   William Carey is led by Steve Knight, who has made the Crusaders a national power over his 39-year tenure. The Southern Miss M-Club and Mississippi Sports Hall of Famer became the state's all-time winningest coach in 2010. He threw a no-hitter for the Golden Eagle baseball team and later pitched two years in the Seattle Mariners' organization.
–   There is also a lot of familiarity on the Crusader roster with Ladner. One of the team's leading scorers, Maxwell Starwood, began his career at Texas State before sitting out the 2017-18 season and playing the next under Ladner at Southeastern Louisiana. Isaiah Jones, who redshirted last year at Southern Miss, is also making the crosstown trip.
Fans can tune in through CUSA.tv for the live video stream or the Southern Miss Learfield IMG Sports Network (Rock 104.5 in Hattiesburg/Laurel) and Gameday app. John Cox will have the call on each platform.
Per Conference USA regulations, Reed Green Coliseum's capacity will be limited to 1,200 fans. Those looking to catch the team in person this season must be season-ticket holders and can be advised of the below policies. Further information will be available on SouthernMissTickets.com and communicated through department social media channels.
- Reserved allocated seating for all season ticket holders to ensure social distancing
- Digital/contactless ticketing will be the primary ticket delivery method, unless physical tickets are requested
- Hand sanitizer stations at entrances and throughout the entire arena
- Social distancing measures while in the concourses, concession stand and restroom lines
- Increased cashless only concession and merchandise stands; limited cash stands will still be available
- Several food and safety protocols for concession stands and employees
- Mandatory face coverings at all times while in the arena. Fans must wear face coverings to enter arena, while in transit throughout arena, and while seated.
–    Saturday's 66-51 defeat at Jacksonville showed some newness from the Golden Eagles in their first non-intrasquad competition, falling behind 21-9 before rallying to within 23-20 before JU hit a three before halftime. Southern Miss was down 47-43 with 6:28 left, but the Dolphins scored seven-straight points to get the home-court separation they needed. Jaron Pierre, Jr. came out firing off the bench, scoring eight points and hitting a three-pointer when the game was tight midway through the second half. The freshman ultimately played 25 minutes.
–    LaDavius Draine enters the game with 923 points and seeking to become the program's 38th member of the 1,000-point club. The most-recent addition was Cortez Edwards, who reached the milestone in November 2018 at Troy. Draine also has 178 three-pointers to his name, which is 16 away from Casey Fisher (1984-88). Bernard Haslett holds the record (316 from 1990-94).
–    Southern Miss did not have its best luck shooting, but a bright spot was the squad winning the rebounding battle 49-40. The 21 offensive boards marked its most since the 2015-16 opener at Memphis, and seven of the nine wins last year came when winning that category. This year's team has definitely been bolstered by more height and depth in the post, particularly with the additions of Tyler Morman (6-8), DeAndre Pinckney (6-8) and Denijay Harris (6-7).
–    Seven Golden Eagles made their debuts Saturday. Tae Hardy led the way with 15 points and seven rebounds, playing 29 minutes despite coming out to tend to a facial injury early in the game. Harris also had seven rebounds in 17 minutes off the bench. It was his first game of at any level since November 2018 at SW Mississippi CC. After an early-season injury, he enrolled at Southern Miss in January 2019 and took a medical redshirt last season.
–   The starting lineup featured three newcomers: Pinckney, Hardy and Justin Johnson. Hardy was the first commit of the class and led Pearl River CC to the nation's only undefeated record. Johnson and Pinckney became friends through the high school ranks and were rated in the top-16 for national junior-college recruiting. The last time Southern Miss had three newcomers start an opener was in 2015 at Memphis (Raheem Watts, Tim Rowe, Kourtlin Jackson).
–   The Golden Eagles' 71.9-percent clip from the foul line last year ranked sixth in school history. Included in that was Draine making 23-straight to start C-USA play, the fifth-longest streak by in program history, and Tyler Stevenson improving by 20.8 percent. Stevenson also came up big with a pair of free-throws in the final 30 seconds of both the SIU and FAU wins last year.
–   William Carey is led by Steve Knight, who has made the Crusaders a national power over his 39-year tenure. The Southern Miss M-Club and Mississippi Sports Hall of Famer became the state's all-time winningest coach in 2010. He threw a no-hitter for the Golden Eagle baseball team and later pitched two years in the Seattle Mariners' organization.
–   There is also a lot of familiarity on the Crusader roster with Ladner. One of the team's leading scorers, Maxwell Starwood, began his career at Texas State before sitting out the 2017-18 season and playing the next under Ladner at Southeastern Louisiana. Isaiah Jones, who redshirted last year at Southern Miss, is also making the crosstown trip.
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
G/F
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's BasketballJay Ladner Press Conference - October 15, 2025
Wednesday, October 15
Southern Miss-Alabama State Highlights - 12/05/24
Friday, December 06
MBB: Southern Miss vs. Loyola New Orleans Highlights
Wednesday, November 13
Postgame Highlights - Southern Miss vs. Xavier (La.)
Wednesday, March 06