Men's Basketball Sets Out for Rice Road Trip

Friday, February 5

Houston, TX

2 PM

Southern Miss

Rice

Men's Basketball Sets Out for Rice Road Trip

2/4/2021 9:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Game Notes

HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- Southern Miss Men's Basketball will prepare itself for its fourth and fifth Texas games of the season, this time traveling to Houston for Friday and Saturday bouts with Rice. Both are set for 2 p.m. tip-offs.

TV: CUSA.tv on Friday (JP Heath), ESPN+ on Saturday (Randy McIlvoy, Nate Griffin)
Radio: Southern Miss Learfield IMG Sports Network (Rock 104.5 in Hattiesburg/Laurel) and Gameday app with John Cox

Last Time Out
Southern Miss fell just short Saturday at LA Tech, 65-62. Tae Hardy fought through contact on a go-ahead layup attempt with seven seconds left, and after the Bulldogs made two free-throws, Jaron Pierre Jr.'s half-court attempt hit the rim. The Golden Eagles trailed 17-7 to start and ultimately led by as much as seven in the second half. Both teams shot under 40 percent in the second half, while also more than doubling their free-throw attempts in that physical period.

When They Last Met
Southern Miss and Rice split the two meetings last year, each in Hattiesburg. Associate head coach Kyle Roane took over for Jay Ladner due to illness in the first matchup, and Southern Miss earned its first league victory, 81-68. Jay Malone exploded for 27 points (6-for-10 from deep), one of his two-career double-figure scoring games. The Owls got revenge in the season's penultimate game, leading by 10 at the half and, despite giving up the lead on a 17-3 run, responding with an 11-2 burst of their own to put the game away.

No. 14 Comes to Play
Tyler Stevenson averaged 17.5 ppg against LA Tech. He has recorded double-figure scoring in 26 of 28 career C-USA starts. This year, he was averaging 10.0 ppg in non-conference and 17.1 since. The former walk-on is fifth in C-USA play for rebounding (7.1) and sixth for scoring (17.2) and field-goal percentage (50.4), joining only WKU's Charles Bassey in the top-10 for each. His 53.7 career field goal percentage ranks 10th in school history.

New Face to the Fray
Justin Johnson, who started twice early in the season, has seen his minutes increase each of the last five games. He came into his own Saturday at LA Tech, scoring a career-high 14 points on 5-for-8 shooting in 27 minutes off the bench. Johnson, who adds a bit of length and speed to the floor personnel, is also 8-for-9 from the foul line his last three outings.

Number Crunches
The Golden Eagles, in C-USA play, rank third in field-goal percentage defense (40.6) and fifth in offense (45.1). While they are the fifth-best shooting team from deep, they have attempted a league-low 13.4 tries per game. When they closed their recent UTSA road trip, the squad held the explosive Roadrunners to 39 percent from the field but had six more turnovers and nine fewer offensive boards.

Number Crunches, Part 2
Each of the team's wins this year have come when allowing less than 70 points, while Rice has surpassed that total in seven C-USA games. The Owls are third in league play for scoring offense (73.5 ppg) and 13th in defense (76.6). They are also second in C-USA with a 38.5 percent clip from deep (25.7 attempts per game), while Southern Miss is fifth but only averaging 13.9.

Keys to Victory
All of Southern Miss' wins have come when leading at the half, while six of the year's victories have come when out-shooting the opponent. The Golden Eagles are 50th nationally in defensive scoring (64.5 ppg) after being No. 260 last year (72.3). They have also forced five of their last six foes to 13-plus turnovers.

X-Factor
Southern Miss has won eight of its last nine games when Artur Konontsuk has scored in double-figures, dating back to last year. The only blemish was South Alabama's buzzer-beating victory on Dec. 12. He started the two UTSA games in place of Tae Hardy, who was nursing an injury and again Saturday for Pierre. While the team's added depth from last year has decreased his minutes average from 26.3 to 18.7, he has also boosted his three-point percentage by 4.6 points.

Two Newcomers Providing a Punch
Hardy's 18 points on Jan. 16 against Middle Tennessee were a career-high, and he averaged 12.5 ppg against LA Tech. He started 3-for-8 at the foul line and is 31-for-34 since (91.2 percent). His non-conference and C-USA shooting splits are also 36.5 and 47.9 percent. DeAndre Pinckney has also come along lately. While he was tagged with foul trouble and played just eight minutes against LA Tech, he averaged 13.5 ppg and was 9-for-10 from the foul line the previous two contests.