Southern Miss Heads to Lamar for Monday Night Battle

HATTIESBURG, Miss. – The Southern Miss (5-5, 0-0 Sun Belt) men's basketball travels to Lamar (5-5, 0-0 Southland) on Monday night to play in its final true road game of the non-conference slate. Tip-off from the Montagne Center in Beaumont, Texas is slated for 7 p.m. CT and will air on ESPN+.

Game 11: Southern Miss (5-5, 0-0 Sun Belt) vs. Lamar (5-5, 0-0 Southland)
Monday, December 18 at 7 p.m. CT
TV: ESPN+ | Radio: Southern Miss Radio Network
Montagne Center (10,080)

Southern Miss had a three-game winning streak snapped last Wednesday when the Golden Eagles fell 68-47 at McNeese. The Cowboys held Southern Miss to a 27.9 shooting percentage – its lowest of the season and the lowest under Jay Ladner.

The game will air on ESPN+. Fans can listen on the Southern Miss Radio Network, Southern Miss Game Day App, or their local Southern Miss Network affiliate to hear John Cox on the call.

KEY GOLDEN EAGLE STORYLINES
- Donovan Ivory (12), Victor Hart (12) and Austin Crowley (11) all scored in double figures against McNeese
- Tegra Izay hauled in a career-high 14 rebounds in 30 minutes of action
- Iwuakor led all Golden Eagles against Northwestern State with a career-high 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the floor. Montgomery went for a career-high 17 points
- Southern Miss' 35 bench points were the most in a single game against a Division I opponent this season
- Southern Miss' 53.8 percent shooting from the floor against Northwestern State was the best this season and marked the second consecutive game where it shot over 50 percent from the floor
- Ivory enjoyed a 32-point outburst in a road win at Milwaukee, while Hart helped the Golden Eagles to a win at UAB with a 26-point performance
- Hart led all Golden Eagles with 18 points in the tournament opening loss to Utah Valley. He went 9-of-13 from the floor in that game -- the most field goals he has made in a single game - Crowley paced the Golden Eagles with 17 points after opening the season with a 19-point performance against William Carey - Senior guard Mo Arnold has taken over as the floor general for the Golden Eagles -- he's averaging 7.0ppg, 7.5rpg and 4.5apg - The 42 points scored by William Carey were the fewest under Jay Ladner and marked the 48^th time Southern Miss has held an opponent under 50 points since joining the Division I ranks - Crowley (19), Donovan Ivory (13) and Victor Hart (12) all scored in double figures, while Crowley added 10 boards to pick up the first double-double of his career against the Crusaders - Last season, Southern Miss racked up 25 wins for the fourth time in program history - Crowley's breakout junior season included Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year, First Team All-Sun Belt, First Team All-NABC District 23, Lou Henson All-American, Lou Henson Player of the Year Finalist, and Howell Trophy Finalist - Departed Golden Eagles Felipe Haase, Marcelo Perez, Tyler Morman, DeAndre Pinckney and Nico Aguirre all signed professional contracts, while Haase signed the largest European rookie contract of any undrafted player - Tegra Izay and Lieb Yat are the first 7-footers to don the Black and Gold since 7-foot-1 big man Gustavo Lino played for Southern Miss in 2009 - Juan Cardona was promoted to Associate Head Coach over the summer after producing one of the top defenses in college basketball
- Southern Miss' 18-win turnaround from the 2021-22 to 2022-23 was the second-best in NCAA Division I history. Iowa State owns the top spot at +22 in 2021-22
BREAKING DOWN LAMAR
- B.B. Knight - who scored 19 points – helped Lamar to a 97-73 win over ULM last Thursday night in Beaumont
- Terry Anderson (11.0), Adam Hamilton (11.0) and Chris Pryor (10.9) are all averaging double figures this season, while Hamilton leads the Cardinals in rebounding at 7.3 boards per game
- The Cardinals are 3-0 at home with wins over Jarvis Christian, UTSA and ULM
- Their other two wins came at the Longwood MTE over Bethune-Cookman and Delaware State
- Lamar is averaging 83.6 points per game and opponents are scoring an average of 78.1 points
- The Cardinals are averaging 9.3 three-pointers per game and shooting 39.7 percent from deep

SERIES HISTORY
- This marks the 17^th meeting all-time between Southern Miss and Lamar
- The Golden Eagles took both meetings during the 2022-23 season and knocked off Lamar in its own gym via a 91-65 score
- The Golden Eagles are 4-4 in games played in Beaumont
- Southern Miss has won the last five meetings dating back to 2005

Follow @SouthernMissMBB on Facebook, Instagram and X for updates. Season tickets are available for the 2023-24 season -- Fans can purchase tickets at SouthernMissTickets.com, by calling 1-800-844-TICK (8425) or visit the Pat Ferlise Ticket Office on campus weekdays during normal business hours.

Southern Miss Heads to Lamar for Monday Night Battle

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Players Mentioned

Nico Aguirre

Mo Arnold

Austin Crowley

Felipe Haase

Victor Hart

Donovan Ivory

Tegra Izay

Tyler Morman

Marcelo Perez

DeAndre Pinckney

Lieb Yat