MBB: Southern Miss Heads to The Mount Rushmore State to Face South Dakota State

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HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- Tuesday starts a seven-day road trip for Southern Miss men's basketball as it heads to play South Dakota State on Wednesday night in Brookings, S.D. Following the contest at First Bank & Trust Arena, the Golden Eagles will then head to Montana State for the Basketball Travelers Invitational. Wednesday's tip-off in Brookings is set for 7 p.m. CT on MIDCO Sports.

Game 4: Southern Miss (2-1, 0-0 Sun Belt) at South Dakota State (3-1, 0-0 Summit)
Wednesday, November 20 at 7 p.m. CT
TV: MIDCO Sports/Summit Leage Network | Radio: Southern Miss Radio Network
First Bank & Trust Arena (5,000)

Fans can listen on the Southern Miss Radio Network, Southern Miss Game Day App, or their local Southern Miss Network affiliate to hear Chris Harris on the call.

The Opening Tip
- Wednesday is the second meeting in the last two seasons between Southern Miss and South Dakota State
- The Golden Eagles are coming off a 104-65 win over Loyola New Orleans last Wednesday where Andre Curbelo and Alfred Worrell Jr. each scored 15 points
- Curbelo is averaging a team-best 15.5 points per contest in the two games he's played and started in
- Southern Miss is the only Sun Belt team with five players averaging 10+ points per game through the first week of the season: Alvarez (13.3), Gordon (13.7), Watson (11.7), Curbelo (15.5), Harris (13.7)
- Southern Miss is 28-3 at Reed Green Coliseum since the start of '22-23 season and 2-0 this season after beating the Wolf Pack last week
- Southern Miss returns six players that saw action last season, while only Cobie Montgomery and Tegra Izay saw limited starts
- Neftali Alvarez — sat out last season due to injury — and Harris are both back in the Black & Gold this season. Harris suited up for Arkansas last season after playing a key role in the '22-23 Sun Belt regular season title
- Eight players will suit up for the Golden Eagles this season that ever never donned the Golden Eagle logo. That list included Alfred Worrell Jr., DeAntoni Gordon, Brewer Carruth, Jett Montgomery, Christian Watson, John Wade III, Christian Reid, and Lieb Yat

Abut the Jackrabbits
- Eric Henderson is in his sixth season guided the Jackrabbits and has a 111-49 record
- South Dakota State is coming off a 89-41 win over Mount Marty on Monday night
- Through four games, Oscar Cluff has three double-doubles and was the Peak Performer of the Week in the Summit Leage
- Cluff leads the country with 13 rebounds per contest and leads South Dakota State in scoring at 19.7 points per game
- Freshman Joe Sayler is second on the team in scoring at 16.3 points per game and has scored 10+ points on each game this season — Seyler did not play against Mount Marty due to an injury

History Between the Two
- The game is the second meeting all-time between the two
- South Dakota State won last season — the first meeting ever — 65-54 in Hattiesburg
- Cobie Montgomery scored six points to lead the current Golden Eagle roster in scoring in that game

The historic offensive outburst
- Southern Miss is averaging 88.3 points per game over the first three games for a total of 265 points
- It's the second-highest scoring average over the first three games in the last 25 seasons
- Southern Miss averaged 88.7 points per game to start the 2018-19 season with scoring totals of 111, 74 and 81
- The current offensive output is No. 36 in the country and the best in the Sun Belt

Dipping into the Portal
- The Golden Eagles once again loaded up on veteran talent in the transfer portal after adding four players with Division I experience
- The four additions are DeAntoni Gordon (Little Rock), Christian Watson (Miami), John Wade III (Stanislaus State) and Denijay Harris (Arkansas)
- Gordon brings the beefiest resume after earning All-OVC honors at Little Rock while leading the Trojans in nearly every category at some point during his three-year career. Gordon played his first season of college basketball at Wichita State
- Watson and Harris have both played on the biggest stages during their careers at Miami (Fla.) and Arkansas, respectively. Watson was a member of the Hurricanes' 2022-23 Final Four team and logged minutes in NCAA Tournament
- Wade III had a stop at Cal State Northridge during the 2022-23 season but played at Stanislaus State last season. While at CSUN, Wade III played in only 10 games
- Ladner added Alfred Worrell Jr. comes to Southern Miss after playing JUCO ball at John A. Logan college

The Youngsters are Back
- Brewer Carruth, Jett Montgomery, and Christian Reid are the first freshman Ladner has signed since the 2021-22 season
- Current senior Trey Alfonso was the last freshman Southern Miss had
- Carruth prepped at Parklane Academy in McComb, while Reid played at Mater Lakes Academy. Montgomery enjoyed a standout career at Independence High School, but is no stranger to Southern Miss has his father, Mark, was a standout wide receiver for the Golden Eagles

Season Openers
- Since the 2000-01 season, Southern Miss has won 20 season openers
- The Golden Eagles are 5-1 in season openers under Ladner and have won their last four: Bowling Green, William Carey (2x) and Vanderbilt

Preseason Accolades
- Redshirt senior Andre Curbelo was tabbed Preseason Third Team All-Sun Belt by the league's coaches
- Curbelo appeared in 12 games last season while waiting for a NCAA waiver and later battling injuries
- He recorded the second triple-double in program history when he had 12 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds against Georgia State last season
- Southern Miss was picked to finish fifth in the preseason league poll

60 Years at Reed Green Coliseum
- The 2024-25 season marks the 60th season of Golden Eagle basketball at Reed Green Coliseum
- Southern Miss officially moved into The Greenhouse ahead of the 1965-66 season and played Alabama on Dec. 11 in the arena's dedication game
- The Golde Eagles are 522-239 on their home court and have had three undefeated seasons at Reed Green Coliseum

Single game and season tickets are available via SouthernMissTickets.com, calling 1-800-844-TICK or visiting the Pat Ferlise Ticket Office during normal business hours.

Follow @SouthernMissMBB on X, Instagram and Facebook to get the latest Golden Eagle news.

MBB: Southern Miss Heads to The Mount Rushmore State to Face South Dakota State

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Players Mentioned

Trey Alfonso

Neftali Alvarez

Brewer Carruth

Andre Curbelo

DeAntoni Gordon

Denijay Harris

Tegra Izay

Cobie Montgomery

Jett Montgomery

Christian Reid

John Wade III

Christian Watson

Alfred Worrell Jr.

Lieb Yat