Taveras Scores 23 in Southern Miss' First Exhibition Game

Monday, October 20

Hattiesburg, Miss.

6 PM

Southern Miss

Houston Christian (Exhibition)

Taveras Scores 23 in Southern Miss' First Exhibition Game

10/20/2025 8:49:00 PM | Men's Basketball

HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Isaac Taveras dropped 23 points on Monday night in Southern Miss' exhibition against Houston Christian. The Huskies, though, took the defensive battle with a 69-64 win at Reed Green Coliseum.

Taveras got the Golden Eagles on the scoreboard early in Hattiesburg after Houston Christian jumped to a 7-0 lead. Those points came by way of a pair of free throws and the Golden Eagles finally managed to hit their first shot with nearly seven minutes of playing time gone by.

The Golden Eagles went 8-for-29 from the floor in the opening half and hit only one of their 11 three-point attempts – EJ Paymon banked in the lone trey of the half. Houston Christian had similar shooting woes, also going 8-for-29 from the floor.

Despite the offensive struggles, the Huskies took a 27-21 lead into the break. Taveras, Dylan Brumfield and Fallou Diagne combined for 6-0 run to open the final 20 minutes, which tied the game at 27-all.

Houston Christian answered but had the Golden Eagles on its tails for much of the half. The Huskies managed to build their lead back up to 10 with about eight minutes to play. That's when Southern Miss brought out back-to-back-to-back and-ones that put them ahead for the first time.

Hart got it started after getting fouled on a tough jumper, then Taveras got followed on the next play to tie the ballgame. Hart then got fouled on another made jumper and made the free throw to put the Golden Eagles ahead by one with 3:25 to play.

Houston Christian used a 9-2 run after that to pull ahead with time ticking down. Taveras connected on back-to-back baskets to get Southern Miss back within two with 11 seconds left on the clock. The Golden Eagles then got the ball back after a missed free throw with a chance to tie or take the lead, but the ball found the hands of a Huskie defender under the hoop instead.

The Huskies made three free throws to seal the exhibition win. Houston Christian shot 40 percent from the floor on 22-for-55 shooting and went 5-for-20 from deep. Southern Miss went 26-for-62 from the floor and 2-for-17 from three-point land. The Golden Eagles, though, won the rebounding battle 44-31.

Hart joined Taveras in double figures with 11 points. Dylan Brumfield finished with eight points and four assists. Taveras also led Southern Miss with seven rebounds and two steals. In total, 10 different Golden Eagles found the scoring column.

Southern Miss has one exhibition remaining on its schedule before kicking off the season on Nov. 3 at Buffalo. The last tune-up will be at Jackson State on Monday, Nov. 27. Tip-off from Jackson is slated for 7 p.m.

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

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