Golden Eagles Edge Jackson State in Final Preseason Content

Monday, October 27

Jackson, MS

8 PM

Southern Miss

Jackson State (Exhibition)

Golden Eagles Edge Jackson State in Final Preseason Content

10/27/2025 10:50:00 PM | Men's Basketball

JACKSON, Miss. – The Southern Miss men's basketball team wrapped up its exhibition slate on Monday night with an 81-71 win over Jackson State at Lee E. Williams Athletic Center.

Isaac Taveras continued to score at a high rate after going for 23 points in Southern Miss' exhibition against Houston Christian last week. The redshirt junior paced the Golden Eagles in scoring tonight with 20 points – 14 came in the first half.

Eight different Golden Eagles scored in the first half as Southern Miss jumped to a 37-31 lead heading into the break. Outside of Taveras' productive half, IJ Ezuma flexed his muscles with a hard-fought five points.

Curt Lewis connected on the Golden Eagles' first three-pointer of the night as he drilled a corner three in front of the Jackson State bench with 20 seconds on the clock. Southern Miss shot 46.9 percent from the floor over the first 20 minutes and held the Tigers to a 25.9 percent clip.

The Golden Eagles came out in the second half and set the tone with a pair of dunks from Tegra Izay and EJ Paymon, which pushed the Southern Miss lead to double figures. The lead then hit 15 after a Tylik Weeks three got the Southern Miss bench on its feet.

Jackson State took advantage of the double-bonus – which had been hit with over 10 minutes left to play – and cut the Golden Eagle lead to only six with five minutes left. Weeks, though, started a 7-0 run that put Southern Miss ahead by 12 and in control. Ezuma put the exclamation on the game as he made a grabbed an offensive rebound to give the Golden Eagles a 12-point lead with 1:46 on the clock.

Weeks added 16 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double. Ezuma finished with 12 points on a 5-for-7 shooting performance. Southern Miss dominated the glass with a 53-28 advantage on the boards, while 19 came on the offensive end.

Southern Miss held Jackson State to a 28 percent shooting clip on 16 made field goals. Half of the Tigers made field goals came from deep as they went 8-for-31. The Golden Eagles shot 48 percent from the floor and went 2-for-8 from deep.

Southern Miss will open the 2025-26 season at Buffalo on Monday, Nov. 3. The Golden Eagles are slated to tip-off at 5:30 p.m. CT and will air on ESPN+.

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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