Men's Basketball Hosts Tougaloo in Home Opener

Thursday, November 6

Hattiesburg, Miss.

7 PM

Southern Miss

Tougaloo (Miss.)

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Men's Basketball Hosts Tougaloo in Home Opener

11/5/2025 4:14:00 PM | Men's Basketball

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HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- The Greenhouse is open for basketball again on Thursday night as Southern Miss (0-1, 0-0 Sun Belt) hosts Tougaloo (0-2, 0-0 HBCUAC) in the 2025-26 home opener. The in-state foes are slated to tip-off at 7 p.m. inside Reed Green Coliseum and will air on ESPN+.

Game 2: Southern Miss (0-1, 0-0 Sun Belt) vs. Tougaloo (0-2, 0-0 HBCUAC)
Thursday, November 6 at 7:00 p.m. CT
TV: ESPN+ | Radio: Southern Miss Radio Network
Reed Green Coliseum (8,095)

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. The game will air on ESPN+ with Lee Roberts (pxp) and Larry Boyd (analyst).

NEWS AND NOTES
- The Golden Eagles enter year seven of Jay Ladner at the helm as the former Southern Miss player guided his squad to a Sun Belt title during the 2022-23 season
- Southern Miss is 68-12 in home openers dating back to the 1945-46 season and has won nine-straight
- The Golden Eagles return only four players from last season: Dalyn Brandon, Brewer Carruth, Tegra Izay, Jett Montgomery
- Ladner and Co. brought in 14 newcomers during the offseason: DJahi Binet, Dylan Brumfield, Robert Cowherd, Fallou Diagne, IJ Ezuma, Israel Hart, Blake Lander, Curt Lewis, Felipe Patino, EJ Paymon, Isaac Taveras, Chiante' Tramble, Chandler Watts, Tylik Weeks
- Southern Miss picked up an exhibition win over Jackson State last Monday as the Golden Eagles won 81-71 on the road. Taveras scored 20 points, while Weeks had a 16-point, 10-rebound double-double
- The 2025-26 season marks the 106th season of Southern Miss basketball and the 61st season inside Reed Green Coliseum
- Southern Miss was voted 12th in the preseason poll after finishing in 12th last season in the league standings

ABOUT THE OPPONENT
- Tougaloo is 0-2 after losses to Florida Memorial and St. Thomas on the road
- Antonio Patterson leads the Bulldogs in scoring at 21.0 points per game and scored 29 in the loss at St. Thomas. Willie Anderson (12.0) and Jagger Young (11.0) are both averaging double figures along with Patterson
- Eric Strothers enters his fourth season at the helm and holds a 75-20 mark at Tougaloo. Strothers and the Bulldogs went 20-9 a season ago and 13-4 in conference play
- Tougaloo follows this game with its home opener against LSU Alexandria on Saturday afternoon. The Bulldogs then travel to Louisiana Christian before hosting Christian Brothers on Nov. 13. Tougaloo faces Tulane on Dec. 10 in its final D1 exhibition before getting back into HBCUAU play

SERIES HISTORY
- Thursday's meeting is the third all-time between the two schools and first since 2019
- Southern Miss won the last meeting 96-77 in The Greenhouse, and 101-96 in double overtime in 2016
- Ladavius Draine has 28 points with seven 3-pointers in the 2019 win. Four Golden Eagles scored in double figures
- In the double overtime win, D'Angelo Richardson scored nine of his 14 points in the overtime periods

A GOOD START AT HOME
- Southern Miss is 68-12 in home openers dating back to the 1956-56 season when the Golden Eagles fell to Louisiana Tech
- The first home-opening win for Southern Miss was against Tyndall Field (Fla.) to open the 1947-48 season
- The Golden Eagles are 6-0 in home openers under Jay Ladner, while five of those have been double-digit wins

Home Openers Under Jay Ladner
Date	Result	Score	Opponent
11/5/19	W	90-71	Delta State
12/2/20	W	80-53	William Carey
11/9/21	W	81-67	William Carey
11/11/22	W	86-62	Loyola (La.)
11/6/23	W	64-42	William Carey
11/4/24	W	77-68	Bowling Green

ON THIS DAY
Date: November 6
- Southern Miss is 2-0 on November 6 with wins over Southeastern Baptist and William Carey. The last was a 64-42 win over the Crusaders at Reed Green Coliseum in 2023. Former Golden Eagle Austin Crowley had a 19-point, 10-rebound performance as eight different players scored.

THE VETERAN OF THE COUNTRY
- Curt Lewis enters the season as one of the oldest players in Division I basketball. The Louisville, Ky., product was born on May 19, 1999
- Below is a list of the oldest players in the country

Ramel Bethea, Green Bay - July 27, 1996
Nginyu Ngala, Kansas - April 3, 1999
Curt Lewis, Southern Miss - May 19, 1999
Ibrahim Olajuwon, FIU - May 26, 1999
Hunter Erickson, Hawaii - September 14, 1999
Bouna Kebe, Delaware - December 24, 1999

LOADED NON-CON SLATE
- Southern Miss has a loaded non-conference slate that includes only five home games
- Notable stops on the road include South Carolina, Miami (Fla.), Radford, and LSU
- Southern Miss will also play Ole Miss at the Coast Coliseum on Dec. 13
- Other non-conference games are Buffalo, Tougaloo, Grambling (two times), William Carey, North Florida, UT Martin/Prairie View A&M and the second MAC-SBC Challenge opponent in February

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.

Fans can follow @SouthernMissMBB on social media to get the latest Golden Eagle news.