University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Wednesday, January 14
Troy, AL
6 p.m.
Southern Miss
at
Troy
Men's Basketball Begins Four-Game Road Trip at Troy
1/13/2026 6:14:00 PM | Men's Basketball
HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- The Golden Eagles begin a four-game, four-state road swing at Troy (11-6, 4-1 Sun Belt) on Wednesday night on ESPN+. Southern Miss (11-7, 5-1 Sun Belt), who sits atop the Sun Belt standings, will tip off against the second-place Trojans at 6 p.m. inside Trojan Arena.
Game 19: Southern Miss (11-7, 5-1 Sun Belt) at Troy (11-6, 4-1 Sun Belt)
Wednesday, January 14 at 6 p.m. CT
TV: ESPN+ | Radio: Southern Miss Radio Network
Trojan Arena (5,200)
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 Barry McKnight (pxp) and Jerry Miller (color).
NEWS AND NOTES
- Southern Miss picked up two wins in its first Sun Belt road trip, which is its best start in league play on the road in over 10 seasons
- Tylik Weeks leads the league in scoring at 18.0 points per game, while Djahi Binet is coming off a double-double in each of the last two games
- Southern Miss won its Sun Belt opener against Louisiana, 62-54, in a low-scoring affair. Israel Hart dropped a season-best 17 points in the win
- Weeks posted his first career double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds against Ole Miss — the rebound total was a career best
- Weeks was named the Sun Belt Player of the Week as he took home MVP honors at the Pensacola Invitational
- Outside of an 11-point deficit at the half against North Florida, Southern Miss dominated the Pensacola Invitational and took home its second MTE title under Jay Ladner
- Weeks scored 37 points in the win over North Florida, which was the 11th-most in program history and the second-most by any Sun Belt player since the 2022-23 season
- Southern Miss fell on the road at South Carolina on Nov. 9 as the Gamecocks used a three-point barrage to finish the comeback in overtime. Weeks dropped a career-high 20 points, while Taveras scored 25 and Israel Hart had 17
- 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
- Troy is off to an 11-6 start overall, and 4-1 mark in Sun Belt play. The Trojans are coming off a 90-70 win over Louisiana after falling at Arkansas State the Wednesday prior
- Victor Valdes leads Troy in scoring at 15.7 points per game. Thomas Down (15.6), Cooper Campbell (13.6), and Theo Seng (13.5) all average 10+ pointers. On the glass, Down is averaging 10.2 boards per game and has 46 offensive rebounds
- Troy leads the Sun Belt in scoring (85.9), score margin (+9.0), three-pointer percentage (.359), three-pointers per game (10.5). Troy ranks second in steals (9.1), assists (17.1), assist-TO-ratio (1.32), rebounding (39.7), and offensive rebounding (13.2)
SERIES HISTORY
- Wednesday's meeting is the 23rd all-time between the two schools and the seventh since joining the Sun Belt
- Southern Miss won the first 13 meetings starting in 1950 and is 18-4 overall in the series. The Golden Eagles are 4-3 when playing in Troy and have lost the last two road meetings there
- The Golden Eagles are 7-3 in the last 10 against the Trojans and 3-3 in league play. The last Southern Miss win at Troy was on Jan. 20, 2024
Charity Stripe Livin'
- Southern Miss has made a living at the free-throw line this season, making at least 20 free throws in six games. The last time Southern Miss made at least 20 free throws was during the 2013-14 season, when it happened in 24 games
- A season-high 27 free throws were made in the win at Radford, while the Golden Eagles had 32 attempts in that game
- The 27 freebies were the most by a Jay Ladner-coached Southern Miss team. The top four of the Ladner era are all from this season
HOME SWEET REED GREEN
- Southern Miss is 41-10 at The Greenhouse since the start of the 2022-23 season
- Southern Miss moved to 69-12 in home openers dating back to the 1956-56 season when the Golden Eagles fell to Louisiana Tech
- The Golden Eagles are now 7-0 in home openers under Jay Ladner, while six of those have been double-digit wins
ON THIS DAY
Date: January 14
- Southern Miss is 15-10 on January 14. The Golden Eagles won their last meeting on this date, 74-57, against Arkansas State in 2023. In 2004, Southern Miss knocked off No. 21 Marquette in Green Bay, Wisc. -- it's the last time for a neutral court-ranked win. The first win was against Tyndall Field (Fla.) in 1948
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 had a loaded non-conference slate that includes only five home games
- Notable stops on the road included South Carolina, Miami (Fla.), Radford, and LSU. The Golden Eagles also played Ole Miss at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum
- Other non-conference games were Buffalo, Tougaloo, Grambling (two times), William Carey, North Florida, UT Martin/Prairie View A&M, and Kent State the second MAC-SBC Challenge 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.
Game 19: Southern Miss (11-7, 5-1 Sun Belt) at Troy (11-6, 4-1 Sun Belt)
Wednesday, January 14 at 6 p.m. CT
TV: ESPN+ | Radio: Southern Miss Radio Network
Trojan Arena (5,200)
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 Barry McKnight (pxp) and Jerry Miller (color).
NEWS AND NOTES
- Southern Miss picked up two wins in its first Sun Belt road trip, which is its best start in league play on the road in over 10 seasons
- Tylik Weeks leads the league in scoring at 18.0 points per game, while Djahi Binet is coming off a double-double in each of the last two games
- Southern Miss won its Sun Belt opener against Louisiana, 62-54, in a low-scoring affair. Israel Hart dropped a season-best 17 points in the win
- Weeks posted his first career double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds against Ole Miss — the rebound total was a career best
- Weeks was named the Sun Belt Player of the Week as he took home MVP honors at the Pensacola Invitational
- Outside of an 11-point deficit at the half against North Florida, Southern Miss dominated the Pensacola Invitational and took home its second MTE title under Jay Ladner
- Weeks scored 37 points in the win over North Florida, which was the 11th-most in program history and the second-most by any Sun Belt player since the 2022-23 season
- Southern Miss fell on the road at South Carolina on Nov. 9 as the Gamecocks used a three-point barrage to finish the comeback in overtime. Weeks dropped a career-high 20 points, while Taveras scored 25 and Israel Hart had 17
- 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
- Troy is off to an 11-6 start overall, and 4-1 mark in Sun Belt play. The Trojans are coming off a 90-70 win over Louisiana after falling at Arkansas State the Wednesday prior
- Victor Valdes leads Troy in scoring at 15.7 points per game. Thomas Down (15.6), Cooper Campbell (13.6), and Theo Seng (13.5) all average 10+ pointers. On the glass, Down is averaging 10.2 boards per game and has 46 offensive rebounds
- Troy leads the Sun Belt in scoring (85.9), score margin (+9.0), three-pointer percentage (.359), three-pointers per game (10.5). Troy ranks second in steals (9.1), assists (17.1), assist-TO-ratio (1.32), rebounding (39.7), and offensive rebounding (13.2)
SERIES HISTORY
- Wednesday's meeting is the 23rd all-time between the two schools and the seventh since joining the Sun Belt
- Southern Miss won the first 13 meetings starting in 1950 and is 18-4 overall in the series. The Golden Eagles are 4-3 when playing in Troy and have lost the last two road meetings there
- The Golden Eagles are 7-3 in the last 10 against the Trojans and 3-3 in league play. The last Southern Miss win at Troy was on Jan. 20, 2024
Charity Stripe Livin'
- Southern Miss has made a living at the free-throw line this season, making at least 20 free throws in six games. The last time Southern Miss made at least 20 free throws was during the 2013-14 season, when it happened in 24 games
- A season-high 27 free throws were made in the win at Radford, while the Golden Eagles had 32 attempts in that game
- The 27 freebies were the most by a Jay Ladner-coached Southern Miss team. The top four of the Ladner era are all from this season
HOME SWEET REED GREEN
- Southern Miss is 41-10 at The Greenhouse since the start of the 2022-23 season
- Southern Miss moved to 69-12 in home openers dating back to the 1956-56 season when the Golden Eagles fell to Louisiana Tech
- The Golden Eagles are now 7-0 in home openers under Jay Ladner, while six of those have been double-digit wins
ON THIS DAY
Date: January 14
- Southern Miss is 15-10 on January 14. The Golden Eagles won their last meeting on this date, 74-57, against Arkansas State in 2023. In 2004, Southern Miss knocked off No. 21 Marquette in Green Bay, Wisc. -- it's the last time for a neutral court-ranked win. The first win was against Tyndall Field (Fla.) in 1948
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 had a loaded non-conference slate that includes only five home games
- Notable stops on the road included South Carolina, Miami (Fla.), Radford, and LSU. The Golden Eagles also played Ole Miss at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum
- Other non-conference games were Buffalo, Tougaloo, Grambling (two times), William Carey, North Florida, UT Martin/Prairie View A&M, and Kent State the second MAC-SBC Challenge 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.
Players Mentioned
Full Highlights - Southern Miss vs ULM
Saturday, January 10
Full Highlights - Southern Miss vs. Texas State
Friday, January 09
Full Highlights - Southern Miss vs. Grambling State
Tuesday, December 09
Southern Miss vs. Tougaloo Men's Basketball Game Highlights
Friday, November 07