EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WFIE) -With its second road win of the season secured, the University of Evansville men’s basketball team returns to the Ford Center on Wednesday evening for a 6 p.m. game against Western Illinois. ESPN3 and the Purple Aces Radio Network will have the coverage.
Setting the Scene
- Following a season-long stretch of four games away from home, the Purple Aces host a pair of games this week, facing the Leathernecks on Wednesday before welcoming Miami Ohio for a 1 p.m. game on Saturday
- The Aces completed the recent stretch with an even 2-2 mark and have come out on the winning side in its last two games
- In its finale in the Bahamas against Morgan State, Evansville played just the second triple overtime game in program history
- The other 3OT game came on the road at St. Joseph’s (Ind.) with the Aces earning a 78-70 victory
Last Time Out
- Evansville improved to a perfect 2-0 in true road games this season with a 70-64 win against IUPUI on Saturday in Indianapolis
- Facing a 10-point halftime deficit, the Aces rallied in the second half and used a late 11-0 run to take the lead for good in the final minutes
- DeAndre Williams led all players with 20 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists
- Artur Labinowicz tallied nine points while Noah Frederking and K.J. Riley posted eight points apiece; Riley did all of his scoring in the second half
- In his first action since the Kentucky game, Evan Kuhlman added six pivotal points while registering an assist and a steal
Leftovers from IUPUI
- With 20 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists, DeAndre Williams became the first UE player since Reed Jackson in 1994 to post those numbers in a game
- After missing five games, Evan Kuhlman made his return against the Jags; he scored six points and had a pivotal basket in the final minutes that saw the UE lead reach multiple possessions for the remainder of the game
- Evansville outscored IUPUI by a 43-27 margin in the second half; it was the fourth time in eight games that UE has outscored the opposition in the second half
Doing what he does best
- Aces senior K.J. Riley ranks 8th in the nation with 8.2 fouls drawn per 40 minutes
- He is tied for 4th in the NCAA with 48 free throw makes and is tied for 6th with 59 attempts
- Artur Labinowicz has drawn an average of 7.2 fouls per 40 minutes and is 28th in the country
1992 Indiana All-Stars
- The relationship between UE head coach Walter McCarty and Western Illinois coach Billy Wright goes way back to 1992
- McCarty and Wright were teammates on the Indiana Senior All-Star Team
- Wright attended Richmond HS while McCarty was from Harrison HS in Evansville
Doing it all
- In Evansville’s only game of the week, sophomore DeAndre Williams had one of the most complete games in recent years for the Purple Aces
- The Houston native recorded 20 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists in a 70-64 road win over IUPUI; he hit 8 of his 13 attempts in the game while posting two blocks and a steal
- He drew five fouls in the contest and turned that into six trips to the line
- His effort was the first 20-15-5 performance for the Evansville program since Reed Jackson had 21 points, 15 rebounds and 8 assists against South Alabama on December 14, 1994
Scouting the Opponent
- Western Illinois comes to the Ford Center with a 2-5 record with wins over Central Christian College of the Bible and Ball State
- Last time out, they came up just short against Kansas City, 68-67
- Kobe Webster and Zion Young are the top two scorers for WIU, averaging 16.3 and 15.4 points per game, respectively
- Ben Pyle (12.7 PPG) and C.J. Duff (10.8 PPG) also average double figures
- James Claar is their top rebounder with 6.7 per game
- Pyle was their top player against the Kangaroos, scoring a career-high of 21 points
Courtesy: UE Athletics
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