USI announces 2013-14 men's basketball schedule

Screaming Eagles will play an exhibition game at Tennessee

COMPLETE SCHEDULE

EVANSVILLE, Ind. - The University of Southern Indiana men's basketball team announced a demanding schedule for the 2013-14 campaign that includes an exhibition game at the University of Tennessee November 7.

The trip to Knoxville to play Tennessee is USI's second since 2005. The Eagles lost a close, 86-78, decision to the Volunteers in 2005, despite leading for much of the second half.

"Exhibition games against Division I squads are exciting for our players and fans," said Head Coach Rodney Watson. "More importantly, those types of games tell us where we need to go developmentally as a team."

USI begins the regular season November 19 when it travels to cross-river rival Kentucky Wesleyan College. The road contest opens a regular-season calendar that includes 14 home games at the Physical Activities Center and 12 games on the road.

The USI-KWC match-up is the first non-conference regular-season game between the two programs since 1991-92 and the first since the Panthers' departure from the Great Lakes Valley Conference after last year. The Eagles also are opening the year with a road game for the first time since 1988-89.

The Eagles and the Panthers complete the home-and-home series in 2013-14 on December 21 at the PAC.

The schedule also includes a home-and-home series with GLVC rivals Bellarmine University (January 20 in Louisville; February 27 at the PAC), the University of Indianapolis (January 18 at the PAC; February 20 in Indianapolis, Indiana), and Saint Joseph's College (January 16 at the PAC; February 22 in Rensselaer, Indiana) as a part of the league's pod scheduling. USI plays every team in the GLVC this year for the first time since 2007-08.

Another highlight on the schedule is a home game against Drury University, the defending NCAA Division II National Champion and GLVC Tournament title holder (January 11). The game marks the second time in three years that USI has hosted the defending NCAA II champion.

The GLVC calendar, additionally, has the East Division's University of Illinois Springfield (January 30) and McKendree University (February 1) as well as the West Division's Missouri University of Science & Technology (January 9), Maryville University (February 13), and the University of Missouri-St. Louis (February 15) making visits to the PAC.

On the road in the GLVC, the Eagles travel to Rockhurst University (January 3), William Jewell College (January 5), Lewis University (January 23), the University of Wisconsin-Parkside (January 25), league-newcomer Truman State University (February 6), and Quincy University (February 8).

"The GLVC will be as strong as ever, even with the departure of KWC," said Watson. "The non-conference home-and-home series with the Panthers has toughened an already rigorous regular-season schedule in 2013-14.

"Drury is the defending national champion, giving USI a chance to host Division II's best team for the second time in three years," continued Watson. "This shows just how strong the GLVC is year-in and year-out."

In addition to the nine conference games and the non-conference games with KWC at the PAC, USI hosts the Bill Joergens Memorial Classic and plays in Bellarmine's Fern Valley Hotel Classic. The seventh annual Bill Joergens Memorial Classics pits the Eagles and Bellarmine versus King College and Indiana University Southeast, while USI plays Virginia Union University and Ohio Valley University at Knights Hall in Louisville.

The GLVC Tournament is slated to begin March 2 at campus sites before the final three rounds move to the Ford Center in Evansville March 7-9.The NCAA II Midwest Regional is set for March 15-18, while the NCAA II Elite Eight returns to Evansville March 26-29 for the first time since 2002.

Schedule Notes:

USI has won 20-or-more games in 19 of the last 21 seasons and has reached 25-or-more wins five of the last 12 years.
 
USI has four teams on the schedule that appeared in the 2013 NCAA Division II Tournament (USI, Drury, Bellarmine, Indianapolis, and UW-Parkside)
 
A total of 15 teams on the schedule were in their respective conference tournaments.
 
The schedule includes 12 teams with winning records.
 
USI's all-time record against teams on the schedule is 360-205 (.637). 

The Eagles have opened the last 27 seasons with a victory.
 

The Eagles have won each of the last 29 home openers.
 
USI has a home record of 467-73 (.865) since moving into the PAC in 1980-81.
 
Ticket prices for 2013-14: Season Chairbacks - $135.00; Season Bench - $80.00.