OPENING TIP: Tennessee State heads North this week to Evansville to take on Southern Indiana for the first time in program history on Thursday (7:30 PM; ESPN+, 1021. FM) before concluding the two-game road swing at Eastern Illinois on Saturday at 3:30 PM (ESPN+, 102.1 FM). The Tigers will return to the Gentry Center next week for a pair of games against SEMO and Tennessee Tech.
WHERE TO WATCH & LISTEN: TSU expanded its partnership with Cromwell Media, naming 102.1 FM The Ville as the flagship TSU men's basketball station. "The Voice of the Tigers" Greg Pogue returns for his 11th season behind the mic and will be reunited with his longtime partner Albert Dawson. The pregame show will begin 15 minutes before the scheduled start of the contest not the actual tip time in doubleheader situations. The action can also be heard on the TSU Tigers app.
The Matchup: Tennessee State Tigers (12-11 4-6 OVC) at Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles (13-10, 6-4 OVC)
Date/Time: Thursday, February 2 at 7:30 p.m. CT (approx 30 minutes after the WBB game)
Location: Screaming Eagles Arena || Evansville, Ind.
TV: ESPN+
Radio: 102.1 FM The Ville — Greg Pogue (pxp), Albert Dawson (analyst)
LIVE STATS
SOUTHERN INDIANA SERIES INFORMATION: Thursday's contest will be the first all-time meeting between TSU and Southern Indiana.
SCOUTING SOUTHERN INDIANA: The first-year D1 transition program has done well thus far. The Screaming Eagles have 13 wins with just three outside of D1. The Screaming Eagles sit in second place one game out of the three-way tie for first. Jelani Simmons leads the USI in scoring (14.3) and steals (1.7) per game. Jacob Polakovich has won the last two OVC Player of the Week awards and is averaging a double-double (12.3 points and 13.1 rebounds). On the glass, Polakovich has recorded 20 or more rebounds five times; and in each of the last three games.
FITZGERALD LEADS THE WAY AT HOME: Marcus Fitzgerald Jr. knocked down 5-of-6 from the outside and led the team with 22 points to complete the regular-season sweep over Lindenwood on Saturday. Fitzgerald led the Tigers with 35 minutes of play and added six assists to his stat line.
GRIFFIN'S GLASS CO.: Zion Griffin recorded his second career double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds against Lindenwood. This is the second time this season that Griffin had double-digit rebounds against the Lions as he recorded 10 in the road win earlier in January. Griffin's first career double-double was with Illinois-Chicago against Robert Morris (27 pts and 10 rebounds) on Feb. 19, 2022.
THERE IS NO DANA, ONLY ZOOL: Zool Kueth scored his TSU-best 11 points in the win over Lindenwood. Kueth also knocked down 3-of-4 from the outside in only 14 minutes of play. Kueth has reached double figures in the last two games, only the third time he's recorded double digits in back-to-back affairs. His record is three straight games during the 2020-21 season at Northern Illinois — at Ball State (15 pts), at Akron (21 pts.), and Miami Ohio (10 pts.)
