No. 7 – Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles
With new naming rights in hand, Southern Indiana begins its third Division 1 and OVC season under coach Stan Gouard. Liberty Federal Credit Union paid $ 10 million to earn naming rights to Screaming Eagle Arena.
After an eight-win season Gouard brought ten new players to Evansville. His top two scorers are gone and five junior college players, three D1 veterans and two high school recruits are joining the returning nucleus.
That nucleus includes pick and pop forward Jack Mielke (8.5 ppg), guard Ryan Hall (6.2) and Jack Campion (3.8 assists per game). Mielke collected 78 triples last year. Campion is also a defensive menace, recording 46 steals.
Sophomore VMI transfer Stephen Olowoniyi (7.8 ppg and 5.3 rebounds) brings size and experience. Jayland Randall (Alabama A&M) is 6’5 wing (7.0) and is elite from the free throw line. 7-footer Alex Horiuk (1.7) arrives from Texas Rio Grande Valley.
Those junior college reinforcements are talented. Guard Braxton Jones averaged 18.9 points per-game for Garden City Community College and jucorecruiting.com calls him the thirty-first best junior college player joining D1. Damoni Harrison and Sam Kodi are juco guard transfers who each averaged ten points per game.
Jadyn Schider (6’7) is the tallest of the junior college transfers and Jared Washington was a junior college honorable mention player.
USI struggled offensively and on the glass last season. Olowoniyi, Horiuk bring the needed size and Jones should lift the offense. The depth of the talent in this recruiting class should lift the Screaming Eagles to more success.