Golden Eagles extend winning streak

The Southern Miss Golden Eagles extended their home winning streak to 17 as they topped the Denver Pioneers 61-50 Tuesday night in Reed Green Coliseum. Their streak is the sixth-longest active such streak in the nation.

The game started sloppily, as both teams traded turnovers and bad shots until the Golden Eagles finally got on the board four minutes into the game.

It took the Pioneers longer to score, as the Eagles executed a half-court trap and a two-three zone throughout the game. The Pioneers did not score until the 11:20 mark, more than eight minutes into the game.

Neither team seemed to have an edge until Jerrold Brooks hit two three-pointers right before halftime and helped lift the Eagles to a 23-15 lead.

Coming out of the locker room, Dwayne Davis provided the spark for the Eagles by scoring nearly at will early on in the second half. Davis finished the game with 22 points, six rebounds, one assist and one steal.  

That spark helped the Eagles open up a 20-point lead with just more than seven minutes to play. The Pioneers were able to make it interesting by hitting several three-pointers late, led by Royce O’Neal.  

O’Neal matched Davis’s 22 points, hitting five shots from behind the arc. More than half of Denver’s shots were three-pointers; however, they only managed to convert on nine of 32 of them.  

The Pioneers cut the lead to just nine with under a minute to play, but the Eagles proved to be too much, winning 61-50. The win improves their record to 6-0 on the season.

The Golden Eagles will take their undefeated record on the road to take on the New Mexico State Aggies on Saturday. The Eagles will look to extend their home winning streak on Saturday, Dec. 15 against the Grambling State Tigers.