Green Street | Getting to know Southern Indiana & Southern

Sep. 25—With the 2024-25 season tipping off in less than two months, the Illini’s full schedule has now been released with a 29-game slate on tap for Shauna Green’s third Illinois team. We’ll preview each of the Illini’s nonconference opponents. Today, we wrap up this series with a look at Southern Indiana and Southern.

➜ . The do-everything 5-foot-9 guard led the Screaming Eagles in both scoring and rebounding last season as the Linton, Ind., native averaged 13.6 points per game and pulled down 7.7 rebounds a game.

➜ Southern Indiana missed out on the NCAA tournament due to a technicality. In their second year of the four-year reclassification to Division I, the Screaming Eagles were ineligible to play in women’s March Madness. That meant the Ohio Valley’s auto bid into the NCAA went to UT Martin even after USI won the conference’s tournament. A 25-7 season for coach ‘s Screaming Eagles ended with a 67-62 loss at home to Wisconsin in the second round of the WNIT.

➜ a repeat of last season. Although that still won’t result in an NCAA bid (Southern Indiana is ineligible for the Big Dance until the 2026-27 season, its first full year of NCAA Division I status). But the Screaming Eagles have their top-three scorers all back from last winter’s 25-win team.

➜ that USI had a 13-win improvement from its first DI season was impressive. But the Screaming Eagles were still 150th in the NET rankings, speaking to the lack of strength of the OVC. Will a win over USI mean much for Illinois? It really depends on whether the Screaming Eagles can have another big year and the OVC enhances its standing as a whole.

➜ . The 5-9 senior from Fresno, Texas, is currently one of only seven players listed on the 2024-25 roster for Southern after putting up 8.5 points and finishing with 2.8 rebounds last season.

➜ one-and-done at the SWAC tournament after posting a 13-5 league mark during the regular season. That meant the third-seeded Jaguars didn’t repeat as SWAC tournament champions…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/green-street-getting-know-southern-145600896.html

Author : The News-Gazette, Champaign-Urbana, Ill.

Publish date : 2024-09-25 14:56:00

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