EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The UIndy men's basketball executed the final minutes of Thursday's game at Southern Indiana to near perfection, coming away with an 82-78 victory in the Physical Activities Center in Evansville, Ind.

The Greyhounds (15-3, 9-1 GLVC) stuck to a familiar script as the game neared crunch time, leaning on senior Jordan Loyd offensively while locking down the Screaming Eagles for some timely defensive stops.

Southern Indiana (13-7, 5-5), which led by as many as 10 points during the game, held a 76-73 edge with a shade above three minutes on the clock, looking to snap a three-game losing skid behind the support of hometown fans.

Senior Tyler Rambo converted a bucket in the paint to pull UIndy within one, and on the other end sophomore Alex Etherington picked off a USI pass to regain possession for the Hounds.

Loyd went into attack mode, drawing a foul on a 3-point shot and subsequently draining each free throw. A couple plays later, the reigning GLVC Player of the Week again found a way to the charity stripe where he hit a pair of foul shots, making it 80-78 with 1:27 to go.

The Eagles missed two contested 3-pointers on one possession following Loyd's freebies before senior Lucas Barker brought in the defensive rebound.

As the shotclock dwindled, Loyd's jumper missed its mark, but Rambo came up with perhaps the biggest rebound of the game, maintaining control of the ball for UIndy with less than 20 seconds left.

"That was huge," Head Coach Stan Gouard told WICR after the game. "That was a huge rebound. When that ball went up I was looking across the court, and I don't know where he came from. All I saw were two hands on the ball for a big rebound that kind of secured the game for us."

In a last-ditch effort to tie the game, USI launched a pair of threes, but Loyd and classmate Joe Retic each recorded a block as the Eagles' shots fell well short of the goal.

USI managed only two points over the final three minutes, and when asked, Gouard had high praise for a total team effort.

"Unbelievable game, not just from one person. I thought it was from everybody, especially in the second half," he said. "How about those guys making defensive stops down the stretch? Just making big plays. We didn't panic. We've had a lot of close games, and our guys are showing some mental toughness."

Loyd led all scorers with 24 points, going 12 for 15 from the free throw line. He also added seven rebounds, five assists, two blocks and two steals. He also improved to a remarkable 38 for 42 (.904) on free throws taken in the final five minutes of regulation.

Along with his 15 points, five boards and three assists, senior Lucas Barker delivered on the defensive end both in (three steals) and out of the box score.

Rambo totaled 12 points on 5-for-8 shooting, and junior Ernest Maize netted 11 with a team-high eight rebounds. Maize finished 4 of 8 from the floor, and scored eight of his 11 in the second half
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USI led for much of the first half, at one point building a 25-15 advantage 12 minutes into the game. At one point the Eagles held a 20-4 edge in points in the paint.

Barker was a major reason for keeping UIndy close in the opening period, sinking three 3-pointers – the last of which capped an 8-0 run that saw the Hounds close within 40-39.

Despite their earlier double-figure deficit, the Greyhounds led 41-40 at the break. After starting 5 for 18 from the floor, UIndy closed finished the period 9 of 13, including 5 of 7 from deep.

Neither side was able to pull away by more than five points in the second half – a frame that held 12 ties and six lead swaps – and it remained close until the final buzzer.

UIndy finished 27 for 55 (.491) from the floor, with a 7-for-16 mark from 3-point land. USI shot 29 of 62 (.468) overall, but hit just 4 of 21 threes.

The Eagles entered Thursday with the best rebounding margin in the GLVC by some distance, and after one half had outrebounded the Hounds 23 to 17. But UIndy bounced back to outpace USI 16 to 10 in the final half to finish an even 33-33.

"We knew this was going to be a dog fight. A war," Gouard noted. "I told those guys, if they're not very tough, don't get on the bus. In the first half we had a couple guys who probably shouldn't have gotten on the bus, but in the second half we made some adjustments. We did a great job evening the rebound battle."

What awaits next for the Hounds is a trip to Louisville, Ky., to face rival and 11th-ranked Bellarmine. The two squads have met 11 times over the past four seasons, including three postseason contests.

"Our guys will be prepared," Gouard said. "Everybody understands the magnitude of this rivalry with Bellarmine."

Tip-off from Knights Hall Saturday is at 8 p.m. ET.