Evansville enters the game with a 5-1 record and is loaded with three senior starters and the rest of the players all juniors or redshirt juniors except for one redshirt sophomore and one freshman.
 
Evansville returns all their starters from last season including D.J. Balentine who is one of the top scorers in the nation averaging 21 points per game.  Balentine also does a good job distributing the basketball at over six assists per game.
 
The Purple Aces also has Egidijus Mockevisius (17.0) and Mislav Brzoja (12.8) averaging double digits in scoring.  Mockeviviuz completes a double-double as the 6'-10" center averages almost 14 rebounds per game.
 
"We definitely have our work cut out for us with this team," Head Coach Lewis Jackson said.  "They run a deliberate offense and are hitting almost 50 percent of their field goals."
 
"As with all our game, they will provide a problem for us in the post with their bigs," Jackson said in reference to their post players Mockevisius and Sergej Vucetic, who is 7'-1".
 
ASU is continuing their opening road trip which includes the first six games of the season and 12 of the first 14 games.  ASU is coming off a come-from-behind 66-64 win over Chicago State, a game which saw the Hornets play their best half of the season.
 
Jamel Waters averages a team-leading 15.2 points per game and was named to the Emerald Coast Classic All-Tournament Team.  He also has a team-high 20 assists and 11 steals.
 
Torloft Thomas has stepped into a starting role and is averaging 12.4 points per game.  Among his field goals was the game-winner against Chicago State with 1.4 seconds left in the game.
 
Bobby Brown is a team leader and continues to reprise his role from last season as one of the top sixth men in the league. He averages 11.8 points per game off the bench and over four rebounds per outing.
 
"We didn't play especially well against Chicago State, but we did do a lot better in the second half," Jackson said.  "I am looking for the team to build on their play in the second half and continue to improve as we move closer to the start of conference play."