Box Score

Louisville, Ky.—Kentucky State University men's basketball dropped a 95-68 contest to No. 24 University of Southern Indiana on Saturday at Knights Hall on the second night of the Bellarmine Classic.

"We emphasis defense in practice," said Jackson. "I'm a defensive-minded coach, and we're not even close to where we need to be right now. Usually, the first half of our practices are defensive oriented. As we move forward, probably more than 75 percent of the time in practice will be centered around defense."

The Thorobreds (2-8, 1-2) were led in scoring by senior guard Malcolm Smith for the fourth time this season. The Cincinnati, Ohio native notched 24 points, hitting four-of-six from behind the three-point line, and had a team-high 11 rebounds. The double-double marks his first of the year.

The Screaming Eagles (11-0) extended their season-opening win streak to 11 games and have won 10 of those 11 games by double-digit points.

"We saw two good teams these last two days, and it's good for our guys to see the level we need to play at for us to be a top team," said head coach Jamaal Jackson. "We see the level we need to play at and how there is no room for error to be at the top pile.

Senior forward Julius Barton added 14 points for KSU, hitting seven-of-nine from the field, and grabbed five rebounds. Junior guard Dorian Jordan finished with 11 points and five assists.

KSU will be on hiatus until Dec. 29th when they return to the Exum Center to host SIAC foe, Albany State University at 7:30 p.m. ET.