Jacob Meyer forced overtime on a 3-pointer with 1.7 seconds left in regulation, then capped his 23-point night by putting DePaul ahead with two late free throws in overtime of its 80-78 home victory over Southern Indiana on Monday in Chicago.
Meyer, one of the 14 new players on DePaul’s roster, sank his tying 3 from the right wing to make it 74-74. Then in the extra session, Meyer, a Coastal Carolina transfer who scored 18 points after halftime, hit the two free throws with 2.2 seconds remaining for the final tally in the season opener for both teams.
The Blue Demons went just 8-of-22 from the stripe on the night.
Isaiah Rivera scored 20 of his team-leading 25 points in the first half for DePaul, which went 14-of-37 from 3-point range to win Chris Holtmann’s debut as coach.
Stephen Olowoniyi had 23 points and nine rebounds, while Jayland Randall scored 22 and Damoni Harrison added 17 for Southern Indiana, which shot 50 percent.
DePaul led 63-56 with a little more than eight minutes remaining in regulation. But Olowoniyi scored 13 points, including nine straight, during Southern Indiana’s 16-6 surge. The Screaming Eagles led 74-71 after Harrison made two free throws with six seconds left in regulation, then unsuccessfully tried to foul Meyer on the dribble before his made 3-pointer.
Rivera scored the first five points of the game, and went 8-of-9 from the floor in the first half. However, Southern Indiana used an 11-0 run, highlighted by six points from Olowoniyi, to lead 16-11.
The Eagles led 25-19 with 8:40 remaining in the opening half, but DePaul surged ahead via a 15-3 spurt. Back-to-back 3-pointers from David Skogman (13 points) sparked the run that put the Blue Demons back ahead 34-28.
However, Harrison and Randall teamed to get Southern Indiana within a point in the final seconds of the opening half before Rivera drained a 3-pointer just before the buzzer for a four-point DePaul halftime edge.
Southern Indiana shot 57.7 percent, and went 6-of-7 from distance in the first half. Meanwhile, DePaul shot 63 percent overall and 8-of-12 from 3.
–Field Level Media
