EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The Tennessee Tech women's basketball team now knows who they will see in the Ohio Valley Conference Basketball Championshp semifinal game on Friday as the top-seeded Golden Eagles will face Southern Indiana. It'll be a matchup of the last two OVC tournament champions with  trip to this year's title game on the line.

 

Tipoff on Friday is set for 1 p.m. Dylan Vazzano and Frank Harrell will have the call on 106.1 The Eagle, while Dorian Craft and Lexi Ayala will narrate the action on ESPN+ (subscription required).

 

It'll be the Golden Eagles heading into the Screaming Eagles' home turf – even if USI's campus is just over seven miles away from the tournament's venue. Tech won both meetings this season to improve to 4-2 in the all-time series, but Friday's contest against the No. 5-seeded Screagles is not going to be an easy contest by any stretch.

 

USI (22-11) already has two wins under its belt, defeating Tennessee State 90-66 in the opening round, then raced past Little Rock 73-52 on Thursday. Foul trouble hampered the Trojans as Jayla Brooks fouled out and Faith Lee had four fouls. The Screaming Eagles also dominated on the glass with 16 offensive boards and 45 total rebounds.

 

Southern Indiana was up by 16 in the second quarter and Little Rock cut the deficit back down to single digits. However, USI surged back up to a 22-point lead just before the four-minute mark in the final period.

 

Meredith Raley scored 16 points to lead USI, while Vanessa Shafford added 10. The Screaming Eagles hit six 3-pointers and was just 9-for-12 at the free-throw line. Ali Saunders had eight of USI's 16 assists.

 

Tech's last game against USI back on February 1 was an impressive showing for the Golden Eagles as Anna Walker put on a show with a school-record 10 blocks – the most by any men's or women's Division I player at that point – to lead Tech to a 81-62 victory at Liberty Arena. Walker completed the double-double with 14 points.

 

Keeley Carter led Tech with 20 points, while Chloe Larry scored 16, Taris Thornton 15 and Peyton Carter 12. Tech was 20-for-26 at the line, while USI was 13-for-14.

 

In the two meetings this season, Tech averaged 82.0 points to USI's 70.5. The Golden Eagles shot .487 from the floor, .413 from long range with an average of 9.5 3-pointers and .702 at the free-throw line, hitting 33 of 47 charity tosses.

 

Conversely, USI shot .425 from the floor, .457 from 3-point range with an average of 11.5 3-pointers made and .697 at the free-throw line hitting 23 of 33.

 

Tech also won the January 2 meeting against USI, topping the Screaming Eales 83-79 at the Hooper Eblen Center in a close battle that was tied at the half with the Golden Eagles inching ahead in the third and fourth quarters. Ali Saunders tied the game at 74 with 1:52 left in the game, then Peyton Carter gave Tech a 3-point advantage with a jump shot coupled with a free-throw, then Larry hit a jumper and Grimes a free-throw to put Tech back up by eight with 39 seconds left.

 

Trinity Ralston responded with a driving layup on the other end, but Larry got those points back with a pair of free throws at 28 seconds left. After swapping possessions, Shafford sank a 3-pointer with 13 seconds left. Needing the ball back, USI fouled Walker and put her at the line. She missed the first and hit the second. Saunders missed the last 3-point try to secure the Tech win.

 

Meanwhile. the Golden Eagles (24-5) look to increase their 15-game winning streak -- tied for the ninth-longest active streak in Division I. Tech currently has the seventh-most wins in a single season for the program.

 

Tickets for Friday's semifinal are on sale. Order online at OVCsports.com or at the Ford Center box office.