A new year has brought a new Golden Eagle basketball team.
In what seemed like an improbable scenario just a week ago, Southern Miss upset No. 19 James Madison 81-71 to give the program its first top 25 win since 2011 and handed the Dukes their first loss of the season.
Yes, it was this same Golden Eagle squad that lost to a then 0-12 Georgia Southern team back on Dec. 30 by 21 points.
But that was 2023.
"People are quick to dismiss you at Southern Miss if you lose a game," Southern Miss coach Jay Ladner said. "I know I group up here… It takes time to come together. It takes time to mature. You are beginning to see that.
According to Ladner, there was never a sense of panic from his staff or team after the loss to Georgia Southern; rather, they approached the loss as they would for any other game.
"We didn't wear our guys out and run them for five hours," Ladner said. "We just talked about the stuff that we have to get better at and that our goals were still in front of us. Was it a disappointing loss, yes, but we would have felt the same way no matter who would have lost to."
Since the turning of the calendar year, the Golden Eagles have won back-to-back games as they improve to 8-7 and 2-1 in Sun Belt play. Just two days earlier, Andre Curbelo recorded the program's first triple-double in 44 years.
Part of the success stems from the team's culture of adopting a next-game and next-man-up mentality.
"We are a next-game team," said senior Austin Crowley, who scored 15 points in the JMU victory. "No matter what, we want to push forward. We never think back to the past or what we did badly.
"We know what we are capable of, and we know the team that we have. We always answer back. That's our theme: if you punch us, then we'll punch right back."
Another reason for the Golden Eagles' recent string of wins is the perimeter defense. Against Georgia Southern, the Golden Eagles surrendered 15 made shots from the three-point line. But against James Madison, which averages 90 points per game, Southern Miss (8-7, 2-1 Sun Belt) held the Dukes to a season-low of just two shots made from beyond the arc.
"Two words for you – Juan Cardona," Ladner said. "He is our defensive coordinator and took it personally when we went to Georgia Southern and gave up 15 out of 28 (three-pointers). Ole Miss hit us pretty hard, too, from the three-point line. Now, they aren't stepping into shots as much anymore. We are doing a better job of keeping people in front of us and our ball screen defense has improved tremendously."
After the first three minutes of the game, Southern Miss never trailed again and led for nearly 36 minutes.
Crowley led the Golden Eagles' offense early, scoring 11 of his points in the game's first seven minutes. But Crowley picked up a second foul in that span, which forced USM to keep him on the bench for the rest of the half. Despite USM's leading scorer off the floor, Southern Miss' bench answered with Mo Arnold and Cobie Montgomery combining to score 14 points, while Curbelo totaled six points and five assists.
The trio's effort, mixed with the improved defensive play, led to the Golden Eagles going on a 10-2 run that led to Southern Miss holding a 44-35 halftime lead.
James Madison (14-1, 2-1) answered after Southern Miss built a 15-point lead in the second half as the Dukes narrowed the score to 53-49 after going on an 11-0 run.
Despite the momentum shift, Southern Miss never wavered and answered with a 9-0 run to go up 73-60 to secure a comfortable lead. Montgomery finished 12 points, Curbelo posted 15 points and Victor Hart had a team-leading 16 points.
"This is a confidence booster, but when we win, this is a regular win for us," Crowley said. "We know what we are capable of. It's good to know that we are one of those teams that can play good at any time. We want to keep this momentum going."
Southern Miss will travel to take on Louisiana-Monroe on Thursday. Tipoff for that game is TBA.
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