A 30-point career-high performance by Austin Crowley helped ignite a 19-3 run in the second half that broke open Southern Miss' 76-70 win over Appalachian State.
Crowley scored 23 points in the second half, while he finished his night four 3-pointers and 10-of-14 from the floor.
"It's been a long time coming," Austin Crowley said. "I'm so glad to be here. My teammates have embraced me since I got here…When I went into the locker room, these guys congratulated me and (were) telling me it was my first 30 (point game). It's crazy the love we have for each other. I'm glad I got to experience it with these guys, but as long as we keep winning, I'm doing good."
It's the first 2-0 start in conference play for Southern Miss since the vacated 2012-13 season. In addition, the Golden Eagles' 13 wins are the most before the New Year's holiday since 2011-12.
"Our goal and vision are the same as it was since we arrived, and that is to help Southern Miss basketball…get back to its rightful place of national respect in men's basketball," Southern Miss coach Jay Ladner said. "I'm pleased with where we are headed, but we are not there yet."
Early on, Southern Miss struggled to find separation against App State as the Mountaineer took a 27-20 lead with five minutes left in the first half. Yet the Golden Eagles managed to go on a 10-3 run to narrow the deficit to 33-30 at the half.
"I didn't think we played poorly in the first half, and I just didn't think we were aggressive enough with the ball," Ladner said. "We were settling too much with the outside shot, fadeaways and things like that. We talked about being more aggressive and getting to the basket at halftime. We did that, and of course, that opened up our outside game.
"What's great about them is that there is nobody hollering, screaming and panicking at halftime. It's great composure at halftime. It was just this is what we didn't do well in the first half, and this is what we have to do better."
In the second half, both sides continued to trade buckets, but with just under 12 minutes left, Southern Miss flipped the script. The 19-3 run began after Crowley hit a pair of free throws shots and then 3-pointer. Crowley didn't realize that he was reaching his career high until the game's final minutes.
"I realized it once time started winding down," Crowley said. "I was like, man, I made a couple of shots in the second half. I was staying steady, making sure I made my free throws and trying to make the right play. I made the wrong play a lot of times tonight and had a lot of turnovers. As long as the shots are falling, and my team is winning, then I am good with it."
The big run was needed cushion as the Mountaineers went on a 14-1 run to cut the Golden Eagles' lead to 73-70 with 30 seconds left in the game. Notably, with five minutes left in the game, App State hit five of their eight 3-pointers. Yet Southern Miss managed to pull ahead as Mo Arnold and Crowley drew late fouls to come up with the two-possession lead to finish the game.
Along with Crowley's 30 points, the redshirt junior also hauled in five rebounds and three assists. DeAndre Pinckney also scored 14 points and had five rebounds, while Felipe Haase put up 13 points, six rebounds and four assists.
Southern Miss will now embark on a four-game road trip to start the New Year. The Golden Eagles will return to action against Louisiana in Lafayette on Jan. 5, with tipoff set for 7 p.m.
“One of the good things about playing road games and a tough non-conference schedule is that you get used to playing on the road. We have been on the road, and it should not be a surprise to us,” Ladner said.
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