Basketball Recap: Luke Ellspermann's Big Game Can't Quite Lead Evansville Memorial over Evansville Reitz

Evansville Memorial suffered their biggest loss since January 23, 2024 on Thursday. They came up short against the Evansville Reitz Panthers, falling 77-56. The Tigers were given a dose of their own medicine in this game as the Panthers apparently hadn't forgotten their defeat the last time these teams played back in February of 2024.

Several Tigers players turned in solid performances despite ultimately coming up short. Perhaps the best among those players was Luke Ellspermann, who went 7 for 16 en route to 18 points and five boards. Simon Schulz was another key player, going 5 of 10 on his way to 14 points.

Leading Evansville Reitz to victory were Lavell Tinsley and Jayce Swanson. Tinsley went 10 for 13 en route to 22 points along with eight rebounds and four blocks, while Swanson went 9 of 14 on his way to 21 points. That's the most points Swanson has posted since back in December of 2023. Another player making a difference was Jaylan Mitchell, who almost dropped a double-double on nine points and 14 boards.

Evansville Memorial's loss was their first in the conference, dropping their conference record down to 5-1 and their overall record down to 12-4. As for Evansville Reitz, the win made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 13-3.

A feisty cat fight is on tap when the Evansville Memorial Tigers challenge the Mt. Vernon Wildcats at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Evansville Reitz has already played their next contest (against Evansville Harrison), but no score has been uploaded at the time of writing.