SERVING SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI SINCE 1927 • WWW.STUDENTPRINTZ.COM • JANUARY 20, 2021 | VOLUME 106 | ISSUE 16
POCKET MUSEUM
PG 3
BRIDGERTON REVIEW PG 6
SOCIAL MEDIA BANS PG 7
Welcome back, Southern Miss
NEWS MEET THE STAFF Executive Editor
Brian Winters brian.s.winters@usm.edu
News & Features Editor Mary Murphy mary.s.murphy@usm.edu
Entertainment/Opinion Editor Meg Fuller meghan.fuller@usm.edu
Sports Editor
Charlie Luttrell charles.luttrell@usm.edu
Photography Editor
Meg Fuller meghan.fuller@usm.edu
Multimedia Editor
Earl Stoudemire earl.stoudmire@usm.edu
Design Editor
Marissa Haas marissa.haas@usm.edu
JANUARY 20, 2021 Welcome back, students! I hope that you all enjoyed a good break and are ready to start your spring semester. I’m writing to share some key information with you for spring and to thank you for all you did in the fall to make it a successful semester at Southern Miss. We are so proud of our University community and your contributions to the health and safety of everyone in fall 2020. We had a tough semester in many ways, but you all wore your masks, kept distance, and helped us manage the pandemic so that we could stay open and keep our in-person classes going. As you return for spring, please keep in mind that our health and safety protocols are still in place: Wear your face covering when not alone. Keep distance between yourselves and others and avoid gathering in large groups. Be especially mindful during your first days and weeks back on
The views represented in The Student Printz’s columns and editorials do not represent those of the faculty, staff or administration of The University of Southern Mississippi. We welcome letters to the editor representing similar and contrasting opinions. To be eligible for publication, all submission must include name, class distinction, major, phone number and email address. Submissions should be emailed to printzeditors@ gmail.com by 5 p.m. on the Friday before publication. Please limit them to 500 words or less. The Student Printz reserves the right to refuse publication or edit any material on the basis of clarity, space or journalistic ethics.
Opinions expressed in The Student Printz are those of the writer and not necessarily those of The Student Printz, its publication manager, USM, the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning or the USM Board of Student Publications. Courtesy of Moffitt Health Center
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campus, as many of us are traveling from different places and may have come into contact with COVID-19, whether we are aware of it or not. Call Moffitt Health Services if you have any concerns about your health or possible exposure to COVID-19. We offer easy access to COVID-19 testing for you. We want you all to be successful, well, and happy during spring 2021. It can be very difficult to remember to take care of ourselves with the rush of school and everything happening in the world around us. We encourage you to plan now to take extra time to rest when possible, connect with others (virtually or in small groups), and look out for each other. Remember that we have three weekends that we encourage you to block out as rest and recuperation days: February 19-21, March 19-21, and April 2-4. It is important to plan time for a pause so that we do not get burned out. Remember that you have many
campus resources available to support you this semester, personally and academically. If you need a laptop to do your online work, fill out this application through University Libraries. If you’d like to get an academic coach to encourage you this term, please apply through the Center for Student Success. Finally, many of you will be in virtual meetings and classes frequently this semester. Take a minute to read these tips for making a good impression virtually as you prepare for this spring. Best wishes for a great semester, and be sure to reach out to your professors or staff members from any student support office if there’s anything you need. We are all looking forward to widespread vaccinations and a return to more gatherings soon as well as primarily in-person classes again for fall 2021. Hang in there! Sincerely, Amy L. Chasteen, Ph.D. Executive Vice Provost for Academic Affairs
NEWS
JANUARY 20, 2021
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Mississippi’s tiniest museum attracts big attention MORGAN LAWRENCE PRINTZ REPORTER ince Mississippi’s tiniest museum opened in August 2020, The Pocket Museum has gained the attention of local and national residents. It has been featured in publications like The Washington Post, Lonely Planet, Time Out Magazine and Tastefully Rude. There are daily posts on social media buzzing about the attraction. Longtime residents and newcomers alike have all been asking the same question: “What is the Pocket Museum?” The Hattiesburg Convention Commission (HCC) helps to develop and maintain tourist hotspots to maintain economic growth. Aside from the Hattiesburg Pocket Museum, the HCC also helps to run the African American Military History Museum, Hattiesburg Zoo, Historic Saenger Theater and many more. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, however, the HCC, like many other businesses, has had difficulties maintaining operations. Due to its particular tie to tourism, the HCC has faced unique problems in the face of social distancing and stay-athome orders. Not only has COVID-19
Morgan Lawrence | Printz
hurt business owners and the community, but, as conditions have been slowly improving, many people have been begging for new activities to do outside of the house. The Pocket Museum turned out to be the perfect answer to this. The attraction invites its visitors to search for its unmarked location, which brings families, friends and strangers together in a city-wide scavenger hunt. Because of its location outside, The Pocket Museum is also a healthy and safe way to have fun and explore Hattiesburg. Rick Taylor has been the Executive Director of the HCC since 1993. He believes that the Museum’s “uniqueness was intriguing to visitors and residents” because the journey so many usually
make in order to find it. The museum has, as he put it, already “improved the quality of life to all residents”, thanks in part to its 24/7 accessibility. “[It] created interest and relieved some of the stress and anxiety brought on by the pandemic,” said Taylor. Every month, a new submitted collection can be seen from an illuminated alley window accompanied by music and ever changing decorations. This month’s exhibit features the art of origami. “The works presented are from as far away as Thailand and as close as Hattiesburg,” explained Taylor. The origami itself is arranged with a very dynamic aesthetic. This helps match the variety of people and backgrounds that contributed to the project.
If you find this display particularly fun, some of the many, many people you can thank for this month’s exhibit include the Hattiesburg Junior Auxiliary Crown Club, Hattiesburg resident Pa’Shance Lee, Gautier resident Austin Wilson, Anna Kudelin from California, Miki from Atlanta, Ying from Massachusetts, Michele Lassus from France and Polly from Thailand. This latest exhibit alone probably best shows the astonishing ways in which The Pocket Museum showcases and reaches a wide audience. There are few other things in the world quite like it. “The Pocket Museum has served as a catalyst for increased visitation to the historic downtown of Hattiesburg [for a reason],” said Taylor. Junior Psychology and recent transfer student Cheyenne Ceely visited the Pocket Museum for the first time with a few friends. “I liked it,” she said. “It is very cool, and I think that it helps to bring a valuable form of culture to the city.” The location has something that just about everyone could like about it. So many people tend to talk about it for a reason. However, Taylor explains The Pocket Museum craze best: “The Museum exhibits focus on evoking an emotion from the visitor. You may love it. You may reminisce about it. You may hate it. But you will feel something!”
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NEWS
JANUARY 20, 2021 WWW.STUDENTPRINTZ.COM Southern Miss raises new Mississippi flag on campus
BRIAN WINTERS EXECUTIVE EDITOR Photos by Sean Smith & Brian Winters| Printz
On Jan. 12, The University of Southern Mississippi raised the new Mississippi flag at the front of the Hattiesburg campus. This is the first time the Mississippi flag has flown on campus since Oct. 28, 2015. The flag was flown briefly before being removed so the American flag could return to half-mast as ordered by President Trump. The new Mississippi flag and American flag, along with the Southern Miss flag, will be raised to full staff after the presidential directive expires at the end of the week.
ROTC cadets raise the ag at the front of the Hattiesburg campus on Jan. 12.
ENTERTAINMENT
JANUARY 20, 2021
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‘Bridgerton’ is fun at times, frustrating at others MARY MURPHY NEWS/FEATURES EDITOR he Netflix Original Series ‘Bridgerton’, which released Dec. 25 last year, has had a fair share of praise and backlash from viewers since it dropped. Though not without potential, ‘Bridgerton’ could also really benefit from some perspective should a second season be in the works. ‘Bridgerton’ is the first of a purported eight projects between Netflix and Executive Producer Shonda Rhimes. Based on the novel series of the same name, ‘Bridgerton’ centers the affluent Bridgerton family and their lives in nineteenth century London. Though there are a lot of different plot threads throughout this season, the main storyline follows the Bridgertons’ eldest daughter, Daphne (Phoebe Dynevor), as she develops a romantic relationship with the latest Duke of Hastings, Simon Basset (Regé-Jean Page). On a production level, ‘Bridgerton’ is wonderful. It’s easy to get lost in the high society world our characters navigate, especially during the extravagant balls throughout. This portrayal of the Regency Era of England is decked out in brightly colored dresses, shiny jewelry and lush gardens, putting its alleged six million-per-episode budget to good use. The acting, too, was also great across the board. A definite highlight of the season was Regé-Jean Page’s Simon. Page was engaging whenever he came on screen, using an equal amount of charm and wit to bring Simon to life.
I also really enjoyed Claudia Jessie as Eloise, who had a particularly fun subplot trying to figure out the identity of gossip columnist Lady Whistledown. Writing-wise, ‘Bridgerton’ worked best while playing with conventions of the romance genre. My initial interest in Daphne and Simon as a couple came with their openness with one another. They addressed each other as equals immediately and spoke often about “taboo” subjects like sexuality and abuse. This decidedly modern spin on their dynamic kept me engaged, and I enjoyed ‘Bridgerton’ a lot while Simon and Daphne were still courting. Their conversations while on chaperoned walks or at parties gave a dimension of believability to their chemistry. That said, this is also where ‘Bridgerton’ hits a major snag: its social commentary. Though lead writer Chris Van Dusen believes the show “[marrys] history and fantasy in a really exciting, fascinating way”, he has yet to put his money where his mouth is. Many point to ‘Bridgerton’s’ lack of nuance in its portrayal of race and interracial relationships as proof, considering its initial marketing campaign played up its non-white representation a lot. “[That] the showrunner says he wanted to make race a part of this world though he absolutely did not is frustrating,” Kathleen Newman-Bremang said in a discussion about race and ‘Bridgerton’ to Refinery29’s Unbothered. “It felt like they gave a little tease just to say that they did it. If the writers read this, they might be like, ‘But we did acknowledge it!’” This is also the case for other sensitive topics ‘Bridgerton’ attempts to tackle, such as consent.
Photo courtesy of IndieWire A major point of contention between Daphne and Simon is whether or not to have children. Daphne has wanted to be a mother for years, but Simon, due in part to a traumatic relationship with his father, does not want any kids. This conflict comes to a head in the show’s most infamous sex scene, where Daphne prevents Simon from pulling out in an attempt to get pregnant. For a show that banks on its more modern sentiments being applied to this setting, ‘Bridgerton’ completely overlooks the ramifications of this scene. The show wants the audience to still sympathize with Daphne over the final two episodes as her relationship with Simon threatens to
unravel completely, never once closely examining Simon’s understandable feelings of anger and betrayal over what happened. Considering what I like initially about the couple, I still have no idea why they decided to go this route. It’s a gross scene with even grosser pay-off, in that there is no pay-off at all. If there is a second season of ‘Bridgerton’ in the works, my only hope is that the creators learn from the mistakes of the first season while going into the second. There are definitely good aspects to ‘Bridgerton’, but its writing issues could make the show collapse in on itself if persistent moving forward.
‘Ratatouille: The Musical’ is loving, but not perfect MARY MURPHY NEWS/FEATURES EDITOR ood critic Anton Ego, one of the primary antagonists of the 2007 film ‘Ratatouille’, ends the movie with a monologue reflecting on the nature of critique. Said monologue is only briefly touched upon at the end of Jan. 1’s ‘Ratatouille: The Musical’, but effectively so. “The bitter truth we critics must face is that the average piece of junk is probably more meaningful than our criticism designating it so,” André De Shields, who played Ego in ‘Ratatouille: The Musical’, said. “The world can often be unkind to new talent, new creations. ‘The New’ needs friends.” No one actually expected ‘Ratatouille: The Musical’ to become a thing. It initially went viral on TikTok as a joke. Emily Jacobsen, also known by her username @e_jaccs, created a short song after reading about a ‘Ratatouille’-themed ride coming to Disney World. “I thought it was funny and particularly catchy[,] so I decided to make a TikTok with it, adding some crazy visual effects and an altered cartoon voice to send to family and friends,” Jacobsen explained in the show’s official Playbill. “It was just meant to give people a quick laugh.” Then composer Daniel Mertzlufft, known on TikTok as @danieljmertzlufft, rearranged Jacobsen’s song to make it more like a traditional finale. Soon after, TikTok users began to actually consider a potential ‘Ratatouille: The Musical’. What would other songs sound like? How would costuming or makeup work? Would there be puppets, and if so, should they be incorporated into choreography? Suddenly, a project that started as a joke had a much more serious creative following. Writers, musicians, makeup artists, choreographers, set designers and puppeteers posted thousands of videos pitching new ideas daily. Some creators, such as Gabbi Bolt (@fettuccinefettuqueen), RJ Christian (@rjthecomposer), Sophia James (@sophiajames-
music) and Blake Rouse (@blakeymouse) went viral overnight thanks to ‘Ratatouille: The Musical’. Jess Siswick’s (@siswij) ‘Ratatouille’-themed poster eventually became the catch-all cover for discussing the project. The rapid growth of ‘Ratatouille: The Musical’ eventually caught the attention of major news outlets and celebrities. Kevin Chamberlin, a veteran Broadway performer, composed and performed an original song in honor of Chef Gusteau. Patton Oswalt, the original voice of Remy the Rat, vocally supported the project on Twitter when asked about it. After months of online brainstorming, Seaview Productions, in association with TikTok, announced they would produce an adapted version of ‘Ratatouille: The Musical’ through TodayTix. The show would feature a star-studded cast, with Tituss Burgess, Wayne Brady and Ashley Park among the top-billed. All proceeds from ticket sales went to The Actors Fund to help artists struggling to make ends meet due to COVID-19. As someone who saw the rise of ‘Ratatouille: The Musical’ firsthand, I admit that I was hesitant on actually watching the musical when it was announced. Though there was an overwhelming amount of support for an official Broadway adaptation, many also correctly wondered if the short turnaround time — the project was announced late November for a release in early January — would veer the project into disaster. A lot of people began calling it ‘TikTok’s DashCon’, a reference to a horrifically mismanaged convention held by then-popular social media site Tumblr. It came as something of a relief, then, that ‘Ratatouille: The Musical’ turned out as well as it did. The Actors Guild raised over one million dollars thanks to ticket sales, and fans flooded social media with clips of their favorite moments. I ended up enjoying the musical a lot myself. There’s so much passion and love present throughout that it’s hard not to have fun while watching. And, yeah, it was pretty wild to listen to Broadway stars sing songs created on TikTok.
Photo courtesy of Playbill I will say I find ‘Ratatouille: The Musical’ to be decent, not perfect. Most of the cast was excellent — the biggest standouts were probably Brady as Django and Chamberlin as Gusteau — but not without fault. Adam Lambert, who played Emile, had an acceptable voice, but very little stage presence otherwise. Mary Testa, who played Skinner, played up her role, especially her accent, to the point of unbelievability. Due to the show’s lack of budget, there was minimal costuming and set design, which was understandable, if disappointing. This was probably most egregious with Burgess’s portrayal of Remy, as our main character only stood out from the cast by wearing a grey turtleneck. The video team pulled from Christopher Routh’s (@shoeboxmusicals’s) designs while creating backgrounds, but the Zoom musical format clearly limited what was possible, especially compared to Routh’s initial videos, which made the lack of a real set that much more noticeable. The majority of the 58 minute musical was spent summarizing the plot of ‘Ratatouille’, which, while mostly okay, did mess with the pacing towards the end. Even then, a good chunk of the plot was still cut for time. Bolt, who had her song “The Life of a Rat” featured in the musical, also wrote a fairly popular reprise, “The Death of a Rat”, that was absent in the final product. Said reprise would have better explained Django’s reasoning for hating humans and given Brady, a unanimously praised part of the production, a little more time in the spotlight. Yet the interesting part of ‘Ratatouille: The
Musical’ is that all of these problems can be solved if someone decided to hold a second performance. The collaborative nature of this project means there are a plethora of songs and production ideas to consider and wade through. It also means that it is entirely possible that no two versions of ‘Ratatouille: The Musical’ will feature all of the same songs or elements, creating a decidedly experimental aspect to a show few others have managed. The fact that the musical itself can almost entirely be experienced for free, too, is pretty radical in terms of Broadway productions. Though there are efforts to make musicals more accessible to the general public, such as through ticket raffles and streaming services, Broadway still caters to the tastes of its older, richer patrons to maintain production costs. There is a reason why, before stay-at-home orders were implemented, that Broadway tickets were still at $116 per person. All of this makes it a lot harder for experimental musicals to make it “big” unless they have a well-established name backing them. This wasn’t the case for ‘Ratatouille: The Musical’. The mainstream only paid attention to the project because TikTok users were extremely vocal about their interest in it. ‘Ratatouille: The Musical’ is arguably one of the most successful examples of grassroots marketing entirely because of its unique development. This is, in all honesty, what makes me excited about ‘Ratatouille: The Musical’. The crowdsourced, collaborative nature of the project can not only provide subsequent productions an interesting twist, but inspire other content creators to be open about their own projects.
OPINION
JANUARY 20, 2021
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Censorship of political figures is unethical, unless necessary
JENNIFER SHIELDS PRINTZ REPORTER efore we delve into the debate of whether it is unjust or even dangerous to remove an infamous political figure from social media platforms, we must first realize what censorship truly is. According to the Oxford Dictionary, censorship is “the suppression or prohibition of any parts of books, films, news, etc. that are considered obscene, politically unacceptable, or a threat to security.” On Jan. 6 of this year, the nation was shocked and amazed that Trump supporters raided the United States Capitol. The reasoning behind this transgression was their disapproval of Presidential-Elect Joe Biden remaining the victor in the presidential election even after a recount. After watching the shocking events that unfolded at the attack on the Capitol, which has not seen a large-scale attack since 1814, it was determined the violence stemmed from a tweet President Trump posted that same day. In response social media platforms have decided to take action to prevent a repeat of such atrocities. The first of these platforms to react was Twitter, which has been Trump’s main social media outlet before
and during his presidency. In the days following the attack, Twitter placed a necessary temporary block on Trump’s account. Afterward, Twitter would take further action by removing his account completely from their site. Since Twitter made this announcement, other sites have taken similar measures to either block Trump’s account or associated accounts that support him, such as extremist conservatives. This now includes Facebook, Parler, YouTube, Twitch, Reddit. Instagram, Pinterest, Discord, TikTok and Snapchat. Essentially, Donald Trump has become the first U.S. President to be simultaneously removed from social media within the span of a week. This is the first time I have heard of social media platforms, online stores or just companies such as Apple removing a single individual from its site or using its products and services. Even before his presidency, Trump has been spewing hateful, violent and discriminatory speech. Although I was astonished that he was being blocked from social media, I am pleased that both him and his extremist supporter groups were removed. This was a necessary action to further prevent the circulation of negative information that would increase tensions in the United States. The actions Trump supporters took to show their disapproval of a fair election
Illustration by Marissa Haas | Printz
proves that sometimes a voice may need to be censored. Spreading hate filled rants about ideas or policies that you do not support has divided the nation. Moreover, showing support for this raid and allowing them to become heroes of his agenda does not sit well. Over the summer, the nation experienced a large-scale Black Lives Matter movement. During that time period, the peaceful protestors were implicated to be a threat to national security and presented toxic pro-
paganda by Trump. However, when his supporters spread violence and fear, he praised them for their actions. Trump’s biased ways have led to an unforgettable day in U.S. history, that needs to be addressed before more violence is taken. It is unethical to censor someone’s free speech, but when that speech threatens the safety of specific individuals or a community, then action must be taken in order to prevent terror attacks such as the one on the U.S. Capitol.
Parler being taken offline is a double-edged sword MARY MURPHY NEWS/FEATURES EDITOR t’s a good thing that the Parler app is off the market. People took advantage of Parler’s largely unmoderated system to spread misinformation or to get away with flagrant hate speech. However, Parler being completely wiped from the Internet could be bad for future documentation of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. For those unaware, Parler was a social media platform mainly used by conservatives or alt-right extremists. It prided itself on being the world’s first “free speech” app, and, to remain “viewpoint-neutral”, did not fact check or moderate posts the same way Twitter or Facebook do. As a result, a lot of misinformation, hate speech and general garbage circulated on Parler. Though not nearly as popular as the aforementioned Twitter and Facebook, its numbers were starting to gain traction, and, by Nov. 2020, the website had over 10 million users. However, things changed with the Capitol riot on Jan. 6. News started to break that Parler users publicly planned and cheered on the attack as it was happening. Facing mounting pressure, Google, Amazon and Apple officially pulled the app and website from its servers, making it virtually inaccessible to layman internet users. I said it at the beginning of the article, and I’ll say it again: this is a good
thing. Parler was used by and catered to alt-right fringe groups. Even non-extremists who used the app still believed the election was “rigged” and remained staunch Trump loyalists. At the very least, this is one less avenue for them to spread toxic ideas about the world on. Yet Parler being taken down is not all good news. Because it was so instrumental in forming the Jan. 6 riot, the posts on Parler still need to be accessible for current legal proceedings and future documentation. Completely wiping it off the face of the Earth makes finding these posts a lot harder. There have been efforts to secure Parler’s data. Twitter user @donk_enby was able to obtain and download 99.9% of Parler’s content before the app was shut down. She is currently working with Internet Archive and ArchiveTeam.Org to sort through and host the raw data for public consumption. “In historical research, all information is useful,” ArchiveTeam.Org, when asked why they do what they do, explained. “Despite our best efforts, some information will always be lost, but what is saved may help form the foundations of future cultures.” Still, it’s important to note that @ donk_enby was only able to obtain any of this data due to prior experience with hacking. Without her efforts, it’s entirely possible that Parler would only exist in fleeting screenshots today. A part of me wonders if Parler
Photo courtesy of Parler
should have gone the route of Vine, in that the website remains accessible through specific URLs, but no one is able to upload or log into it anymore. There would still be problems with this approach -- if the wrong people found out about Parler and read through its posts, they could make things even more violent. But that is also true for learning about any horrific event in history. After all, people read up on the Confederacy and agreed with it enough
to proudly proclaim it as “part of their culture”. There is still a lot that needs to be said about the Capitol riot, especially with how it relates to America’s history of violence and racism. People need to stay informed on these important issues to avoid making the same mistakes. Yet these conversations will also be kneecapped if the original posts that sparked the riot in the first place are completely wiped from public viewing.
SPORTS
JANUARY 20, 2021
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Southern Miss sweeps Middle Tennessee to improve conference record CHARLIE LUTTRELL SPORTS EDITOR
fter dropping both games against UAB last week, Southern Miss (7-6, 3-3 Conference USA) returned to Reed Green Coliseum and swept its series against Middle Tennessee (3-7, 1-3 Conference USA). In its first game against Middle Tennessee, Southern Miss scored a season-high of 84 points. The Golden Eagles shined on both offense and defense, only allowing the Blue Raiders 54 points on a 30% shooting accuracy. Freshman guard Jaron Pierre Jr. led the Golden Eagles to victory with 24 points and 10 rebounds on an efficient nine of eleven shots. Three other Golden Eagles also scored in double digits with 12 points each: Artur Konontsuk, Denijay Harris and Tyler Stevenson. Southern Miss started to heat up on offense near the end of the first period as it continued to thwart the Blue Raiders’ shooting. Pierre Jr. led the Golden Eagles on a 12-2 run, making three baskets. Konontsuk made a last-second three to cap Southern Miss’s impressive streak and give the team its largest halftime lead this season at 38-22. The Golden Eagles did not look back in the second period, either, extending its lead up to 36 points near the end of the game. Pierre Jr. added to his dominant performance by draining five three-pointers in the second half. He later described his thought process while shooting the ball. “Keep going. It was [all to] keep going,” Pierre Jr. said. “My teammates kept finding me[,] so I’d like to thank them for that.” Overall, Southern Miss had its most efficient night of the season on offense. Southern Miss recorded 16 assists, only turning the ball over five times. “That’s a great margin,” Head Coach Jay Ladner said. “I thought we did a really good job of finding the open man and knocking those shots
Photos by Charlie Luttrell | Printz
down.” Before the next game against Middle Tennessee, Ladner said, psychologically speaking, it would be difficult to continue the team’s success with less than 24 hours separating each game. Though the conference’s new schedule format for the season is designed to help slow the spread of COVID-19, such a quick turnaround can hurt a team’s performance. “It’s going to be very, you mark my word, it will be very difficult to bounce back tomorrow,” Ladner said. “Now, we can and that is certainly the challenge we presented to our team after the game is we’ve got so much to play for. We’ve got to put
this on the back burner, and we’ve got to prepare like tomorrow night’s an entirely different team, an entirely different game. [...] They will have the psychological advantage[,] so it’s a very difficult thing to deal with.” Ladner’s words would ring true, as the Golden Eagles played a tightly contested second game against the Blue Raiders. Southern Miss did not stay as efficient in this bout against the Blue Raiders, recording 20 turnovers. “We turned the ball over too many times that were so careless and so many of them were after we had gotten a key rebound or stop and turn and [gave] the ball right back to them,” Ladner said.
“Those were the things that were disturbing [...] but I was very proud that we were able to win this game.” Pierre Jr. struggled to find his rhythm from the first game, going scoreless and turning the ball over four times in the first half. Still, the Golden Eagles managed to escape the first half with a 28-24 lead. “I just felt like they [Middle Tennessee] wanted to win,” Southern Miss guard Tae Hardy said. “Every team always wants to bounce back from a tough defeat. I feel like they played with desperation, you know, nobody wants to go end the weekend 0-2. I felt like they just gave it their all.” Middle Tennessee gained the lead in the second half on a 7-0 run. However, Southern Miss pushed ahead as Middle Tennessee struggled to shoot. The Golden Eagles made sure the Blue Raiders only had a 33% shooting accuracy in the second half, making their overall accuracy for the second game 36%. While Middle Tennessee closely trailed and tied the game with less than three minutes remaining, the Golden Eagles pushed through in the last moments to earn a 63-59 victory. Hardy, Stevenson and Pierre Jr. once again led the way during the second half, combining for 30 of the team’s 36 points. Hardy and Stevenson both finished with a team-high of 18 points. Hardy scored 14 points in the second half, thanks in part to making all six of his free throw attempts. “I’ve got confidence in him [Hardy] and we put the ball in his hand, felt like he could help us win it,” Ladner said. “Tae Hardy is such a winner and a competitor.” Going forward into its conference schedule, Ladner says he anticipates closer games and emphasizes that the team will need to play as efficiently as possible to close out games. “I anticipate a lot of other close games as we go down the stretch and we just got to work on practice and continue to improve[,] but our team has improved immensely and I’m proud of that,” Ladner said.