GAME NOTES: Following opening-round wins on the first day of the Gulf Coast Showcase, the Evansville Purple Aces and Green Bay Phoenix will square off in a head-to-head non-conference clash at Germain Arena Tuesday.

Evansville is a perfect 3-0 on the season with decisive wins over Earlham and Miami-Ohio to start the season, and then a victory over Fresno State, 58-52, on Monday in the first round of the tournament.

Green Bay opened the 2014-15 campaign with a huge victory over Illinois- Springfield, but then the team lost to powerhouse Wisconsin on the road. The Phoenix bounced back nicely, winning easily against East Carolina Monday, 66-49.

These two programs have met five times on the hardwood in their series history, with Evansville owning the 4-1 all-time advantage. They met once in the 70s and three times in the 80s, with Evansville winning every one. The most recent contest in 2000 belonged to Green Bay, 67-64.

Neither Evansville nor Fresno State shot the ball well in Monday's contest, with each team finishing the contest shy of 40 percent. The Purple Aces connected on 38.3 percent of their tries from the floor in the game, and held a four-point lead over the Bulldogs at halftime. Mislav Brzoja led Evansville in scoring in the contest, netting 17 points off the bench with top scorer D.J. Balentine contributing 13 points. Center Egidijus Mockevicius recorded a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. The Purple Aces struggled to hit shots from beyond the 3-point arc all game, going just 5-of-18 in the contest.

Balentine's 13-point night against Fresno State was a down game for the junior guard, who averages 18.0 ppg for the Purple Aces heading into Tuesday's clash. Balentine is first on Evansville in scoring this season, and finished near the top of the national standings last season as a sophomore. Mockevicius is second on the team with a 14.3 ppg mark and a team-high 9.0 rpg average. Brzoja rounds out the team's double-digit scorers with 13.7 ppg through three contests.

Green Bay dominated East Carolina right from the opening tip, as the Phoenix ran to a 36-23 lead at halftime that later grew to as many as 21 points toward the start of the second half. Green Bay held ECU to 31.9 percent shooting on the night, while the Phoenix netted 55.3 percent of their shots from the floor. Greg Mays led Green Bay with 15 points in the game, adding six rebounds to his stat line, while Keifer Sykes chipped in with 13 points and five assists.

Through three games this season, the Phoenix, who average 71.3 ppg, are led by the senior guard Sykes in scoring. Sykes, who was selected as the preseason player of the year in the Horizon League, averages 18.0 ppg on 57.9 percent shooting from the floor, adding a team-high 14 assists to his resume. Mays is the only other Green Bay player to average double-digit scoring figures, netting 12.3 ppg. Jordan Fouse is close to double figures with an 8.0 ppg average, but the guard leads the team with an 8.3 rpg mark.

The matchup between top scorers Balentine and Sykes should be fascinating, as both offenses revolve around those two players. Evansville's Mockevicius should match up well with Mays on Green Bay, so the contest could be very tight. It's up to the role players in this one, and Mays and Fouse should have the upper hand over Mockevicius and Brzoja.