Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Southern Illinois University
4-0
Southeast Missouri
3-3
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southern Illinois | 47 | 38 | 85 |
| Southeast Missouri State | 38 | 31 | 69 |
Men's Basketball Tops SE Missouri State, 85-69
12/07/2002 | 12:00:00 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 7, 2002
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Saluki senior guard Kent Williams broke out of a mini-slump in a big way, scoring 25 points to lead Southern Illinois to a comfortable 85-69 victory over Southeast Missouri State Saturday night.
Williams, the team's leading scorer the previous three seasons, entered the game averaging 14 points and was shooting 43 percent from the field. He connected on 11-of-16 shot attempts against the Indians and scored on a wide variety of shot attempts in a game the Salukis controlled from the outset.
Southern Illinois (4-0) never trailed in the contest and built an 20-point lead, 36-16, with 8:13 left in the first half. They used a 12-0 run that started with a turnaround jumper by Stetson Hairston and featured a dazzling, running one hander by Williams.
SEMO (3-4) rallied back to close the gap to 40-36 on a 3-pointer by Demetrius King at 2:23. But the Salukis pushed the lead up to nine at halftime, 47-38, with a Williams jumper and a Hairston lay-up.
SIU began the second half with a 17-4 run that featured six points by Jermaine Dearman and culminated with back-to-back dunks by Hairston and Sylvester Willis. SIU's biggest lead of the evening was 24 points, and the closest SEMO would come the rest of the way was 15 points.
In addition to Williams scoring, Hairston had another big game for the Salukis with 17 points and was joined in double figures by Dearman, who had 12.
The Salukis have won nine of the last 10 meetings with the Indians.
Postgame Quotes
Head Coach Bruce Weber:
"Kent was big. It's been someone different every night. I thought our bench played very well, especially on defense."
"Two years ago, we went into Indiana 3-0 and we thought we were better than them. You have to have a fear factor when you go on the road. You need that motivation. Winning three home games is nothing. How many road games you win can determine if you make the NCAA Tournament."
"We're greedy. We want to keep winning. Nothing's proven, we just have to keep winning."
"I watched an NBA game the other night, and the announcer said what makes a playoff team is defense, rebounding and guys who make plays. (SEMO) made a run, and Kent stepped up and hit a shot."
G Kent Williams:
"We had shots fall right away, and we weren't patient. It came back to haunt us when the shots weren't falling."
"I did feel good. I'm confident playing on the road. I got my shots going tonight. I have some experience playing on the road, and that's where our team needs me to step up."
