Southern Illinois University
2-15, 1-7MVC
Northern Iowa*
6-11, 2-6MVC
Women's Basketball Loses to Northern Iowa, 90-55
01/30/2004 | 12:00:00 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 29, 2004
By Jeff Honza
www.SIUSalukis.com
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa - Emily Berry scored 21 points and tied a career-high six three-pointers, while Alex Cook pitched in 17 points underneath to lead Northern Iowa (6-11, 2-6) to a 90-55 win over Southern Illinois (2-15, 1-7) earlier tonight at West Gym.
SIU, whose losing streak is at five in a row, has dropped four of its last five games by 30 or more points.
It was a question of who wanted it more, and early on, it appeared as if the Salukis did.
SIU jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead on a jumper and three-pointer by Dana Pinkston, who heated up for 12 points in the first 7:19 of the game.
Thanks to Pinkston's solid effort, the Salukis hung tough with the Panthers and found themselves down by just one point (26-25) at the 5:19 mark of the first half.
But then SIU went cold, and as a result, UNI put together a 12-0 run that started with back-to-back three-pointers from Berry. The Dawgs, who went scoreless for a span of 3:02, fell behind, 38-25 (2:17), and would trail by 15 (43-28) at the break.
Pinkston hit 6-of-11 from the field, including 3-of-5 from three-point range to lead SIU with 15 first half points. Meanwhile, Berry knocked down 4-of-5 treys and Cook made an easy 5-of-7 inside to pace the Panthers with 12 points apiece.
UNI kept its momentum alive in the second half, where it opened with a 14-4 run to push its lead to 57-32. Cook scored five points to fuel the attack which ended on her own jumper with 16:37 remaining.
The Panthers would then lead by as many as 38 on two occasions before icing the 90-55 win.
Berry finished at 6-of-8 from the field, as all six of her makes came from three-point land. Cook followed with 7-of-11 from the field and a near-perfect 3-of-4 from the free throw line.
Pinkston went 7-of-17 from the field, 3-of-7 from three-point range and 4-of-4 from the free throw line to lead SIU with 21 points, as the only Saluki who scored double-digits.
SIU, who shot just 9-of-30 (.300) from the field in the second half, fell victim to a 47-29 UNI advantage on the boards. The Salukis also committed 20 turnovers in which the Panthers converted into 31 points. Additionally, SIU was outscored, 38-24, in the paint.
SIU remains on the road to face Bradley on Saturday, Jan. 31. Tip off is at 8:05 p.m.
