Southern Illinois University
10-7 (3-5MVC)
Bradley
9-9 (4-4MVC)
Bradley slips past Men's Basketball, 57-55
01/20/2010 | 12:00:00 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 20, 2010
By Tom Weber
www.SIUSalukis.com
CARBONDALE, Ill. - SIU Arena used to be a house of horrors for visiting teams. Lately, playing at home has been a nightmare for the Salukis instead.
Southern Illinois missed two potential game-winning 3-point shots in the final seven seconds, and Bradley held on for a 57-55 win Wednesday night. It marked the third-straight home loss for Southern, a streak that last happened 13 years ago.
The Salukis (10-7, 3-5) were their own worst enemy much of the night. They fell behind, 15-0, to start the game, missing their first eight shots before Anthony Booker made a layup with 15:28 remaining. SIU shot just 28 percent in the first half, but rallied to trail by only three at halftime, 31-28.
Offensive rebounding was the key to the comeback, as Southern grabbed 10 offensive boards in the half to offset its low shooting percentage. Still, head coach Chris Lowery was displeased with the hole his team dug.
"We spotted them 15 points to start the game," Lowery said. "We had no energy or enthusiasm. We guarded them well enough to win the game, but our shot selection was atrocious, and that's on me."
Southern was 0-for-10 from 3-point range in the first half and made a season-low 4-for-25 on the night.
"I credit our defense," said Bradley head coach Jim Les. "I thought we did great. I just credit our toughness. They gutted it out, made plays when we needed to and did just enough."
Even though the Salukis had their worst shooting performance of the year -- 27 percent from the field -- they managed to hang around and even take the lead late in the contest.
In a pivotal sequence, Bradley's Chris Brown missed a dunk with 2:50 remaining and his team up by three points. The long carom led to a Saluki fast break in which Kendal Brown-Surles was intentionally fouled by Andrew Warren. Brown-Surles made both free throws, and Carlton Fay hit a short jumper to give the Salukis their only lead of the night, 55-54, with 2:31 to go.
Those turned out to be Southern's final points of the contest. On two possessions, SIU had the ball and the lead, but failed to score. First, Tony Freeman missed a 3-pointer with 1:44 remaining, and then he was whistled for traveling with 59 seconds on the clock.
The Braves (9-9, 4-4) proceeded to win the game at the free throw line. With 51 seconds remaining, Sam Maniscalco lowered his shoulder and drove to the basket, drawing a foul from Brown-Surles . Maniscalco made both free throws to give his team a one-point lead.
SIU's Kevin Dillard then missed a deep 3-pointer with the shot clock winding down and 25 seconds left in the contest. Maniscalco, who finished with a game-high 21 points, was fouled and made 1-of-2 free throws to give his team a 57-55 advantage.
On Southern's last possession, Carlton Fay missed a trey with seven seconds to go. The Salukis got the offensive rebound, called timeout, and set up a play for Freeman to take the game-winner from the left corner. The shot caught iron as time expired.
"I felt like that shot in the corner was the most open I had been the whole night, and I felt that I could knock it down," Freeman said. "I just have to do a better job when it comes to me down the stretch, I have to make the right decisions. My team trusted me, so I just have to get that trust back."
Booker was a was a bright spot off the bench for the Salukis with 14 points and 11 rebounds. He filled a void left by center Gene Teague. The freshman, who has played well in the post in recent games, did not play due to an academic issue, according to Lowery. He said he will know by Friday whether Teague will be permitted to return.
As disappointed as he was with his team's performance on offense, Lowery had praise for several players.
"I thought Kendal played very well, I thought Carlton played well,and I thought Book played well," he said. "We have to get better. Unfortunately, we didn't do things right on the offensive end, and that caught up to us."
