Southern Illinois University
2-14 ,0-5
Evansville
7-9, 2-3
Women's Basketball falls 79-45 at Evansville
01/15/2011 | 12:00:00 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 15, 2011
By Bill Ford
SIUSalukis.com
EVANSVILLE, Ind. -- CiCi Shannon's record-breaking day on the blocks was overshadowed by 39 Saluki turnovers as the Southern Illinois women's basketball team fell 79-45 at Evansville Saturday at Roberts Stadium.
Shannon blocked seven shots in the game, which tied the school's single-game record and set a new school record for blocks in a season. She now has 49 blocks for the season, besting the previous mark of 42.
Shannon, who finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds, was one of the few bright spots in an otherwise dark day for the Salukis. Operating a few players short due to disciplinary action, Southern (2-14, 0-5) turned the ball over a season-high 39 times and never found an answer for Evansville's (7-9, 2-3) defensive pressure.
"It's disappointing. We expect to come in here and compete," SIU coach Missy Tiber said. "At the same time, we are without basically our two best players right now. It's unfortunate."
Southern played from behind the whole game, but played closest with the Purple Aces throughout the first 10 minutes. Evansville didn't lead by more than seven until midway through the first half when the Aces went on a 16-0 run as the Salukis suffered a five minute scoring drought.
SIU finally hit some shots to stave off a first-half melee as Renee Reed's back-to-back triples helped the Salukis pull back within 36-25 with five minutes to play. The Aces eventually settled on a 41-27 halftime advantage.
Reed, who finished with a game-high 18 points, hit another 3-pointer out of the break to pull back within 11 points, but that is as close as Southern would come the rest of the night. Reed's trey was the only field goal for either team in the first five minutes of the second half, but the Aces eventually rounded into their first half form while the Salukis continued to flounder.
Evansville went on another run through the middle of the half, scoring 15 unanswered while Southern again went five minutes without scoring to find itself down 64-35. The two teams traded points in the final seven minutes as the Aces cruised to their largest win of the season.
Turnovers were an obvious culprit for the Salukis, but Southern also failed to keep Evansville off the offensive glass and sent the Aces to the free throw line far too often. Evansville pulled down 20 offensive rebounds and shot 30 free throws.
"The biggest thing is how hard those Evansville kids played," Tiber said. "I would like to see our kids play that hard. That is the big difference."
The Salukis will be back in action Friday, Jan. 21, at Bradley.
