Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Southern Illinois University
0-1
Ohio Dominican University
1-0
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio Dominican | 30 | 34 | 64 |
| Southern Illinois | 33 | 30 | 63 |
Men's Basketball upset by Ohio Dominican, 64-63
11/12/2011 | 12:00:00 | Men's Basketball
Nov. 12, 2011
By Tom Weber
SIUSalukis.com
CARBONDALE, Ill. - Southern Illinois wore all black uniforms for its men's basketball season opener, and perhaps that was the appropriate color for what transpired on the court. Division II Division II Ohio Dominican pulled off the upset, 64-63, in a contest in which the teams combined to commit 48 turnovers.
There wasn't supposed to be much drama in this game for the Salukis (0-1), who blew out a pair of Division II teams in exhibitions by an average margin of 28 points. The undersized D2 Panthers (1-0) were a scrappy bunch, however, and they took advantage of mistake-prone SIU.
There were 11 ties and 13 lead changes in the see-saw struggle, in which both teams were careless with the basketball.
ODU won despite committing 27 turnovers. It won without making a field goal in the last 5:48 of the game. It won because Southern committed 21 turnovers of its own and had a dreadful shooting night. The only 3-point shot the Salukis made came in the first half when T.J. Lindsay banked one home from the top of the key. The Salukis missed tip-ins and point-blank shots in bunches.
"I have no idea why we missed so many lay ups today," said head coach Chris Lowery, whose team grabbed 19 offensive rebounds agains the undersized Panthers, but could only turn those into 10 second-chance points. "We missed bunnies. It was the way the ball bounced today, we have to correct it and move on."
Southern started the game sluggishly, missing 6-of-8 shots and committing three turnovers in its first 11 possessions. With his team trailing at the first media timeout, 7-4, Lowery yanked all five starters from the floor.
The teams essentially traded baskets until midway through the first half, when Southern went on a 14-2 run. It began with Lindsay's 3-pointer, and included back-to-back fast-break dunks by Justin Bocot and Dantiel Daniels.
Trailing by eight late in the first half, the Panthers didn't fold, though. Morgan Jones, who led his team with 15 points, hit a pair of short jumpers in the final minute to cut the deficit to 33-30 at halftime.
The visitors hung around in the second half, and used a 7-0 run to break a 50-50 tie, as Brandon Carr capped the spurt with a 3-pointer at the 5:48 mark.
The Salukis stormed back behind seniors Mamadou Seck and Justin Bocot, using a 9-1 run to regain the lead, 59-58, with 2:13 remaining.
From that point forward, Southern just couldn't stop fouling. They were whistled five times in the last two minutes of the game, and the Panthers turned those fouls into six points at the free throw line.
On offense, SIU could muster only a pair of free throws and a late jumper by Bocot, who scored 18 points in the game.
"We struggled today shooting the basketball," Lowery said. "We needed to get more looks for Justin, who didn't take a three until the second half. He has to get going for us."
Seck, who had his eighth career double-double with 18 points and 14 rebounds, said it's too early for his team to panic.
"It's the first game," he said. "We have a great group, we have players that want to win."
The loss to a Division II opponent was the second for Lowery, whose 2006 team fell to Alaska-Anchorarge. That squad came back to win 22 games, win the MVC Tournament and advance to the NCAA Tournament.
"I'm disappointed but I'm not going to hang my head," he said. "We have to move forward from it. It's the beginning of the year where nobody is as good as they will be by the end. If this is a growing point and the springboard for us, then we'll use it and move forward."
