Southern Illinois University
17-13, 10-8MVC
Northern Iowa
17-13, 12-6MVC
Salukis fall 59-50 to UNI in MVC Quarterfinals
03/13/2015 | 12:00:00 | Women's Basketball
By Tyler Wooten
SIUSalukis.com
ST. CHARLES, Mo. -- Southern Illinois and Northern Iowa were neck-and-neck for 36 minutes of play, but in the last four UNI pulled away after Amber Sorenson hit three treys in 98 seconds to end SIU's season in a 59-50 loss at Family Arena on Friday afternoon.
Southern (17-13) and UNI (17-13) had played each other hard in each matchup this season, with the Panthers edging out a 79-70 win in Cedar Falls on Jan. 9 and SIU pulling off a 79-75 upset on Feb. 8. Today's game had far less offense until those fateful final four minutes when Sorenson and UNI caught fire en route to victory.
"The shots that she got off in their offense, we knew about," said SIU head coach Cindy Stein. "We worked on how we wanted to defend them, it's just a matter of moving our feet."
For 36 minutes, both SIU and UNI did a tremendous job on the defensive side of things. Neither school shot better than 38 percent in a single half, and both finished the game 35 or below (UNI, 35.1; SIU, 27.5). Southern was unbelievably proficient on the boards as well, breaking an 18-year old MVC Tournament record with 57 team rebounds, more than double what SIU managed last Saturday in a loss to Illinois State (26).
Much of that was thanks to junior All-MVC center Dyana Pierre, who yet again dominated the Panthers inside. On Feb. 8 at SIU Arena, Pierre posted the fifth-ever 20-20 game in SIU women's history with 26 points and 21 boards. Today, she nearly matched that effort with 18 points and 21 rebounds -- the latter of which is the third-most in a Valley Tournament game. In the process she broke the all-time single season SIU rebounding record after needing only six to break it entering today's contest. Now with 37 career double-doubles, Pierre is tied for third all-time in Valley history (since 1993).
Junior Azia Washington also had an amazing day on the block for SIU, recording her sixth double-double of the season and eighth of her career on 14 points and 14 rebounds. After a stagnant back-and-forth first half, Washington and Pierre's rebounding helped spark a Saluki offensive in the opening minutes of the second half. The duo helped SIU more than triple their total of offensive rebounds from the first half from seven to 24.
Southern came out of halftime on a mission, going on a 10-0 run to its largest lead of the game at 33-26 at the 15:36 mark. On the first possession of the first half the Saluki offense clicked into gear, working the ball around the perimeter until finding Pierre down low for a beautiful up-and-under layup. Junior Cartaesha Macklin (eight points, seven rebounds, three assists) followed that up with a smooth jumper from the top of the key, followed immediately by two superb offensive possessions on the boards.
"We had confidence at the start of the second half," Washington said. "We weren't playing well on the outside. We were playing well on the inside. I think it helped that Dyana and I were playing well on the inside. That helped our confidence."
With the score tied at 44-44 at the 3:57 media timeout, it seemed like deja vu for the Salukis and Panthers, who seemed to be heading toward a dramatic finish to advance to the semifinals for a shot at No. 1 seed Wichita State. But, Amber Sorenson got hot at just the right time. In 98 seconds she nailed three treys and drained Southern of what little momentum it had left. Redshirt sophomore Rishonda Napier (eight points, eight rebounds) banked in two desperation threes in the closing minutes for SIU's only threes of the game (2-of-18, .111), but it wasn't enough to stem the Panther tide.
"I'm extremely proud of this team," Stein said. "It was a very hard-fought game. I just felt if we could have taken one or two minutes and replayed them where we played confident, then it might have been different. But, Northern Iowa is a great team."
The loss potentially closes the lid on an extraordinary turnaround season for Stein and the Salukis. In just her second season at the helm, Stein steered SIU toward its largest turnaround in school history and broke some nasty losing streaks against Valley schools in the process. Impressively, she did all this with most of the same players she inherited one year ago after only losing two seniors last season and regaining Macklin and Napier, who missed most of last season.
"I think we were a lot hungrier," said SIU senior Mercedes Griffin in potentially her last game as a Saluki. "We just wanted it more. Last season wasn't so great for us. So just having everybody back as a team, that helped us out a lot."
But, there may be an epilogue in the works for the 2014-15 Saluki women. At 17-13 and with some impressive wins on their resume, the Salukis have a chance at postseason play in some fashion.
"Obviously (this loss) hurts right now, but I think we'll get to go back out there and give it another shot whenever we can," Washington said. "We've already proven a lot of people wrong this season, just doing the things we've done."
In the event SIU isn't invited to any of the postseason hangouts, next year's squad looks to be formidable. All five Saluki starters return, and a handful of talented freshman should be able to join in on the fun in the hunt for SIU's first Valley title since 2006-07.
"I'm always excited," Pierre said when asked about next year's team. "There's always room for improvement. I'm excited for the entire team. I'm excited to see what Coach Stein has in store for us."
