Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Women's Basketball set to travel to Loyola on Friday
02/04/2016 | 12:00:00 | Women's Basketball
| Southern Illinois (13-8, 6-3 MVC) at Loyola (10-10, 6-3 MVC) | |
| Date | Friday, Feb. 5, 2016 |
| Time | 7 p.m. CT |
| Location | Chicago, Ill. / Gentile Arena (4,486) |
| Game Notes | Southern Illinois |
| Video | ESPN3 |
| Radio | Saluki All-Access |
| Live Stats | Stat Broadcast |
| Tickets | Buy Tickets |
| Media Guide | SIU Media Guide |
| Social Media | @SIU_WBasketball |
By: Will Becque
SIUSalukis.com
CHICAGO, Ill. -- After sweeping Indiana State and Illinois State at home for the first time since the 1996-97 season, the Salukis will travel to Loyola to take on the Ramblers (10-10, 6-3 MVC). Southern is looking to avenge a Jan. 10 overtime loss to Loyola, with the two squads tipping off on Friday, Feb. 5 at 7 p.m. inside Gentile Arena. Fans can tune into WVZA 105.1 FM starting at 6:40 p.m. for game coverage, while the game can be viewed on ESPN3.
Southern fell 69-68, in overtime to Loyola on Jan. 10. The game was physical from the get-go, with the battle down low between Loyola's Taylor Manuel and SIU's Dyana Pierre taking center stage. However, it was another Taylor who came up big for the Ramblers, as Taylor Johnson's double-double of 29 points and 12 rebounds led Loyola to the road win.
SIU head coach Cindy Stein reflected on what happened to the Salukis in their last bout with the Ramblers.
"The last game we had a lot of miscommunication [on the court], especially defensively," said Stein. "Different things we wanted to do, we never got into. When you do that, you get back on your heels a little bit. I also felt like we didn't score quite like we wanted to. We weren't seeing some of the early openings and gaps."
SIU was led against Loyola by Cartaesha Macklin, who finished with 22 points, four assists and a pair of steals. The Mayo, Fla., native has her second-highest scoring average against any conference opponent versus Loyola, averaging 16.3 points, 5.7 assists and 5.9 rebounds in five career meetings.
The Salukis are 8-3 at home, but just 5-5 on the road this season. Southern won four-straight away contests from Dec. 19 until Jan. 3, before a road swing at Wichita State and Missouri State snapped the streak with a pair of tough losses.
"We have to go [to Loyola], play on their home court and show some toughness and resiliency and get the job done," said Stein.
Southern will be back in action on Sunday, Feb. 7 against the Bradley Braves. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. In addition, SIU's Feb. 19 game against Missouri State has been selected as one of the Missouri Valley Conference's Wildcard Weekend telecasts. The game will be distributed on The Valley on ESPN3 live from Carbondale, Ill. Tickets for the game are available on SIUSalukis.com and by calling 877-SALUKIS.
