Saturday, January 5
Cedar Falls, Iowa
7 p.m.
Southern Illinois University
9-6
58
at
51
Northern Iowa
6-9
1
2
F
Southern Illinois
26
32
58
UNI
24
27
51
Salukis grind out win at UNI to start MVC play 2-0
01/05/2019 | 9:42:00 | Men's Basketball
Photo Gallery
CARBONDALE, Ill. - The Southern Illinois men's basketball team started Missouri Valley Conference play 2-0 with a 58-51 road win at Northern Iowa in the McLeod Center on Saturday night.
"I think it's going to be synonymous with every game in The Valley. I've said it now for three weeks solid," SIU head coach Barry Hinson said about the tight game. "It feels great. We did it once again with a short lineup."
SIU (9-6, 2-0 MVC) played without All-MVC standouts Armon Fletcher (suspension) and Thik Bol (injury), but Kavion Pippen dominated the paint, scoring 18 points on 7-for-10 shooting. UNI (6-9, 1-1 MVC) took a 38-33 lead with 13 minutes to play, and Pippen sparked a 15-4 run to give SIU a 48-42 lead that it wouldn't relinquish.
"When they settle into their half court and need to have a good possession, everyone in the gym knows where it's going, and that's to their credit," UNI head coach Ben Jacobson said of Pippen. "They have different ways they can get him the basketball. It's hard to keep it out of his hands because he's so big. And when he gets it, if you don't go get him right away, he's going to get himself a good shot because he can score it going either way, either shoulder. He's a hard guy to play against."
When the defense collapsed on Pippen, Marcus Bartley took advantage on the outside, going 3-for-5 from beyond the arc and pouring in 13 points. Aaron Cook drew the defensive assignment of AJ Green, Northern Iowa's standout freshman point guard, and forced Green to take 16 shots to get his 16 points, including a 2-of-9 mark from 3-point range. In addition, Cook turned around and scored 14 points on the offensive end.
"Hopefully, one of the by-products of having a veteran team is that when you challenge them, they will respond. That first media timeout, we challenged them, and they responded," Hinson said of his senior-laden Salukis.
Cook led a smothering team defensive effort, holding Northern Iowa to 31.5 percent from the field. The Panthers hit nine 3-pointers, but SIU made them take 34 attempts to get there. UNI shot 26.5 percent from distance for the game.
"They made plays on both ends," Jacobson said of SIU. "That was a hard-fought game, which our games have been with Southern. This one wasn't a lot different than the games we've had with each other. Their defense has been good all year. It was good again tonight."
SIU held UNI to 27.6 percent shooting in the first half but led only 26-24 at intermission, thanks in part to 11 Panther offensive rebounds. But SIU clamped down the boards in the second half, outrebounding UNI by three an allowing only two offensive rebounds. Eric McGill (7 points, 8 rebounds) and Darius Beane (7 rebounds), both guards, led SIU in rebounding in the game.
SIU snapped a 14-game losing streak in Cedar Falls last season, and tonight's win gives the Salukis back-to-back wins on the road against UNI since 1994 and 1995.
Up next, SIU travels to Des Moines, Iowa, for a 7 p.m. game at Drake on Tuesday, January 8.
CARBONDALE, Ill. - The Southern Illinois men's basketball team started Missouri Valley Conference play 2-0 with a 58-51 road win at Northern Iowa in the McLeod Center on Saturday night.
"I think it's going to be synonymous with every game in The Valley. I've said it now for three weeks solid," SIU head coach Barry Hinson said about the tight game. "It feels great. We did it once again with a short lineup."
SIU (9-6, 2-0 MVC) played without All-MVC standouts Armon Fletcher (suspension) and Thik Bol (injury), but Kavion Pippen dominated the paint, scoring 18 points on 7-for-10 shooting. UNI (6-9, 1-1 MVC) took a 38-33 lead with 13 minutes to play, and Pippen sparked a 15-4 run to give SIU a 48-42 lead that it wouldn't relinquish.
"When they settle into their half court and need to have a good possession, everyone in the gym knows where it's going, and that's to their credit," UNI head coach Ben Jacobson said of Pippen. "They have different ways they can get him the basketball. It's hard to keep it out of his hands because he's so big. And when he gets it, if you don't go get him right away, he's going to get himself a good shot because he can score it going either way, either shoulder. He's a hard guy to play against."
When the defense collapsed on Pippen, Marcus Bartley took advantage on the outside, going 3-for-5 from beyond the arc and pouring in 13 points. Aaron Cook drew the defensive assignment of AJ Green, Northern Iowa's standout freshman point guard, and forced Green to take 16 shots to get his 16 points, including a 2-of-9 mark from 3-point range. In addition, Cook turned around and scored 14 points on the offensive end.
"Hopefully, one of the by-products of having a veteran team is that when you challenge them, they will respond. That first media timeout, we challenged them, and they responded," Hinson said of his senior-laden Salukis.
Cook led a smothering team defensive effort, holding Northern Iowa to 31.5 percent from the field. The Panthers hit nine 3-pointers, but SIU made them take 34 attempts to get there. UNI shot 26.5 percent from distance for the game.
"They made plays on both ends," Jacobson said of SIU. "That was a hard-fought game, which our games have been with Southern. This one wasn't a lot different than the games we've had with each other. Their defense has been good all year. It was good again tonight."
SIU held UNI to 27.6 percent shooting in the first half but led only 26-24 at intermission, thanks in part to 11 Panther offensive rebounds. But SIU clamped down the boards in the second half, outrebounding UNI by three an allowing only two offensive rebounds. Eric McGill (7 points, 8 rebounds) and Darius Beane (7 rebounds), both guards, led SIU in rebounding in the game.
SIU snapped a 14-game losing streak in Cedar Falls last season, and tonight's win gives the Salukis back-to-back wins on the road against UNI since 1994 and 1995.
Up next, SIU travels to Des Moines, Iowa, for a 7 p.m. game at Drake on Tuesday, January 8.
Team Stats
SIU
UNI
FG%
.450
.315
3FG%
.400
.265
FT%
.667
.571
RB
33
34
TO
14
12
STL
9
5
Game Leaders
Pts
18
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
14
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
4
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
7
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
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