Southern Illinois University
11-12,4-8MVC
Illinois State University
15-9, 8-5MVC
Women's Basketball's comeback bid versus Illinois State falls just short, 68-66
02/17/2019 | 4:33:00 | Women's Basketball
CARBONDALE, Ill. — Southern Illinois rallied from an early 16-point deficit to take a five-point fourth quarter lead, but Illinois State responded with a 12-5 run in the final four minutes to eke out a 68-66 win on Sunday at SIU Arena.
The Salukis (11-12, 4-8) connected on 5-of-6 shots from 3-point range in the fourth quarter, including two each by Makenzie Silvey and Payton McCallister and one by Kristen Nelson. They were in good position to pull off the comeback but missed three-straight free throws in the final 90 seconds, and Nelson's potential game-tying baseline jumper with one second left rolled off the back of the rim.
"Today was one of those roller-coaster rides," said SIU head coach Cindy Stein said. "We didn't start out very good, made a strong comeback. We just didn't close it out. That's my responsibility, my fault. I have to call a better play at the end of the game, get a better shot for our team."
The Redbirds (15-9, 8-5) were led by center Simone Goods, who scored 24 points on 11-of-14 shooting and helped ISU win the battle of points in the paint, 42-22. Teammate Tete Maggette was also instrumental in the win. The 5-foot-8 junior guard scored 10 of her 14 points during the game-ending run, including a pair of 3-pointers.
Illinois State came out on fire, making its first seven shots and sprinting to a 23-7 lead. Goods made her first three shots but also picked up two fouls midway through the first quarter and sat on the bench the rest of the half.
Southern used a 13-2 run midway through the second quarter to trim the deficit to five. It started with a nifty driving layup by Brittney Patrick and then featured 11-straight points by Nelson.
"What I loved about our team is we came back and we fought," Stein said. "We started having a lot of scrappy plays and playing a little bit (more freely). What we need to do is figure out how we can play that free when we have a lead."
After trailing by seven early in the fourth quarter, the Salukis climbed back with back-to-back treys by McCallister and Silvey. A McCalliser steal led to a breakaway layup for Nelson that cut the deficit to 53-52.
Southern finally tied the game, 55-55, on a put-back by Abby Brockmeyer. The Salukis took their first lead moments later when Brockmeyer got a steal and McAllister drained a three-ball to make it 58-55 with 5:45 to go, bringing the crowd of 446 to its feet.
Another three by Silvey gave the Salukis their biggest lead of the game, 61-56, with 4:15 remaining. That's when Maggette flipped the momentum back in ISU's favor with eight-straight points to tie the game, 64-64. Simone and Brockmeyer exchanged buckets before Maggette hit the game-winner with 26 seconds left. Brockmeyer's basket could have been a three-point play, but she missed the free throw.
"We wanted the game so bad that we kind of froze up," Stein said. "It's very discouraging when you have a lead and all of the sudden it disappears. When we missed our free throws, I saw our kids' heads hang."
After a three-game homestand, Southern is in seventh place in the Missouri Valley Conference standings. The Salukis play four of their final six games on the road and would like to climb into the top-six seeds for the conference tournament to avoid a play-in game.
"We have to continue to be positive with them," Stein said. "We have a very talented team. We have to continue to fight."
