Sunday, February 24
Carbondale, Ill.
3 p.m.
Southern Illinois University
15-14, 8-8MVC
63
vs
53
Loyola
17-12, 10-6MVC
1
2
F
Loyola Chicago
30
23
53
Southern Illinois
29
34
63
Salukis take down league-leading Loyola, 63-53
02/24/2019 | 5:36:00 | Men's Basketball
CARBONDALE, Ill. - The Southern Illinois men's basketball team held Loyola to 39 percent shooting in the second half to earn a 63-53 win over the Missouri Valley Conference leading Ramblers.Â
"It's a monkey off your back, a signature win, to beat the first-place team in the league," SIU head coach Barry Hinson said. "We proved to ourselves, confidence-wise, that we can play with anyone in the league. We responded after a loss. Lately, every time we've been beaten, we've responded. It was a gut-wrenching, grind-it-out type game."
Armon Fletcher (18), Kavion Pippen (12) and Aaron Cook (11) combined for 41 points to lead SIU (15-14, 8-8 MVC). Loyola (17-12, 10-6 MVC) was led by Cameron Krutwig and Clayton Custer, who each had 17 points. But SIU forced Custer to take 15 shots to earn his 17 points and also held MVC Player of the Year candidate Marques Townes to eight points on 4-of-15 shooting.
"Everyone is yelling at me to stop Krutwig. We don't have anyone who can stop Krutwig. I'm sorry, but he's going to score. We have to do a job on the other guys," Hinson said. "I thought we did a good job on their guards today."
Loyola shot 52 percent in the first half after a buzzer-beater put the Ramblers up 30-29 at halftime, but Southern Illinois locked down defensively in the second half, holding Loyola to 38 percent shooting. SIU outscored the Ramblers by 11 in the second half. Custer hit a 3-pointer to give Loyola a 47-43 lead with nine minutes left in the game, and the Salukis closed the game on a 20-6 run. In the final nine minutes, SIU limited Loyola to 2-for-12 shooting with four turnovers.Â
"The key today, without question, was our defense," Hinson said. "We guarded in transition. We gave up over 20 points in transition the last time we played; today, we gave up only seven points in transition. It was a huge emphasis."
Eric McGill ignited the run with a steal and breakaway dunk that brought a vocal crowd of 4,591 to its feet. In the final two minutes, with SIU's lead at just a point, Aaron Cook nailed an off-balance corner 3-pointer to give SIU a two-possession lead. McGill followed with two clutch free throws; and his second trip to the line, after a missed 1-and-1, he got his own miss and laid it in to seal the win. After the game, Hinson was quick to point out that everyone made big plays in the win.Â
"Thik Bol changed the game defensively, drawing two charges," Hinson said. "KP had 12 (points) and 9 (rebounds). Armon had 18 and 7. Eric McGill passed the basketball. Sean Lloyd Jr. scored six points but may have been the most impactful player on the floor for the job he did on (Marques) Townes. Darius Beane had a huge steal in a moment when I was asking about taking a timeout. Everybody that played (made big plays)."Â
Loyola came into the game leading the nation in defensive rebounding percentage, but SIU may have swung the game on the offensive glass, collecting nine offensive boards and outscoring Looyola 13-to-2 in second-chance points.Â
The result continued an unpredictable Missouri Valley Conference race, which saw all three of its co-leaders lose this week. Just four games separate first place from ninth place, the closest race in conference history late in the season, with SIU squarely in the middle, tied with Bradley and Illinois State for fifth place at 8-8. Southern Illinois closes the season with a Wednesday night game at Evansville and a Saturday afternoon Senior Day game against Illinois State.Â
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"It's a monkey off your back, a signature win, to beat the first-place team in the league," SIU head coach Barry Hinson said. "We proved to ourselves, confidence-wise, that we can play with anyone in the league. We responded after a loss. Lately, every time we've been beaten, we've responded. It was a gut-wrenching, grind-it-out type game."
Armon Fletcher (18), Kavion Pippen (12) and Aaron Cook (11) combined for 41 points to lead SIU (15-14, 8-8 MVC). Loyola (17-12, 10-6 MVC) was led by Cameron Krutwig and Clayton Custer, who each had 17 points. But SIU forced Custer to take 15 shots to earn his 17 points and also held MVC Player of the Year candidate Marques Townes to eight points on 4-of-15 shooting.
"Everyone is yelling at me to stop Krutwig. We don't have anyone who can stop Krutwig. I'm sorry, but he's going to score. We have to do a job on the other guys," Hinson said. "I thought we did a good job on their guards today."
Loyola shot 52 percent in the first half after a buzzer-beater put the Ramblers up 30-29 at halftime, but Southern Illinois locked down defensively in the second half, holding Loyola to 38 percent shooting. SIU outscored the Ramblers by 11 in the second half. Custer hit a 3-pointer to give Loyola a 47-43 lead with nine minutes left in the game, and the Salukis closed the game on a 20-6 run. In the final nine minutes, SIU limited Loyola to 2-for-12 shooting with four turnovers.Â
"The key today, without question, was our defense," Hinson said. "We guarded in transition. We gave up over 20 points in transition the last time we played; today, we gave up only seven points in transition. It was a huge emphasis."
Eric McGill ignited the run with a steal and breakaway dunk that brought a vocal crowd of 4,591 to its feet. In the final two minutes, with SIU's lead at just a point, Aaron Cook nailed an off-balance corner 3-pointer to give SIU a two-possession lead. McGill followed with two clutch free throws; and his second trip to the line, after a missed 1-and-1, he got his own miss and laid it in to seal the win. After the game, Hinson was quick to point out that everyone made big plays in the win.Â
"Thik Bol changed the game defensively, drawing two charges," Hinson said. "KP had 12 (points) and 9 (rebounds). Armon had 18 and 7. Eric McGill passed the basketball. Sean Lloyd Jr. scored six points but may have been the most impactful player on the floor for the job he did on (Marques) Townes. Darius Beane had a huge steal in a moment when I was asking about taking a timeout. Everybody that played (made big plays)."Â
Loyola came into the game leading the nation in defensive rebounding percentage, but SIU may have swung the game on the offensive glass, collecting nine offensive boards and outscoring Looyola 13-to-2 in second-chance points.Â
The result continued an unpredictable Missouri Valley Conference race, which saw all three of its co-leaders lose this week. Just four games separate first place from ninth place, the closest race in conference history late in the season, with SIU squarely in the middle, tied with Bradley and Illinois State for fifth place at 8-8. Southern Illinois closes the season with a Wednesday night game at Evansville and a Saturday afternoon Senior Day game against Illinois State.Â
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Team Stats
LOY
SIU
FG%
.449
.453
3FG%
.100
.286
FT%
.667
.692
RB
26
34
TO
11
10
STL
5
5
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
18
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
5
Pts
12
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballC
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