Southern Illinois University
9-4 (1-1MVC)
Loyola University Chicago
10-3 (1-1MVC)
Ramblers slip past Salukis, 51-49
01/05/2020 | 4:03:00 | Women's Basketball
CHICAGO — The Southern Illinois University women's basketball team had its four-game win streak snapped Sunday, as the Loyola Ramblers held on to defeat the Salukis, 51-49 inside Gentile Arena.
The Salukis (1-1) trailed by as many as 11 in the second quarter and were down eight, 34-26 with 4:37 to play in the third. Southern scored 10-straight points over the next six minutes and 30 seconds of play to take its first lead of the second half at 36-34. From there, SIU battled to keep it a one-possession game and had two chances with under six seconds to play to either tie or take the lead but came up empty.
"We had trouble getting shots to go down all day," seventh-year head coach Cindy Stein said. "I felt like we had some good looks but we didn't make the plays. It goes back to what I told our team- Loyola played a great game and this is the way every game in the Valley is going to be so we better figure it out."
Kristen Nelson was the catalyst of Southern's comeback, as she scored 10 of her team-high 15 points with three minutes to go in the fourth. When the Salukis needed a big basket they found Nelson, who twice got SIU to within one, including with a strong take to the basket that made it 50-49 with :23 seconds to play. Southern had two chances with six seconds to play but couldn't convert either.
"All game we didn't pay attention to the details that we've been talking about," Stein said. "We will talk about that at practice this next week and get better."
Nelson finished with 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting to go along with five assists and three steals. Nicole Martin added 11 points, six rebounds and two steals while Gabby Walker chipped in eight points and two boards off the bench.
Nine different Salukis scored in the contest, which included five points and five rebounds from Abby Brockmeyer.
After shooting 40% or better from the floor in its first 11 games, the Salukis dipped below that mark for the second-straight contest. SIU shot 37.7% (20-of-53) from the field and shot a season-low 36.4% (4-of-11) from the charity stripe. Loyola, on the other hand, shot 44.4% (20-of-45) from the field and converted 53.3% (8-of-15) of its shot attempts at the free throw line.
"We had shots that didn't drop today," Stein said. "It wasn't our day. We knew we were going to have to fight and scramble to get other opportunities. That is just how it goes sometimes. Our defense has to step up when that happens and we have to find other ways to score."
The Salukis are back in action on Friday, Jan. 10 when they host the Northern Iowa Panthers. Southern, which will play its next three contests at home, tips off against UNI at 6 p.m.
