Friday, December 11
Carbondale, Ill.
6:30 PM
Southern Illinois University
3-0,0-0MVC
70
vs
66
Murray State
3-2,1-0OVC
1
2
F
Murray St.
32
34
66
Southern Ill.
40
30
70
Salukis improve to 3-0 with 70-66 win over Murray State
12/11/2020 | 9:01:00 | Men's Basketball
CARBONDALE, Ill. - The SIU men's basketball team led nearly wire-to-wire in a 70-66 win over Murray State on Friday night at Banterra Center. In the game's final 10 minutes, neither team ever led by more than one possession until Marcus Domask's free throw with eight seconds to go, earning a young, gritty Salukis team a win over an outstanding Murray State team that is picked to win the OVC for a fourth-straight year.
"I'm proud of our guys," SIU head coach Bryan Mullins said. "We have so much respect for (Murray State). That's a championship program. I've said it before: That's somewhere we want to be, in terms of going to the NCAA tournament every single year. That is a really well coached team. Our guys did a great job with the ebbs and the flows of the game – not breaking. It's tough to guard them. It's tough to score on them. Our guys just found a way to win again. I think that's what I'm most proud about - the guys' resiliency in this game. It's great to be able to learn from winning."
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Everything There Is To See » Highlights | Mullins Postgame Presser | Brown Postgame Presser | Photo Gallery | Mullins Postgame with Reis | Inside the Locker Room
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The undersized Salukis (3-0) lost the rebounding battle by nine and were outscored in second-chance points 15-to-1. But they made up for it on the break, pouring in a 25-to-9 advantage in fast break points. SIU also shot 47% from the 3-point line (9-of-19) and held Murray (3-2) to 35% (8-of-23). And it was a balanced SIU attack. Five Salukis scored in double figures, led by Marcus Domask and Anthony D'Avanzo with 13 points apiece. Ben Harvey (12), Lance Jones (10) and Dalton Banks (10) all also scored in double-figures.
"We are still figuring out rotations, but the biggest thing is, if we can take care of the ball and continue to share the ball, I think we have a lot of different guys that can do things offensively," Mullins said.
Another star of the game was Trent Brown, who only had six points. But he played outstanding defense on Murray State star Tevin Brown, who averaged 18 points per game last year and had torched SIU each of the past two seasons. But Trent held Tevin to 1-for-7 from the field and only three points tonight. Trent Brown also posted four assists and no turnovers and had a game-high +12 on the +/- chart.
"Trent's such a tough kid," Mullins said. "What an unbelievable performance by him. Steven (Verplanken) did a great job on Tevin (Brown), Dalton (Banks) got on Tevin a little bit and it was a team defensive concept. Trent was chasing him along those staggers, ball screens and flares. He just didn't break."
The Salukis earned a premier win over a top-100 KenPom team in Murray State. The Racers have won three-straight OVC regular season titles and are favored to win a fourth-straight this season -- and they had beaten SIU three-straight years. But a gritty, young group of Salukis -- who are just getting their feet under them after missing most of November due to positive tests and contact tracing quarentines -- played inspired from the tip to earn the win.
"It's big because it's another win for our program and our guys," Mullins said. "It's just a start for our team. We've had limited practice time and our guys are continuing to get better and put the work in every single day."
SIU started the game with back-to-back 3-pointers to force a Murray State timeout less than a minute into the game. Southern pushed that lead out to 12-2, its largest lead of the game. From there, it was a back-and-forth battle, with SIU never relinquishing the lead, but Murray State always threatening. Lance Jones hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the first-half horn to give SIU a 40-32 lead at the break.
The game's final 10 minutes were outstanding. After threatening all game, Murray State finally took its first lead of the game with 5:40 remaining. SIU tied it back up, scoring with an out-of-timeout play, and Brown gave SIU the lead with a 3-pointer. But the Racers again charged back and took the lead again at the 1:24 mark. But again, the Salukis immediately answered, this time with two clutch free throws from Lance Jones. SIU got a stop on the other end, two more clutch free throws from true freshman Dalton Banks, and another stop to secure the win.
"Pulling out these close games early in the year shows some toughness and resiliency," Mullins said. "It shows that our sophomore group that's here with us is learning from the losses of last year."
UP NEXT: SIU added a neutral-site game against Duquesne for Monday, December 14, at 3 p.m. CT in Indianapolis. Listen to the game on the Saluki Sports Network.
NOTES: The all-time series between SIU and Murray State is now tied, 19-19 ... SIU is 3-0 for the first time since 2015-16 ... SIU is 14-3 at home under Bryan Mullins and 19-4 in its last 23 home games ... SIU won its sixth-straight non-conference home game ... SIU had five players in double figures for a second-straight game. SIU is 4-0 under Bryan Mullins when five players score in double figures (2-0 in 2019-20 and 2-0 this season).
MORE FROM MULLINS
On getting to the free throw line... "There are two sides to the ball. They turned us over a lot. When we played the right way, when the ball didn't stick, that's when we opened up the opportunities for our guys. I think our guys did a good job of driving through contact and getting them in the bonus. That was important."
On what the best thing from the game is... "It was great to be back, that's for sure. Their body language was great, all fourteen guys, throughout the whole course of the game. We would have turnovers, miss block-outs, let them get lay-ups, let them hit open three's, but the message was the same at the bench: 'We got this. Next play. Next play.' Everyone was encouraging each other, and I think for us, that's a tribute to our guys in that locker room."
On Dalton Banks' two clutch free throws at the end of the game... "I'm happy for Dalton. He's one of the hardest workers there is. He's worked on free throws, especially. Almost every practice, I make him make two free throws or the team runs. For him to knock those two down, it shows his mental toughness and his confidence in himself. It was huge for us."
On the young team... "We have a lot of freshmen and sophomores, with (seniors) Anthony (D'Avanzo) and Jakolby (Long). Like I said, I think those sophomore have done a great job with leadership. I don't know if it's a mature team, but I think it's a bunch of winners in the locker room. It's a bunch of guys who have won their whole lives, that hate losing, and know how to win."
On the locker room postgame... "It was great. It was great for me to see those guys express that type of emotion, with everything that has happened in the last five months. For them to be here, to go through quarantines, not be able to go home and see their parents, with all the Covid testing three times a week, to see that type of elation, I was happy for the guys."
On the bench... "I'm proud of the whole team. Our bench was awesome. Will (Keller), J.D. (Muila), Jakolby (Long) and all of those guys on the bench were giving the team energy every single possession."
"I'm proud of our guys," SIU head coach Bryan Mullins said. "We have so much respect for (Murray State). That's a championship program. I've said it before: That's somewhere we want to be, in terms of going to the NCAA tournament every single year. That is a really well coached team. Our guys did a great job with the ebbs and the flows of the game – not breaking. It's tough to guard them. It's tough to score on them. Our guys just found a way to win again. I think that's what I'm most proud about - the guys' resiliency in this game. It's great to be able to learn from winning."
---
Everything There Is To See » Highlights | Mullins Postgame Presser | Brown Postgame Presser | Photo Gallery | Mullins Postgame with Reis | Inside the Locker Room
---
The undersized Salukis (3-0) lost the rebounding battle by nine and were outscored in second-chance points 15-to-1. But they made up for it on the break, pouring in a 25-to-9 advantage in fast break points. SIU also shot 47% from the 3-point line (9-of-19) and held Murray (3-2) to 35% (8-of-23). And it was a balanced SIU attack. Five Salukis scored in double figures, led by Marcus Domask and Anthony D'Avanzo with 13 points apiece. Ben Harvey (12), Lance Jones (10) and Dalton Banks (10) all also scored in double-figures.
"We are still figuring out rotations, but the biggest thing is, if we can take care of the ball and continue to share the ball, I think we have a lot of different guys that can do things offensively," Mullins said.
Another star of the game was Trent Brown, who only had six points. But he played outstanding defense on Murray State star Tevin Brown, who averaged 18 points per game last year and had torched SIU each of the past two seasons. But Trent held Tevin to 1-for-7 from the field and only three points tonight. Trent Brown also posted four assists and no turnovers and had a game-high +12 on the +/- chart.
"Trent's such a tough kid," Mullins said. "What an unbelievable performance by him. Steven (Verplanken) did a great job on Tevin (Brown), Dalton (Banks) got on Tevin a little bit and it was a team defensive concept. Trent was chasing him along those staggers, ball screens and flares. He just didn't break."
The Salukis earned a premier win over a top-100 KenPom team in Murray State. The Racers have won three-straight OVC regular season titles and are favored to win a fourth-straight this season -- and they had beaten SIU three-straight years. But a gritty, young group of Salukis -- who are just getting their feet under them after missing most of November due to positive tests and contact tracing quarentines -- played inspired from the tip to earn the win.
"It's big because it's another win for our program and our guys," Mullins said. "It's just a start for our team. We've had limited practice time and our guys are continuing to get better and put the work in every single day."
SIU started the game with back-to-back 3-pointers to force a Murray State timeout less than a minute into the game. Southern pushed that lead out to 12-2, its largest lead of the game. From there, it was a back-and-forth battle, with SIU never relinquishing the lead, but Murray State always threatening. Lance Jones hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the first-half horn to give SIU a 40-32 lead at the break.
The game's final 10 minutes were outstanding. After threatening all game, Murray State finally took its first lead of the game with 5:40 remaining. SIU tied it back up, scoring with an out-of-timeout play, and Brown gave SIU the lead with a 3-pointer. But the Racers again charged back and took the lead again at the 1:24 mark. But again, the Salukis immediately answered, this time with two clutch free throws from Lance Jones. SIU got a stop on the other end, two more clutch free throws from true freshman Dalton Banks, and another stop to secure the win.
"Pulling out these close games early in the year shows some toughness and resiliency," Mullins said. "It shows that our sophomore group that's here with us is learning from the losses of last year."
UP NEXT: SIU added a neutral-site game against Duquesne for Monday, December 14, at 3 p.m. CT in Indianapolis. Listen to the game on the Saluki Sports Network.
NOTES: The all-time series between SIU and Murray State is now tied, 19-19 ... SIU is 3-0 for the first time since 2015-16 ... SIU is 14-3 at home under Bryan Mullins and 19-4 in its last 23 home games ... SIU won its sixth-straight non-conference home game ... SIU had five players in double figures for a second-straight game. SIU is 4-0 under Bryan Mullins when five players score in double figures (2-0 in 2019-20 and 2-0 this season).
MORE FROM MULLINS
On getting to the free throw line... "There are two sides to the ball. They turned us over a lot. When we played the right way, when the ball didn't stick, that's when we opened up the opportunities for our guys. I think our guys did a good job of driving through contact and getting them in the bonus. That was important."
On what the best thing from the game is... "It was great to be back, that's for sure. Their body language was great, all fourteen guys, throughout the whole course of the game. We would have turnovers, miss block-outs, let them get lay-ups, let them hit open three's, but the message was the same at the bench: 'We got this. Next play. Next play.' Everyone was encouraging each other, and I think for us, that's a tribute to our guys in that locker room."
On Dalton Banks' two clutch free throws at the end of the game... "I'm happy for Dalton. He's one of the hardest workers there is. He's worked on free throws, especially. Almost every practice, I make him make two free throws or the team runs. For him to knock those two down, it shows his mental toughness and his confidence in himself. It was huge for us."
On the young team... "We have a lot of freshmen and sophomores, with (seniors) Anthony (D'Avanzo) and Jakolby (Long). Like I said, I think those sophomore have done a great job with leadership. I don't know if it's a mature team, but I think it's a bunch of winners in the locker room. It's a bunch of guys who have won their whole lives, that hate losing, and know how to win."
On the locker room postgame... "It was great. It was great for me to see those guys express that type of emotion, with everything that has happened in the last five months. For them to be here, to go through quarantines, not be able to go home and see their parents, with all the Covid testing three times a week, to see that type of elation, I was happy for the guys."
On the bench... "I'm proud of the whole team. Our bench was awesome. Will (Keller), J.D. (Muila), Jakolby (Long) and all of those guys on the bench were giving the team energy every single possession."
Team Stats
MSU
SIU
FG%
.426
.465
3FG%
.348
.474
FT%
.857
.808
RB
36
27
TO
18
18
STL
8
5
Game Leaders
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
3
Pts
12
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
6
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
G
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