Saturday, February 29
Springfield, Mo.
3 p.m.
Southern Illinois University
16-15 (10-8MVC)
59
at
84
Missouri State
15-16 (9-9MVC)
1
2
F
Southern Illinois
31
28
59
Missouri State
39
45
84
Missouri State tops SIU in the regular season finale, 84-59
02/29/2020 | 5:20:00 | Men's Basketball
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - SIU freshman Lance Jones scored 28 points, but Missouri State beat SIU 84-59 on Saturday afternoon in JQH Arena. SIU forced a season-high 24 turnovers, but also committed a season-high 23 turnovers in the loss.
"Give credit to Missouri State. Defensively, they really bothered us with their pressure," SIU head coach Bryan Mullins said. "We're not going to win many games when we turn the ball over 23 times. We have to do a better job valuing the ball. Defensively, we have to be better in terms of our discipline."
Jones and fellow freshman Trent Brown combined to go 14-for-23 from the field, but the rest of SIU's roster went just 3-for-23 from the field. Missouri State (15-16, 9-9 MVC) got a balanced effort, with five players in double figures to go along with nine points from Woodlawn, Ill., native Ross Owens. The Bears shot 54.2% from the field and were the first team to eclipse 80 points against SIU (16-15, 10-8 MVC).
For SIU, Jones was outstanding all game. Earlier this season, SIU freshman Marcus Domask became the first MVC freshman since 2014 to score 28 points in a league game. Eight games later, Jones joined him on the list. He went 10-for-17 from the field and got to the line 10 times, knocking down seven free throws.
"He was aggressive. He didn't back down," Mullins said of Jones. "Obviously he had some turnovers, but he got downhill for us. He kept attacking. He didn't have his head down. His body language was good all night, and he tried to get his teammates involved, too."
SIU was in for a tough challenge. The Salukis were playing their fourth game in 10 days; they were on the road; and Missouri State had an extra day of rest. Plus, the Bears have played inspired basketball ever since SIU freshman Marcus Domask hit a game-winner at the buzzer to beat the Bears in Carbondale on February 8. Since then, Missouri State is 4-2, including a 35-point win over Drake and a win over Loyola. And with their wins, plus Indiana State's win over Valpo, which ended prior to the start of today's game, the Bears were in a position today to get out of Thursday's opening round of the MVC Tournament with a win, and they took advantage of it.
SIU, which was picked last in the preseason MVC poll, became just the fourth team in league history that was picked last and went on to finish in the top half of the league (preseason poll since 1986). SIU's 10 MVC wins are tied with Drake (2018) for the most-ever league wins by a team picked last in the preseason poll.
SIU will be the 5-seed in the 2020 MVC Tournament and will play at 2:35 p.m. CT on Friday, March 6. SIU's opponent is almost certainly going to be Bradley, pending the official release of the NET rankings Sunday morning.
"We've beaten or played every team close this year. There isn't a team that we can't beat, or can't play with," Mullins said. "We have an opportunity to go into the tournament with a fresh start. It's a new season. I know our guys will be ready; I'm confident in that, so I'm excited to get to St. Louis."
"Give credit to Missouri State. Defensively, they really bothered us with their pressure," SIU head coach Bryan Mullins said. "We're not going to win many games when we turn the ball over 23 times. We have to do a better job valuing the ball. Defensively, we have to be better in terms of our discipline."
Jones and fellow freshman Trent Brown combined to go 14-for-23 from the field, but the rest of SIU's roster went just 3-for-23 from the field. Missouri State (15-16, 9-9 MVC) got a balanced effort, with five players in double figures to go along with nine points from Woodlawn, Ill., native Ross Owens. The Bears shot 54.2% from the field and were the first team to eclipse 80 points against SIU (16-15, 10-8 MVC).
For SIU, Jones was outstanding all game. Earlier this season, SIU freshman Marcus Domask became the first MVC freshman since 2014 to score 28 points in a league game. Eight games later, Jones joined him on the list. He went 10-for-17 from the field and got to the line 10 times, knocking down seven free throws.
"He was aggressive. He didn't back down," Mullins said of Jones. "Obviously he had some turnovers, but he got downhill for us. He kept attacking. He didn't have his head down. His body language was good all night, and he tried to get his teammates involved, too."
SIU was in for a tough challenge. The Salukis were playing their fourth game in 10 days; they were on the road; and Missouri State had an extra day of rest. Plus, the Bears have played inspired basketball ever since SIU freshman Marcus Domask hit a game-winner at the buzzer to beat the Bears in Carbondale on February 8. Since then, Missouri State is 4-2, including a 35-point win over Drake and a win over Loyola. And with their wins, plus Indiana State's win over Valpo, which ended prior to the start of today's game, the Bears were in a position today to get out of Thursday's opening round of the MVC Tournament with a win, and they took advantage of it.
SIU, which was picked last in the preseason MVC poll, became just the fourth team in league history that was picked last and went on to finish in the top half of the league (preseason poll since 1986). SIU's 10 MVC wins are tied with Drake (2018) for the most-ever league wins by a team picked last in the preseason poll.
SIU will be the 5-seed in the 2020 MVC Tournament and will play at 2:35 p.m. CT on Friday, March 6. SIU's opponent is almost certainly going to be Bradley, pending the official release of the NET rankings Sunday morning.
"We've beaten or played every team close this year. There isn't a team that we can't beat, or can't play with," Mullins said. "We have an opportunity to go into the tournament with a fresh start. It's a new season. I know our guys will be ready; I'm confident in that, so I'm excited to get to St. Louis."
Team Stats
SIU
MSU
FG%
.370
.542
3FG%
.190
.556
FT%
.750
.759
RB
20
37
TO
23
24
STL
12
14
Game Leaders
Pts
28
FGM
10
3FGM
1
FTM
7
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
7
FGM
1
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
5
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
3
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