Southern Illinois University
8-10,5-8MVC
Indiana State University
4-12,1-10MVC
Salukis throttle Sycamores, 76-52
02/20/2021 | 7:07:00 | Women's Basketball
Southern completes the season sweep of Indiana State with the win.
Terre Haute, Ind. — The Southern Illinois University women's basketball team completed the season sweep of Indiana State Saturday, as the Salukis pulled away in the second half to defeat the Sycamores, 76-52, inside the Hulman Center.
The Sycamores led at the end of the first quarter, but the Salukis used an 11-2 run midway through the second quarter to build a seven-point advantage at the half. Southern grew its lead to double-digits by the end of the third quarter and shot 76.9-percent (10-of-13) in the fourth quarter to double-up Indiana State, 24-12 in the stanza.
"I'm very proud of our team for being able to win these two games on the road," eighth-year head coach Cindy Stein said. "We knew Indiana State would make some adjustments and try to take away some of our ball movement. We just feel good about being able to come home with two wins."
The back-to-back road wins in Terre Haute were Southern's first road wins of the 2020-21 season. The Salukis did so with a rotation of eight players, many of whom played 30-plus minutes the night before. SIU's win was all the more impressive given they were able to do so despite foul trouble rearing its ugly head. Gabby Walker fouled out in the fourth quarter and was limited to just 13 minutes while Quierra Love only played 15 minutes.
SIU, however, played well in all facets of the game. The Salukis tied their season-high with 10 3-pointers on 52.6-percent shooting. Southern's ball movement was stellar once again, as it dished out 22 assists on 30 made field goals. SIU also shot for a high percentage, as it made 55.6-percent (30-of-54) of its attempts from the field. The Salukis were plus-seven on the boards and every player who played significant minutes contributed at least three boards. Southern also forced 16 turnovers and came away with nine steals.
"When we have good ball movement and we execute both offensively and defensively, we can be very good," Stein said. "We have been inconsistent doing that this season. We need Gabby Walker to stay out of foul trouble as we need her for more than 13 minutes. We also can't just rely on Makenzie Silvey for scoring, though she's doing a great job of doing that. So we've got to tweak some things."
The Salukis were led in scoring for the second-consecutive day by Makenzie Silvey. Silvey finished with 21 points on 9-of-18 shooting and added five rebounds, three assists and a block in 35 minutes. The senior from Glen Carbon, Ill. had her way with the Sycamores all weekend, as she averaged a robust 23.5 points on 55.6-percent (20-of-36) shooting, which including 50-percent (7-of-14) from behind the arc.
Silvey was one of three Salukis to score in double figures. Rachel Pudlowski set a career-high with 13 points on an efficient 5-of-8 shooting while Payton McCallister chipped in 11 points, four steals, three assists and three boards. Allea Potter provided a big lift off the bench when Walker got in foul trouble, as she chipped in a personal-best seven points to go along with four rebounds and an assist in 14 minutes of play.
The Sycamores took their first lead in the series with 1:20 to play in the first quarter and led by one at the end of the first. McCallister quickly sank a three on Southern's first possession of the second quarter and the Trees never led again. Indiana State countered Southern's 11-2 run with seven-straight points of its own to get to within two, 29-27, with 2:32 to play in the first half but a Potter three-pointer and a jumper by Silvey stretched SIU's lead to seven at the break.
Indiana State again threatened in the third quarter, as it cut its deficit down to one, 36-35 with 6:18 to play in the stanza. Southern again weathered the storm, as it outscored ISU, 16-5 to close the quarter with a double-digit advantage. Southern didn't let its foot off the pedal and cruised the rest of the way.
The Salukis will look to run its win streak to three on Wednesday when No. 25 Missouri State comes to Carbondale. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m.
