Southern Illinois University
9-16,5-13MVC
Missouri State University
21-2,16-0MVC
Salukis bow out of MVC Tournament with hard-fought loss to No. 17 Lady Bears
03/12/2021 | 3:27:00 | Women's Basketball
MOLINE, Ill. - The top-seeded Missouri State Lady Bears pulled away late in the third quarter to secure a 70-59 win over the eighth-seeded Southern Illinois Salukis in the Missouri Valley Conference Quarterfinals Friday inside the TaxSlayer Center.
SIU kept it a one-possession game for much of the first three quarters, but the defending MVC Champs were too much down the stretch. The Lady Bears shot 75-percent (15-of-20) from the field in the second half and seemed to have an answer whenever the Salukis gained momentum.
"It was a hard-fought effort," head coach Cindy Stein said. "As they have done all year long, our kids played with a lot of toughness and grit. It comes down to executing a play here or there better but I can never say enough about this team's fight. We gave a valiant effort today but it wasn't enough."
Southern was led in scoring by Abby Brockmeyer, who was playing in just her second game since Jan. 31. The Raymond, Ill. native finished with 18 points on 6-of-8 shooting, which included 3-of-4 shooting from behind the arc. Gabby Walker added 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting while Makenzie Silvey chipped in 11 points, seven boards and four assists.
Missouri State took advantage of its size supremacy. 38 of the Lady Bears' 70 points came in the paint and Missouri State held a 32-to-21 edge on the glass.
"It was a big, physical ball game," Stein said. "They run a lot of posts in and out of the game. Our posts did a good job of giving us a boost when we needed it. The rebounding edge that Missouri State held was too much and we needed to be better in that area. But our kids battled both offensively and defensively."
SIU kept within striking distance throughout the first two quarters, as the score was tied at 17-all after the first quarter and Southern trailed by just three, 28-25 at the half. The Salukis shot 45-percent (9-of-20) from the field in the first half while it held the Lady Bears to 32.4-percent shooting.
After Missouri State took a 38-31 lead with 4:58 to play in the third, Brockmeyer hit back-to-back treys and Rachel Pudlowski followed with one of her own to draw Southern to within one, 41-40 with 2:56 to go in the third. The Lady Bears responded with a 9-0 run to close out the frame and led by ten, 50-40 at the end of three.
The Salukis got to within eight on two occasions in the fourth, but that was as close as they could get.Â
SIU concludes the 2020-21 season with a 9-16 record and an 5-13 record in MVC play.
