Saturday, December 16
Wichita, KS
6 PM
Southern Illinois University
6-4,0-1MVC
68
at
69
Wichita State
8-3,0-0AAC
1
2
F
Southern Ill.
27
41
68
Wichita St.
34
35
69
Photo by: Saluki Athletic Communications
Recap | Saluki Rally Falls Short at Wichita State, 69-68
12/16/2023 | 8:22:00 | Men's Basketball
WICHITA, Kan. – Southern Illinois outscored Wichita State 41-35 in the second half but came up short, falling to the Shockers 69-68 Saturday night at Charles Koch Arena. The Salukis had an opportunity to win the game as time expired as Xavier Johnson absorbed contact in the paint, but his shot was blocked at the buzzer.
The Salukis (6-4) trailed by 15 points in the first half before storming back in the second half to take a two-point lead with just under seven minutes remaining.
"I'm proud of how our guys responded – obviously I'm not happy with how we started the game, but I think it showed some growth and maturity," head coach Bryan Mullins said after the game. "Our guys really battled for the last 30 minutes of that game, but we can't afford to put ourselves in those types of holes."
Johnson led all players with 23 points to go along with nine assists – one shy of tying a career high. The Germantown, Maryland product battled to play all 40 minutes after picking up his second foul three minutes into the game.
Forward Clarence Rupert scored 14 for the Salukis to go with seven rebounds – his fifth-straight double-digit scoring effort and seventh of the season. Scottie Ebube and Jarrett Hensley added eight each for the Salukis.
Down one late in the second half, Johnson gave Southern Illinois its first lead of the night on a catch-and-shoot triple from the right wing, but the lead would be short-lived as Colby Rogers hit 3-pointers on back-to-back Wichita State possessions to put the Shockers (8-3) back in front for what would be the remainder of the game.
Southern fell behind 6-2 early as Johnson was hit with his second foul of the game just three minutes into play. Wichita State took advantage of the foul trouble going right at Johnson and switches, reeling off a 13-0 run over the next 2:57 to take a 19-4 lead before the under-12 media timeout. Johnson would end the Wichita State run with Southern's first three of the game with 11:25 left in the first half.
Wichita State would feast in the paint, outscoring SIU 16-4 at the basket through the first 10 minutes and outrebounding the Salukis 12-8 during the stretch.
The Salukis would turn up the intensity on the defensive end, holding Wichita State scoreless for 3:19 while cutting the lead to 19-13 before the under-8 media break. SIU continued to chip away at the Wichita lead, cutting the deficit to just seven at 34-27 at the break after trailing by as many as 15 early.
WSU got its edge in the first half by pounding the glass, outrebounding SIU on the offensive end 10-4 which led to 13 second chance points. Overall, the Shocks held a 23-15 advantage on the glass in the first half.
Making his Saluki debut, Hensley had an immediate impact for SIU going for eight points off the bench. Johnson led all scorers with 13 points to go with three assists at the break.
"I thought Jarrett (Hensley) played well. It's a strange situation – it's a hard situation for him to be in – not knowing if you're going to be playing and within 48 hours to be told you can play and to come back to his home state and there's a lot of emotion," Mullins said. "He played confident, he played aggressive – he's going to be a great piece for us."
Southern came out of the locker room hot, going on a 12-4 run to cut the Shocker lead to 42-39. After hitting just two threes in the first half, SIU got a pair of 3-pointers during the run – one each from Kennard Davis Jr. and Trent Brown.
Ebube gave the Salukis their first lead of the game at the 12:41 mark with a layup to quiet the Shocker faithful. A spark off the bench, all the Mundelein, Illinois natives' points came in the second half.
Wichita State would get a trio of 3-pointers in the final five minutes – two from Rogers -- to regain the lead and reinvigorate the crowd.
WSU outrebounded the Salukis 36-32 in the game but SIU's rebounding improved drastically in the final 20 minutes, outrebounding the Shocks 17-13. WSU held a 22-10 advantage on second chance points though, picking up 15 offensive rebounds to SIU's nine.
Southern Illinois shot 48 percent (26-54) from the field while holding WSU to 42 percent (26-62) shooting. SIU knocked down seven of 21 from behind the arc. The Shockers would get five of their six total 3-pointers in the second half.
Brown finished with two 3-pointers in the game to move into 15th in program history (128), passing head coach Bryan Mullins in the category.
Xavier Bell and Colby Rogers led the Shockers with 20 points apiece.
UP NEXT
The Salukis return to action Tuesday night at home as North Dakota State comes to town. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. from Banterra Center. Get your tickets by calling 877-SALUKIS, visiting SIUSalukis.com/Tickets or by visiting the SIU Ticket Office during normal business hours.
FOLLOW THE SALUKIS
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Salukis by following the team on Twitter at @SIU_Basketball, on Instagram at @SIU_Basketball, and on Facebook at Facebook.com/SalukiAthletics. Fans can also download the "Salukis" Mobile App on the App Store or Google Play Store.
The Salukis (6-4) trailed by 15 points in the first half before storming back in the second half to take a two-point lead with just under seven minutes remaining.
"I'm proud of how our guys responded – obviously I'm not happy with how we started the game, but I think it showed some growth and maturity," head coach Bryan Mullins said after the game. "Our guys really battled for the last 30 minutes of that game, but we can't afford to put ourselves in those types of holes."
Johnson led all players with 23 points to go along with nine assists – one shy of tying a career high. The Germantown, Maryland product battled to play all 40 minutes after picking up his second foul three minutes into the game.
Forward Clarence Rupert scored 14 for the Salukis to go with seven rebounds – his fifth-straight double-digit scoring effort and seventh of the season. Scottie Ebube and Jarrett Hensley added eight each for the Salukis.
Down one late in the second half, Johnson gave Southern Illinois its first lead of the night on a catch-and-shoot triple from the right wing, but the lead would be short-lived as Colby Rogers hit 3-pointers on back-to-back Wichita State possessions to put the Shockers (8-3) back in front for what would be the remainder of the game.
Southern fell behind 6-2 early as Johnson was hit with his second foul of the game just three minutes into play. Wichita State took advantage of the foul trouble going right at Johnson and switches, reeling off a 13-0 run over the next 2:57 to take a 19-4 lead before the under-12 media timeout. Johnson would end the Wichita State run with Southern's first three of the game with 11:25 left in the first half.
Wichita State would feast in the paint, outscoring SIU 16-4 at the basket through the first 10 minutes and outrebounding the Salukis 12-8 during the stretch.
The Salukis would turn up the intensity on the defensive end, holding Wichita State scoreless for 3:19 while cutting the lead to 19-13 before the under-8 media break. SIU continued to chip away at the Wichita lead, cutting the deficit to just seven at 34-27 at the break after trailing by as many as 15 early.
WSU got its edge in the first half by pounding the glass, outrebounding SIU on the offensive end 10-4 which led to 13 second chance points. Overall, the Shocks held a 23-15 advantage on the glass in the first half.
Making his Saluki debut, Hensley had an immediate impact for SIU going for eight points off the bench. Johnson led all scorers with 13 points to go with three assists at the break.
"I thought Jarrett (Hensley) played well. It's a strange situation – it's a hard situation for him to be in – not knowing if you're going to be playing and within 48 hours to be told you can play and to come back to his home state and there's a lot of emotion," Mullins said. "He played confident, he played aggressive – he's going to be a great piece for us."
Southern came out of the locker room hot, going on a 12-4 run to cut the Shocker lead to 42-39. After hitting just two threes in the first half, SIU got a pair of 3-pointers during the run – one each from Kennard Davis Jr. and Trent Brown.
Ebube gave the Salukis their first lead of the game at the 12:41 mark with a layup to quiet the Shocker faithful. A spark off the bench, all the Mundelein, Illinois natives' points came in the second half.
Wichita State would get a trio of 3-pointers in the final five minutes – two from Rogers -- to regain the lead and reinvigorate the crowd.
WSU outrebounded the Salukis 36-32 in the game but SIU's rebounding improved drastically in the final 20 minutes, outrebounding the Shocks 17-13. WSU held a 22-10 advantage on second chance points though, picking up 15 offensive rebounds to SIU's nine.
Southern Illinois shot 48 percent (26-54) from the field while holding WSU to 42 percent (26-62) shooting. SIU knocked down seven of 21 from behind the arc. The Shockers would get five of their six total 3-pointers in the second half.
Brown finished with two 3-pointers in the game to move into 15th in program history (128), passing head coach Bryan Mullins in the category.
Xavier Bell and Colby Rogers led the Shockers with 20 points apiece.
UP NEXT
The Salukis return to action Tuesday night at home as North Dakota State comes to town. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. from Banterra Center. Get your tickets by calling 877-SALUKIS, visiting SIUSalukis.com/Tickets or by visiting the SIU Ticket Office during normal business hours.
FOLLOW THE SALUKIS
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Salukis by following the team on Twitter at @SIU_Basketball, on Instagram at @SIU_Basketball, and on Facebook at Facebook.com/SalukiAthletics. Fans can also download the "Salukis" Mobile App on the App Store or Google Play Store.
Team Stats
SIU
WSU
FG%
.481
.419
3FG%
.333
.375
FT%
.692
.733
RB
32
36
TO
12
6
STL
2
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
23
FGM
8
3FGM
3
FTM
4
Pts
14
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballC
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballF
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