Monday, November 25
Estero, FL
2 PM CST
Southern Illinois University
2-4,0-0MVC
79
vs
85
Louisiana Tech
5-0,0-0CUSA
1
2
OT 1
F
Southern Ill.
31
39
9
79
Louisiana Tech
27
43
15
85
Photo by: Tim McCaughan
Recap | Salukis Fall in Overtime to La Tech; Face Eastern Kentucky Tuesday at 11 a.m. CT
11/25/2024 | 6:42:00 | Men's Basketball
ESTERO, Fla. – Southern Illinois basketball dropped its opening game of the Gulf Coast Showcase in overtime to undefeated La Tech, 85-79, Monday afternoon at Hertz Arena in Estero Florida. The Salukis rallied back from an 11-point deficit in the first half before the Bulldogs tied the game late and pulled away in overtime.
St. Louis native Kennard Davis Jr. recorded a double-double with a 16 point, 10 rebound performance. The sophomore forward also had three steals in the loss. Senior forward Jarrett Hensley added 15 points and eight rebounds while Ali Dibba dropped in 12 points for the Salukis.
It was the first game for Southern Illinois (2-4) since losing its leading scorer in Elijah Elliott to an ACL tear. The injury forced the planned redshirt to be pulled from guard Sheridan Sharp.
Southern started slow on the offensive end as La Tech built a 9-2 lead before SIU scored seven straight points to tie the game as Davis hit a 3-pointer, Davion Sykes picked up a dunk and Sharp finished the run with a layup. After freshman Drew Steffe nailed a triple to give Southern its first lead at 12-11, La Tech would score the next 10 points before earning its biggest lead of the night at 24-13 with 8:18 left to play.
Six different Salukis would etch their names in the scoring column over the final eight minutes as SIU would put together a 15-1 run to go into the locker room ahead 31-27. Freshman Rolyns Aligbe scored four of his nine points during the run while Davis added four.
The second half was back and forth early before the Salukis strung together a 9-0 run at the midway point of the period kickstarted by a Sharp's and-one play to push the SIU lead to 52-48. Dibba, Hensley, and Aligbe also scored during the stretch to extend the Southern Illinois lead to 59-48 with just under eight minutes remaining.
With SIU leading 66-58, momentum shifted to the Bulldogs as Davis slipped at midcourt allowing a fast break layup to cut the SIU lead to six with 3:23 left to play. Conference USA Preseason Player of the Year Daniel Batcho scored a three-point play with 1:24 remaining to make it a two-point game before tying the game with 47 seconds left – two of his four field goals on 12 attempts.
Louisiana Tech scored the first five points in overtime and outscored Southern Illinois 15-9 in the period to improve to 5-0 on the season.
SIU shot just 30.6 percent (11-36) in the first half before coming out and shooting 51.9 percent (14-27) in the final 20 minutes of regulation. The Salukis' struggles continue at the charity stripe where they finished 16-for-24.
La Tech scored 21 of their points off 17 SIU turnovers while also winning the battle on the fast break, 18-7.
Aligbe finished with nine points on 4-of-5 shooting to go with four rebounds. Sykes and Steffe added seven points while Sharp added seven points, four assists, and four rebounds in his season debut.
Al Green led La Tech with 19 points while Kaden Cooper and Amaree Abrams added 18 points each.
UP NEXT
The Salukis have a quick turnaround as the team will play their second game of the Gulf Coast Showcase on Tuesday at 11 a.m. CT against Eastern Kentucky. The game will air on the Saluki Radio Network and FloCollege.
FOLLOW THE SALUKIS
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Salukis by visiting SIUSalukis.com as well as following the team on X at @SIU_Basketball, Instagram at @SIU_Basketball, and Facebook at Facebook.com/SIUBasketball. Fans can also download the "Salukis" mobile app from the App Store or Google Play Store.
St. Louis native Kennard Davis Jr. recorded a double-double with a 16 point, 10 rebound performance. The sophomore forward also had three steals in the loss. Senior forward Jarrett Hensley added 15 points and eight rebounds while Ali Dibba dropped in 12 points for the Salukis.
It was the first game for Southern Illinois (2-4) since losing its leading scorer in Elijah Elliott to an ACL tear. The injury forced the planned redshirt to be pulled from guard Sheridan Sharp.
Southern started slow on the offensive end as La Tech built a 9-2 lead before SIU scored seven straight points to tie the game as Davis hit a 3-pointer, Davion Sykes picked up a dunk and Sharp finished the run with a layup. After freshman Drew Steffe nailed a triple to give Southern its first lead at 12-11, La Tech would score the next 10 points before earning its biggest lead of the night at 24-13 with 8:18 left to play.
Six different Salukis would etch their names in the scoring column over the final eight minutes as SIU would put together a 15-1 run to go into the locker room ahead 31-27. Freshman Rolyns Aligbe scored four of his nine points during the run while Davis added four.
The second half was back and forth early before the Salukis strung together a 9-0 run at the midway point of the period kickstarted by a Sharp's and-one play to push the SIU lead to 52-48. Dibba, Hensley, and Aligbe also scored during the stretch to extend the Southern Illinois lead to 59-48 with just under eight minutes remaining.
With SIU leading 66-58, momentum shifted to the Bulldogs as Davis slipped at midcourt allowing a fast break layup to cut the SIU lead to six with 3:23 left to play. Conference USA Preseason Player of the Year Daniel Batcho scored a three-point play with 1:24 remaining to make it a two-point game before tying the game with 47 seconds left – two of his four field goals on 12 attempts.
Louisiana Tech scored the first five points in overtime and outscored Southern Illinois 15-9 in the period to improve to 5-0 on the season.
SIU shot just 30.6 percent (11-36) in the first half before coming out and shooting 51.9 percent (14-27) in the final 20 minutes of regulation. The Salukis' struggles continue at the charity stripe where they finished 16-for-24.
La Tech scored 21 of their points off 17 SIU turnovers while also winning the battle on the fast break, 18-7.
Aligbe finished with nine points on 4-of-5 shooting to go with four rebounds. Sykes and Steffe added seven points while Sharp added seven points, four assists, and four rebounds in his season debut.
Al Green led La Tech with 19 points while Kaden Cooper and Amaree Abrams added 18 points each.
UP NEXT
The Salukis have a quick turnaround as the team will play their second game of the Gulf Coast Showcase on Tuesday at 11 a.m. CT against Eastern Kentucky. The game will air on the Saluki Radio Network and FloCollege.
FOLLOW THE SALUKIS
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Salukis by visiting SIUSalukis.com as well as following the team on X at @SIU_Basketball, Instagram at @SIU_Basketball, and Facebook at Facebook.com/SIUBasketball. Fans can also download the "Salukis" mobile app from the App Store or Google Play Store.
Team Stats
SIU
LATech
FG%
.394
.435
3FG%
.292
.250
FT%
.667
.867
RB
44
40
TO
17
16
STL
10
14
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
16
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
4
Pts
15
FGM
4
3FGM
2
FTM
5
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
F
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