Southern Illinois University
Lindenwood
Dawgs run by Lindenwood in final exhibition
10/30/2025 | 8:36:00 | Men's Basketball
ST. CHARLES, Mo. — A relentless offensive attack powered Coach Scott Nagy's Salukis to an 86–76 exhibition win over Lindenwood on Wednesday night at Hyland Arena.
Eleven players saw action for SIU, with nine logging at least 13 minutes. However, Nagy said that level of rotation likely won't continue into the regular season.
"I can just tell that my bench is going to start getting shorter," Nagy said. "There are certain guys who are going to play more minutes. I think we just wore them down. They were missing three guys, and we were playing everybody."
For the second straight exhibition, SIU started slowly, falling behind 6–0 and allowing the Lions to shoot 55 percent in the first half. The Salukis trailed in rebounds (17–14) and assists (11–7) but still entered halftime tied at 39.
Isaiah Stafford led the way early, shooting 4-of-6 from the field and 2-of-2 from 3-point range for 10 first-half points. He added two clutch 3-pointers late in the game to help seal the win, finishing with a team-high 18 points, six assists and four rebounds.
The second half opened with a flurry of baskets, turnovers and missed opportunities. One sequence featured Jorge Moreno scoring on an up-and-under layup, followed by a steal from Damien Mayo Jr. that led to another Moreno bucket. SIU then forced another turnover but missed an alley-oop attempt.
With just under 13 minutes remaining, the Salukis capped a 13–5 run to take a 54–46 lead. Lindenwood responded with an 8–0 run, cutting the deficit to two after a Jeremiah Talton 3-pointer. SIU held firm, however, and stretched the final margin to 10.
Rolyns Aligbe dominated down the stretch, scoring 13 of his 17 points in the second half and grabbing all nine of his rebounds after the break. His late 3-point play helped put the game out of reach.
"I feel like I know what I have to bring to the team each night," Aligbe said. "I feel like I found what I need to do for the team."
Nagy's starting lineup included Davion Sykes, Jalen Haynes, Stafford, Moreno and Mayo Jr. After the game, Nagy praised Haynes, who finished with four points, six assists and five rebounds.
"He plays both sides of the ball. He's still a freshman, but he's 6-foot-3 and ultra-athletic," Nagy said. "He's always in a good mood, even if I yell at him. He has good juice to him. As a freshman, he's going to be a heck of a good player for us."
Other contributors included Prince Aligbe with 12 points, Moreno with seven points and six rebounds, Mayo Jr. with seven points, four rebounds and three assists, and Sykes with six points, three rebounds and three assists. Jaheem Webber added seven points, and point guard Quel'Ron House — who scored 29 in the previous exhibition against Austin Peay — chipped in six.
Lindenwood was led by Milos Nenadic with 21 points, followed by Talton with 16, Mekhi Cooper with 14 and Clayton Jackson with 13.
SIU opens its regular season at 7 p.m. Monday, Nov. 3, against McKendree at Banterra Center. Tickets are available at saluk.is/HomeOpener, with season ticket options at saluk.is/SeasonTicketsMBB and special three-game packs at saluk.is/RivalryPack and saluk.is/Pick3Pack.
