Salukis Overcome Sluggish Start, Defeat Valparaiso, 80-73, as Green Ties Career-High

Saturday, February 7

Valparaiso, IN

1 p.m.

Southern Illinois University

8-13,5-7MVC

Valparaiso

0-24,0-13MVC

Southern Ill.

Valparaiso

Salukis Overcome Sluggish Start, Defeat Valparaiso, 80-73, as Green Ties Career-High

02/07/2026 | 3:34:00 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

By: Peter Borkowski

VALPARAISO, Ind. - A three-game road stretch came to an end on Saturday for Southern Illinois women's basketball (8-13, 5-7), as the Salukis visited the Beacons of Valparaiso (0-24, 0-13). Despite trailing after one quarter, SIU came back to win a hard-fought match against Valparaiso, 82-73.

Inside the Box Score

Indya Green exploded for 29 points, tying her career-high set at Georgia Southern last season. She also grabbed 14 rebounds to complete the double-double.
Alayna Kraus was just shy of 20 points with her 18. She also dished out five assists.
Tkiyah Nelson was the main offensive facilitator for Southern, passing out eight helpers while also scoring 10.

How it Happened

First Quarter
SIU got out to a hot start, going up 4-0 in the first 60 seconds of action. But Valparaiso responded with a 10-0 run to take a six-point lead with 6:37 to play in the first half. Southern stopped the bleeding thanks to a pair of free-throw makes from Green, but a layup and three-pointer from the Beacons extended their lead to 15-6 heading into the media timeout.

Coming out of the stoppage, Kayla Cooper popped at three to pull Southern back within six, and a perfect trip to the charity stripe by Jeniah Thompson brought the difference down to four. The Beacons banked a jumper in the closing 20 seconds to take a 17-11 advantage into the first break.

Second Quarter
Eleven straight points out of the quarter break put SIU in front of the Beacons 22-17 with just over six minutes to play. Valparaiso responded with a big run of their own, scoring eight of the next 10 points to retake the lead, 25-24. A Thompson jumper gave the Salukis the lead back briefly before a Valparaiso free throw knotted the game at 26-26.

A pair of Nelson free throws gave Southern the lead back, and a three by Kraus extended SIU's advantage to 31-26. Following two Valparaiso free throws, Cooper added another three to SIU's count, giving SIU a six-point advantage with less than a minute remaining in the half.

Kraus sank a pair of freebies to put SIU up 36-28 at the 0:50 mark. The Beacons tacked on two more points to end the half, setting the score at 36-30 in favor of the Salukis.

Third Quarter
A Valparaiso three out of the halftime break cut SIU's six-point lead in half, and the difference stayed right around three until the 8:14 mark, when the Beacons scored four straight to even the game up at 39-39.

SIU found their grove again following the tie, with four straight Green points plus a Karris Allen jumper put SIU comfortably in front, 45-39. The Beacons ended the Southern run with two free-throw makes, but a 9-0 Saluki run quickly ballooned their lead up to 54-41.

Valparaiso limited the Southern damage with a layup at 4:12 to pull back within 11 of Southern. The teams traded buckets until Green scored through a foul at 3:14. The graduate student converted on the and-one, extending SIU's lead to 14.

A layup from the Beacons brought them a little closer, but Green kept the hot touch, scoring on a jumper. Valparaiso followed that up with a three, almost bringing the deficit down to single-digits. After trading 1-2 trips at the free-throw line, an and-one from the Beacons brought them within eight of the Salukis.

With just over a minute remaining, Cooper knocked down another three to give SIU a 65-54 lead. A perfect trip to the line from Green put her over the 20-point mark and Southern up by 13. Another Green free throw was the final point of the quarter, sending the teams to the fourth quarter with SIU on top, 69-54.

Fourth Quarter
Four of the first five points of the fourth belonged to SIU, whose lead almost grew to 20, 73-55. However, a six-point spree by the Beacons quickly brought the Saluki advantage down to 12 with under eight to play. Green ended that run with a jumper, but a Valparaiso threeball chipped one more point into the Salukis' lead.

After trading free-throw makes, eight straight points from the Beacons made it a one-possession game, 76-73, under the three-minute mark. Green converted on a trip to the free-throw line to give the Salukis a five-point lead and a little breathing room; with those free throws, Green tied her career-high in points with 29.

Kraus then hit four freebies to ice the game for the Salukis, securing the 82-73 win for Southern, the Salukis' fourth win in the previous five games.

Up Next
The Salukis finally return home on Friday, Feb. 13, when they host Illinois State at 6 p.m.

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