Salukis Bow Out in First Round of Tournament

Thursday, March 12

Coralville, Iowa

3:30 p.m.

Southern Illinois University

10-20,7-13MVC

Indiana State

10-21,5-15MVC

Indiana St.

Southern Ill.

Karris Allen passes the ball during SIU's first round loss to Indiana State in the 2026 Credit Union 1 Missouri Valley Conference Women's Basketball Tournament

03/12/2026 | 8:10:00 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

By: Peter Borkowski

CORALVILLE, Iowa. – The 2026 Credit Union 1 Missouri Valley Conference Women's Basketball Tournament began on Thursday with a matchup between #8 Southern Illinois (10-20, 7-13) and #9 Indiana State (10-21, 5-15) in the first round. SIU could do little to stop a high-powered Indiana State offense, who crossed the 80-point mark on their way to defeating the Salukis, 81-69, ending Southern's season.

"This has been the most enjoyable season that I've had as a head coach," says head coach Kelly Bond-White. "Because I haven't had to put out fires. I haven't had things going on with this group. They have stayed together, and when you have a team who leads from within, quality of life for the coaches is better. We made a jump, and there is even a bigger jump to still make."

Inside the Box Score

Alayna Kraus came close to hitting her career high in points as she dropped 25 off 25 field goal attempts.
Jeniah Thompson was the only other Saluki to hit double figures, scoring 14 points and 11 rebounds for a double-double.
Southern struggled off the bench, with non-starters only scoring 11 points.

How it Happened

First Quarter
The Sycamores struck first at 9:12, but Southern found their first basket less than 20 seconds later. SIU scored next to take a 4-2 lead, but an and-one play by Indiana State put them back on top, 5-4. The teams traded 2-point plays until a Sycamore three at 6:31 made it 12-10 in their favor.

Southern broke out a 6-0 run to go up 16-12 before Indiana State ended that run and made it a one-possession game. Another four straight Saluki points made it a 6-point game, but an Indiana State layup, 3-pointer, and two free-throw makes gave the Sycamores the lead back, 21-20, with less than two minutes to play in the first quarter.

Another pair of Sycamore freebies extended their lead to three, but Kraus ended that run with an and-one play to even things up at 23-23. However, the last bucket of the frame belonged to the Sycamores, who took a 25-23 lead into the first break.

Second Quarter
Indiana State extended their lead by grabbing the first basket of the second quarter and, over a minute later, SIU scored their first basket of the frame when a threeball from Karris Allen pulled Southern within one, 27-26. The Sycamores bumped their lead back to three with a jumper. All SIU could muster in response was one free-throw make before the Sycamores built a 5-point lead with an and-one play.

Up 32-27 with less than four minutes remaining, the Sycamores scored once more to add onto their lead. Southern ended a near three-minute scoring drought at 2:04 thanks to a Thompson jumper, but the Sycamores immediately responded with a basket to keep their lead at seven.

A breakaway score soon made it a 9-point difference in favor of the Sycamores. That would be the final score of the half for either squad, as Indiana State took a 38-29 advantage into the locker room.

Third Quarter
Four straight points out of the gate brought Indiana State's lead all the way up to 13. A quick 4-0 Saluki spree made it a single-digit game again. The teams proceeded to exchange buckets until a four-point streak by Indiana State made it a 13-point game in favor of the Sycamores.

A 12-2 run by the Salukis brought the Indiana State advantage all the way down to three. An Indiana State free throw briefly made it a two-possession game, but a Kraus layup with 2:48 on the clock brought Southern back within two, 53-51. Two makes from the charity stripe kept Indiana State on top 55-51, and they added to it with a second-chance jumper.

Thompson went 1-2 at the line to snag SIU another point, and Kraus made a jumper with 0:31 left to set the score at 57-54 going into the final period of play.

Fourth Quarter
It remained a 3-point difference until 7:50 when Indiana State rattled off a 9-0 run to bump their lead to 10, 68-58. Kayla Cooper cut into the deficit with a jumper, but the Sycamores responded immediately with a pair of freebies. Their lead grew to 12, 72-60, with a jumper at 3:25, but Kraus and a layup made it 10 again.

Following an Indiana State freebie, the squads swapped scores to set the scoreboard at 75-66. The Sycamores added an insurance basket at the 35-second mark, but Kraus did not back down as she converted an and-one to bring Indiana State's lead down to eight with less than 30 seconds on the board.

Southern was forced to play the foul game, and Indiana State sank both attempts on their first trip to the line to make it 79-69. After a miss from beyond the arc, the Salukis fouled again, leading to another pair of Sycamore points, the final points in the game. Once the final buzzer rang, the game and Southern's season ended with an 81-69 loss.

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