Box score
CARBONDALE, Ill.- Southern Illinois fended-off a tough Greyhound squad in earning an 84-69 win in men's basketball action Tuesday night at SIU Arena.
Darius Adams (Decatur, Ill./MacArthur / Lincoln College) led all scorers with 21 points on the night, part of four Greyhounds in double figures.
Both teams shot the ball well in the opening half, with the Salukis owning a slight edge at 54.2 to 51.7 percent from the floor for a 41-36 margin. The five-point halftime advantage can be attributed to SIU earning 12 trips to the free-throw line while UIndy attempt just a single freebie the entire half, that coming in the final two minutes. The Greyhounds (1-1) found a good deal of their success from beyond the arc, connecting on 6-of-8 from the three-point line in the first 20 minutes.
The Salukis (2-0) wasted little time wrestling away the momentum, scoring the first 10 points of the second period to take their largest lead at 51-36.
Larry Woods (Robbins, Ill./Shepard / Moraine Valley C.C.) hit a baseline jumper to stop the bleeding and Sims hit from deep to temporarily settle the raucous crowd of 4,391.
Nate Blank (Terre Haute, Ind./Terre Haute North / Gardner-Webb) drew an offensive charge, then hit a turnaround jumper to slice the lead to eight. Blank scored on the next two Greyhound possessions, whittling the lead to 54-47.
With the shot clock winding down, Kevin Dillard hit a long three and scored another triple from the corner a few minutes later as SIU rebuilt its lead, 63-49. The margin grew to as many as 18 but Indianapolis refused to let the game get away. Adams and Blank bookended three-point buckets on an 8-0 run and the lead was just 10 in the final minutes of the contest.
The Salukis proved to be too big for UIndy on this night. SIU center Nick Evans slammed down two dunks in the final three minutes against the foul-riddled Greyhounds. Four UIndy players had at least four fouls and Blank fouled out.
Adams' 21 points led all scorers while Sims tacked-on 15 for Indianapolis. Blank had 11 while
DeWann Squires (Indianapolis, Ind./Arlington / Lincoln Trail College) added 10 for the Hounds. Adams and Sims each had six assists.
UIndy will return home for a matchup with defending-NCAA Division II champion Findlay.
Notes: The trip to SIU featured a pair of former Salukis in UIndy Assistant Coaches
Aundrey Wright and
Collin Lanam. Both were part of Chris Lowery's SIU staff last season.