SIU takes 68-59 win on Wednesday
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Trailing by 20 points in the second half, the University of Evansville men’s basketball team stormed back to get within four points before Southern Illinois rebounded to take a 68-59 win on Wednesday night at the Ford Center.
Leading the way for UE was Tayshawn Comer who posted a game-high 25 points. He was 7-of-19 from the field and knocked down 7 of his 10 free throw tries. Gabriel Pozzato completed the game with 13 points.
“I want to give SIU and their staff a ton of credit – they were ready to play tonight and had a great amount of energy,” UE head coach David Ragland said. “They usually do not shoot as well from three but tonight, we left them open and they hit them.”
Comer was on fire to start the game, knocking down a pair of early triples to give the Purple Aces a 6-3 lead. Southern Illinois’ second triple of the game tied the score at 6-6, however, Connor Turnbull hit a long jumper to put UE back in front.
Over the next two minutes, the Salukis took control with a 9-0 as they converted three more from downtown. Comer’s eighth point of the contest put a temporary halt to the stretch as SIU added to the lead for the duration of the half. With 6:43 remaining, the lead reached 13 as another 3-pointer gave the Salukis a 27-14 advantage.
Tanner Cuff found Turnbull on an alley oop to get within 10, but Southern continued to have an answer. Knocking down 10 triples in the opening stanza, SIU led by as many as 17 in the half before taking a 38-23 lead into the halftime break. The Saluki defense held UE to just 28.1% shooting in the first 20 minutes.
Southern Illinois knocked down another early triple to push the lead to 20 points for the first time. With SIU up 49-29 at the 13:08 mark, UE worked its way back into the game. Holding the Salukis to 0-for-5 with three turnovers over the ensuing five minutes, the Aces outscored SIU by a 17-1 margin to get within four.
Pozzato opened the stretch with a triple and, following a Saluki free throw, Comer connected on another triple to cut the deficit to 15. A deadball technical on Southern Illinois saw Comer convert both free throws while a Josh Hughes layup finished off a 4-point possession as UE made it a 50-41 game. Hughes added another basket while Gui Tesch picked up a triple to make it a 4-point game.
SIU overcame the rally as they scored the next six tallies to extend the lead back to 10 at 56-46 inside of six minutes remaining. Despite the deficit, UE cut it in half to get within five, but SIU fended off the challenge to take the win.
Jarrett Hensley and Ali Dibba paced the Salukis with 18 points apiece. SIU shot 37.5% while holding the Aces to 34.4%. They also outrebounded UE by a slight 42-39 margin.
Evansville welcomes Bradley on Saturday evening for a nationally televised game on CBS Sports Network. Tip is set for 7 p.m.
