Grooms finished with a game-high 21 points and season-high eight rebounds, while Dahlstrom added 19 points and eight rebounds as the Screaming Eagles improved to 4-0 on the year.
Junior guard Alex Davidson (Salem, Indiana) added six points and a career-high five assists for the Eagles, who committed just three second-half turnovers.
USI, which shot 45.3 percent (29-64) from the field, had seven players finish with at least six points. Junior forward Kacy Eschweiler (St. Charles, Missouri) added eight points and seven rebounds for the Eagles, who out-rebounded the Warriors 46-32, while senior guard Randa Harshbarger (Philo, Illinois) chipped in seven points, five rebounds and three assists.
Sophomore guard Ashley Johnson (Louisville, Kentucky) and sophomore guard/forward Morgan Sherwood (Charleston, Illinois) also contributed seven points apiece.
USI returns to action November 25 when it travels to Louisville, Kentucky, to take on Grand Valley State University in the first round of the Bellarmine Thanksgiving Classic.
1st Quarter
Wayne State (3-1) scored the first four points of the contest, but the Eagles responded with an 11-0 run to take an early seven-point advantage. Harshbarger had seven points in the opening period, including a three-pointer that stopped a 5-0 Wayne State spurt. The Eagles shot 53.3 percent (8-15) from the field in the first 10-minutes as they took a 20-14 lead into the second quarter.
2nd Quarter
The Eagles used a 14-3 run to forge a commanding 34-17 cushion midway through the second quarter. Wayne State, however, used runs of 5-0 and 6-0 to trim USI’s advantage to 40-30 at the break. Dahlstrom and Davidson each had six points in the second quarter to lead the Eagles.
3rd Quarter
Grooms had eight points in the third quarter as USI extended its lead to 56-42 heading into the final 10 minutes of the contest. The Eagles shot just 33.3 percent (6-18) from the floor in the third quarter, but USI held Wayne State to just 4-of-14 (.286) shooting to increase its advantage.
4th Quarter
USI shot 50.0 percent (8-16) from the field in the fourth quarter as it outscored the Warriors 21-12 throughout the final 10 minutes of the contest. Dahlstrom had eight points and four rebounds to lead USI in the fourth frame, while Grooms added seven points and a pair of assists.
