Sunday, January 1
Carbondale, Ill.
4 PM
Southern Illinois University
8-7, 1-1MVC
83
vs
69
Drake
3-11, 1-1MVC
1
2
F
Drake University
32
37
69
Southern Illinois
37
46
83
Photo by: Madison Case
Defense sparks Men's Basketball to 83-69 win over Drake
01/01/2017 | 7:36:00 | Men's Basketball
CARBONDALE, Ill. — Southern Illinois turned up the defensive heat on a pesky Drake team, using two huge runs to pull away for an 83-69 win on Sunday afternoon at SIU Arena.
The Salukis (8-7, 1-1) got off to a slow start, trailing 32-24 with four minutes remaining in the first half. That's when they threw down the fist defensive gauntlet, holding the Bulldogs (3-11, 1-1) scoreless for more than seven-straight minutes. SIU capitalized with a 15-0 run, as Drake missed eight shots and committed three turnovers during that span.
Two seniors were the key to Southern's comeback — Sean O'Brien and Leo Vincent. At times playing point guard and at other times posting up in the paint, O'Brien helped pick apart Drake's 1-3-1 defense. He recorded 16 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and three steals.
"Our rule today in the zone offense was Sean O'Brien has to touch the ball," declared SIU head coach Barry Hinson.
Meanwhile, Vincent busted out of a season-long shooting slump by draining 5-of-8 shots from 3-point range to finish with 15 points. He connected on his first three treys of the game.
"Whenever you can hit some shots, you force the other team to honor you, respect you a little bit more, so they can't just shrink in and pack the paint," Vincent said. "Shooters have to keep shooting it. I saw the first one go in, so I just have to stay confident. I know my team's confident in me."
After SIU converted just 2-of-26 from downtown versus Bradley last week, seeing the ball go through the net was a welcome reprieve. Vincent, in particular, had been laboring — making just 28 percent on the season.
"Leo Vincent went back to being Leo Vincent," Hinson said.
Trailing by seven early in the second half, Drake made a run behind junior guard Reed Timmer, who reeled off five-straight points during one stretch to put his team back on top, 47-45. He finished with 17 points, but Ore Oregundade was his only other teammate in double figures with 13.
The Salukis didn't have that problem, as five players scored in double figures. Thik Bol had 13 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks, to help Southern dominate the smaller Bulldogs in points in the paint, 46-26, as well as rebounding, 43-31. Aaron Cook (11), Austin Weiher (10) and Jonathan Wiley (9) each contributed key buckets off the bench for SIU.
Southern saved its best run for last, and Cook was at the heart of an 18-5 burst that put the game safely in the win column. With his team clinging to a one-point lead, the freshman point guard delivered four steals during a scintillating two-minute span, including the theft of a pair of inbounds passes that resulted in easy layups. He had five steals on the night. When the dust settled, Southern had an 11-point lead, 66-55.
"He looked like Matt Damon in Ocean's Eleven," Hinson joked. "This is the kid I saw in recruiting that can get on the ball and hawk it and change it. He just changed the game by himself — just took it over."
SIU shot 50 percent from the field, compared to 43 percent by Drake. The Salukis also made twice as many trips to the free throw line, 24-12.
The news wasn't all rosy for the Salukis, however. Armon Fletcher, who was leading the team with 13.8 points per game, sat out with an injured foot. Hinson said the sophomore guard will miss at least two weeks, pending an X-ray on the foot tomorrow.
"That's one of the best wins I've been a part of, understanding the circumstances going into this game," Hinson said.
The Salukis (8-7, 1-1) got off to a slow start, trailing 32-24 with four minutes remaining in the first half. That's when they threw down the fist defensive gauntlet, holding the Bulldogs (3-11, 1-1) scoreless for more than seven-straight minutes. SIU capitalized with a 15-0 run, as Drake missed eight shots and committed three turnovers during that span.
Two seniors were the key to Southern's comeback — Sean O'Brien and Leo Vincent. At times playing point guard and at other times posting up in the paint, O'Brien helped pick apart Drake's 1-3-1 defense. He recorded 16 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and three steals.
"Our rule today in the zone offense was Sean O'Brien has to touch the ball," declared SIU head coach Barry Hinson.
Meanwhile, Vincent busted out of a season-long shooting slump by draining 5-of-8 shots from 3-point range to finish with 15 points. He connected on his first three treys of the game.
"Whenever you can hit some shots, you force the other team to honor you, respect you a little bit more, so they can't just shrink in and pack the paint," Vincent said. "Shooters have to keep shooting it. I saw the first one go in, so I just have to stay confident. I know my team's confident in me."
After SIU converted just 2-of-26 from downtown versus Bradley last week, seeing the ball go through the net was a welcome reprieve. Vincent, in particular, had been laboring — making just 28 percent on the season.
"Leo Vincent went back to being Leo Vincent," Hinson said.
Trailing by seven early in the second half, Drake made a run behind junior guard Reed Timmer, who reeled off five-straight points during one stretch to put his team back on top, 47-45. He finished with 17 points, but Ore Oregundade was his only other teammate in double figures with 13.
The Salukis didn't have that problem, as five players scored in double figures. Thik Bol had 13 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks, to help Southern dominate the smaller Bulldogs in points in the paint, 46-26, as well as rebounding, 43-31. Aaron Cook (11), Austin Weiher (10) and Jonathan Wiley (9) each contributed key buckets off the bench for SIU.
Southern saved its best run for last, and Cook was at the heart of an 18-5 burst that put the game safely in the win column. With his team clinging to a one-point lead, the freshman point guard delivered four steals during a scintillating two-minute span, including the theft of a pair of inbounds passes that resulted in easy layups. He had five steals on the night. When the dust settled, Southern had an 11-point lead, 66-55.
"He looked like Matt Damon in Ocean's Eleven," Hinson joked. "This is the kid I saw in recruiting that can get on the ball and hawk it and change it. He just changed the game by himself — just took it over."
SIU shot 50 percent from the field, compared to 43 percent by Drake. The Salukis also made twice as many trips to the free throw line, 24-12.
The news wasn't all rosy for the Salukis, however. Armon Fletcher, who was leading the team with 13.8 points per game, sat out with an injured foot. Hinson said the sophomore guard will miss at least two weeks, pending an X-ray on the foot tomorrow.
"That's one of the best wins I've been a part of, understanding the circumstances going into this game," Hinson said.
Team Stats
DU
SIU
FG%
.435
.500
3FG%
.333
.462
FT%
.583
.625
RB
31
43
TO
16
13
STL
4
12
Game Leaders
Pts
16
FGM
7
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
5
FTM
0
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
F
/ Men's Basketball
G
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