CARBONDALE, Ill. - Anthony Beane scored a game-high 27 points as Southern Illinois (11-17, 7-8) pulled away from Bradley (11-17, 6-9) down the stretch for a 75-64 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball win Tuesday night at SIU Arena.
Bradley overcame a slow start and a 24-12 deficit to forge a 35-33 lead at halftime. But foul trouble for big men Auston Barnes and Xzavier Taylor proved costly. Bradley lost three players to disqualification - Barnes, Taylor and guard Ka'Darrly Bell - and the Salukis attempted 14 more free throws, 32-18.
Beane was one of four Southern Illinois players to score in double-figures. Desmar Jackson added 15, Jalen Pendleton scored 11 and Bola Olaniyan posted a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds. Olaniyan snared six of SIU's 15 offensive rebounds.
Walt Lemon, Jr. paced Bradley with 17 points and the first of his six assists made him the fourth player in Valley history - Larry Bird, Hersey Hawkins and Darren Brooks - to eclips 1,600 points (1,643), 350 assists (355) and 200 steals (206) in a career. Grier chipped in 14 points off the bench, while Tyshon Pickett added 10 points and a team-high six rebounds.
Bradley shot just 9-for-26 (.346) from the field in the second half, while the host Salukis made 14-of-24 (.583) field goal attempts after the break. SIU also forced nine second-half turnovers and outrebounded Bradley, 18-12, in the final 20 minutes.
Bradley will return to Carver Arena for the final two home games of the season: Saturday in a 7 p.m. game against Loyola Chicago and Tuesday in a nationally-televised 8 p.m. game against #3 Wichita State. Saturday's game will feature the unveil of Bradley's new gargoyle mascot, the school's first mascot in nearly 20 years, as well as the halftime enshrinement of the 2014 Bradley Athletics Hall of Fame Class. Tuesday's visit by the Shockers will mark the first-ever Carver Arena appearance by a team that played in the previous year's Final Four and Wichita State could be trying to unseat Bradley's 1985-86 team as the last undefeated MVC regular-season champion.
Tickets for Bradley Basketball home games start at just $8 and fans purchasing in advance of either game at the Renaissance Coliseum box office may take advantage of a special free seat upgrade promotion.
