Salukis’ Lightning Start Leaves Bears in the Dust

SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State trailed by as much as 19 points during the first half and couldn’t recover from Southern Illinois’ explosive start in a 73-51 home defeat on Wednesday in Missouri Valley Conference action.

SIU (7-11, 2-5 MVC) was spearheaded by Ali Dibba with 22 points, while Jarrett Hensley and Kennard Davis Jr. each contributed 18 in the second encounter in five days between these long-standing adversaries.

Missouri State (7-11, 0-7 MVC) was led by Michael Osei-Bonsu, who scored 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting and grabbed 9 rebounds, while Jalen Hampton added 14 points coming off the bench. Mozae Downing-Rivers dished out 5 assists in his first appearance of 2025.

The Bears played without their leading scorer, Dez White.

From the outset, Hensley troubled the Bears with 15 points in the first half, including three 3-pointers, giving SIU a 35-18 advantage at the halfway mark. The Bears narrowed the gap to 22-14 following a layup from Hampton at the 5:37 mark, but the Salukis finished the half strong with a 13-4 run that featured three long-range shots and a dunk from Damien Mayo Jr..

The home team started the second half with momentum, utilizing an 8-4 run led by Hampton to close the gap to 41-30 with just over 15 minutes remaining in the contest. Hampton scored five points during that stretch before Wesley Oba’s 3-pointer cut the deficit to 11.

Dibba, who scored 20 points in the second half, elevated his play, contributing nine points in a 10-3 run by the visitors that extended the Salukis’ lead to as many as 18. The Bears experienced nearly five minutes during that period without making a field goal until a crucial layup from Osei-Bonsu ended the drought, followed by five consecutive points from Logan Epes that trimmed the score to 51-40 with 9:11 left in the game.

The Bears could not inch closer as Southern executed a 15-5 run to seal the outcome. Four different Salukis contributed to the scoring surge as their advantage ballooned to 21. Later on, Davis’ 3-pointer established SIU’s largest lead of the night at 70-47 with two minutes left.

The Bears registered under 40 percent shooting for the third time in their ongoing six-game losing streak, making 32.1 percent of their 56 field goal attempts. MoState also hit 4-of-18 (.222) from beyond the arc and were 11-of-16 (.688) from the charity stripe, accumulating 30 rebounds, 10 assists, and 28 points in the paint.

SIU shot 27-for-50 (.540) overall, 9-for-17 (.529) from three-point range, and 10-of-15 (.667) at the free-throw line, attaining 35 rebounds, 17 assists, and 16 turnovers.

This contest marked the 99th meeting between the teams and their final regular-season clash as conference rivals.

The Bears will hit the road for their next two games, including matchups at Illinois State on Saturday (4 p.m.) and Northern Iowa the following Tuesday (7 p.m.) before returning to Great Southern Bank Arena on Saturday, Jan. 25 to face Drake (3 p.m.) during Hall of Fame weekend.

The Hall of Fame Saturday game will feature an appearance from Chiefs’ mascot KC Wolfe, along with Stripe Out and Kids Day promotions.

Tickets for the Drake game can be purchased at MissouriStateBears.com/tickets or at the Missouri State box office situated at Great Southern Bank Arena, (417) 836-7678, during regular business hours. 

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