Missouri State (15-11, 8-6) picked up its eighth road victory of the season with a 56-54 win at Southern Illinois (8-17, 5-9), holding off a late surge by the Salukis to win for the second straight win at SIU Arena. The Bears got 18 points from Caleb Patterson and 14 from Kyle Weems while firing at a 51.2 percent clip to overcome a 17-turnover night and improve to 8-6 in the league.
The Bears took a 56-52 lead on a tip-in by Weems with 43.6 seconds left. The Salukis then rallied behind a baseline drive by Jeff Early who converted a layup with 27.3 to go. SIU then fouled Jarmar Gulley with 25 ticks remaining, but Gulley missed the front end of a one-and-one to open the door for the home club.
The Salukis called a timeout with 16.3 to go and Mamadou Seck missed a 12-foot jumper with Weems in his face, and Early had a chance for a put-back but missed. Gulley then grabbed the rebound as time expired to seal the win. Keith Pickens finished with 9 points and a career-high 9 rebounds for MSU, which out-rebounded SIU 33-23. Seck led SIU with 14 points and 5 rebounds.