CARBONDALE, Ill. – Southern Illinois connected on just about everything early on and kept the hot shooting going throughout Friday night's contest against Illinois State, as the host Salukis (9-13, 6-7 MVC) shot nearly 50 percent from the field and 60 percent from long distance to defeat the Redbirds (14-10, 8-5 MVC) by a final score of 84-60 at Banterra Center in Carbondale.
HOW IT HAPPENEDÂ
•   Illinois State jumped out to a 5-3 lead to start the game, after Doneelah Washington connected on a three-pointer from the top of the key two-and-a-half minutes into the contest.
•   The Salukis answered with a 12-0 run over the next three-plus minutes to take a 15-5 lead with 3:37 remaining in the first quarter, but the Redbirds would come right back with a 7-0 run capped off on a three-pointer in the corner by Bella Finnegan to trim the SIU lead to 15-12 with under two minutes left in the quarter. Each team made one more basket to end the first 10 minutes of play, with the Salukis up by three at 17-14 headed to the second quarter.
•   SIU came out firing in the second quarter, starting on an 18-2 run to widen its lead to 35-16 before a pair of free throws by Addison Martin and a layup by Washington got the Redbirds back on the board and cut into the lead at 35-20 with just over two minutes left before halftime.
•   Southern Illinois held a 20-point advantage with 13 seconds left before the break, before Finnegan drilled her second three-pointer of the half to make it 42-25 in favor of SIU at the break.
•   The Redbirds started the third quarter with four quick points from Martin and Washington to cut the deficit to 13 and later, a layup by Washington and a three-pointer by Trista Fayta would cut the Saluki lead to 11 at 47-36 with 6:43 left on the clock.
•   The Salukis would answer and went up by as much at 20 again at 61-41 after SIU made its ninth three-pointer of the game and took a 66-43 lead into the final quarter of play after a half-court buzzer beater banked home for SIU.
•   In the fourth quarter, Finnegan would connect on her third make from long distance and Washington scored six-straight points on a three-pointer of her own and then a traditional three-point play to cut the score to 79-54 with 2:36 left in the contest.
•   Four-late points in a minute-long span by Fayta and a pair of free throws by De'Shawnti Thomas would end the scoring for the Redbirds, as the Salukis secured the 84-60 win at home.
HIGHLIGHTSÂ
•   The loss snapped a four-game winning streak for the Redbirds, and an eight-game win streak against the Salukis.
•   Washington scored 12 of her team-high 19 points in the second half and added six rebounds, four blocks, three steals and two assists in the game against the Salukis.
•   Finnegan finished in double figures for the third-straight game, as she shot 50 percent from three-point range (3-for-6) to finish the game with 14 points to go along with three rebounds.
•   With her 14 points, Finnegan moved over 1,000 career points in her career spent between Indiana State and Illinois State.
•   Fayta added seven points, five assists and five rebounds in 31 minutes of action.
UP NEXTÂ
Illinois State continues its road trip against Evansville on Sunday, with tipoff set for 3 p.m. CT.
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Â Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Athletic Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
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