Carbondale Reporter

Southern Illinois University's women's basketball team faced a tough challenge against the University of Louisiana Monroe on Wednesday night, ultimately losing 79-66 despite a strong third quarter performance. The Salukis, now 0-3 for the season, showed determination but struggled with rebounding and turnovers.

Head coach Kelly Bond-White expressed pride in her team's effort: "Our kids competed on both sides of the ball," she said. "In the first half, the difference in the game was offensive rebounds. We gave up 15 offensive rebounds which contributed to over half of their scoring."

The Warhawks out-rebounded Southern Illinois 43-28 overall, pulling down significantly more offensive boards in the first half compared to just three in the second half. Four Saluki players scored in double figures: Gift Uchenna led with 16 points, followed by Tyranny Brown with 14, Kayla Cooper with 12, and Isabella Palmqvist with 11.

Louisiana Monroe started strong in the first quarter, outscoring SIU 19-11 by holding them to a shooting percentage of just 33.3%. The Salukis improved slightly in the second quarter but still trailed by five at halftime.

Southern Illinois delivered its best offensive performance in the third quarter, scoring 28 points on over 56% shooting from the field. Despite closing within one point by the end of this period, they were unable to maintain momentum as ULM took control defensively in the fourth quarter.

Bond-White addressed turnover issues after her team committed 26 turnovers compared to ULM's 17: "The turnover situation is because we're doing what I've asked them to do... Our young ladies are trying to make something happen and instead of just kicking the ball out, we're trying to force it."

Next up for Southern Illinois is an away game against IU Indy on Saturday at Indianapolis.

Fans can follow updates via Twitter @SIU_WBasketball or Instagram and Facebook under SalukiAthletics profiles. A mobile app is also available for download from major app stores.