Carbondale Reporter

Southern Illinois basketball team put up a strong fight in the second half but fell short against Belmont, losing 90-86 at the Curb Event Center in Nashville. Despite outscoring Belmont 55-47 after halftime, the Salukis couldn't secure a win.

The game was tied at 83 when Belmont's Tyler Lundblade drew a foul on a three-point attempt with only 20 seconds remaining. He successfully converted all three free throws, allowing Belmont to clinch the victory and improve their record to 11-5 overall and 3-2 in conference play.

Ali Dibba of Southern Illinois scored a career-high 33 points and grabbed nine rebounds. The senior from Stockholm netted 25 of his points in the second half, shooting an impressive 10-for-13 from the field.

Trailing by twelve points at halftime, Southern Illinois initiated a comeback with a significant run early in the second half, tying the game at 47 before the first media timeout. Contributions came from Kennard Davis Jr., Rolyns Aligbe, and Damien Mayo Jr., who each hit three-pointers during this period. Dibba helped SIU take its largest lead of the game at 55-50.

The final minutes saw both teams exchanging leads multiple times. With just over eight minutes left, Belmont regained control with an eight-point streak that gave them a six-point advantage. Southern Illinois continued to challenge, leveling the score at 81 following another crucial three-pointer by Dibba.

Southern forced Belmont into committing 13 turnovers and capitalized by scoring eighteen points off those errors while limiting themselves to nine turnovers resulting in four points for Belmont.

Dibba led Southern Illinois' scoring efforts with Davis contributing thirteen points, including eleven in the second half. Jarrett Hensley added eleven points along with four assists before fouling out late in the contest.

Aligbe recorded nine points and four rebounds; Mayo Jr. scored eight points including two triples. As a team, Southern distributed twenty-two assists with Sheridan Sharp, Drew Steffe, and Davis leading with five each.

Southern shot fifty percent from the floor (33-66) and forty-two percent from beyond the arc (13-31). However, they faced challenges at free throw opportunities as Belmont shot seventeen for twenty compared to Southern's seven for eleven due to being called for seventeen fouls against ten for BU.

Jonathon Pierre led Belmont's scoring with twenty-one points while Brigham Rogers nearly achieved a double-double finishing with seventeen points and nine rebounds.

Southern Illinois will next host Missouri State at Banterra Center on Saturday evening. Fans can follow updates via SIUSalukis.com or social media platforms like X (@SIU_Basketball), Instagram (@SIU_Basketball), Facebook (Facebook.com/SIUBasketball), or through their mobile app available on major app stores.