Carbondale Reporter

Southern Illinois University's basketball team experienced a setback as their three-game winning streak was halted by Murray State with a 74-64 defeat at Banterra Center. The Salukis, now holding an 8-12 record overall and 3-6 in the Missouri Valley Conference, saw three players score in double figures. Ali Dibba led the team with 21 points.

Head coach Scott Nagy commented on the team's performance: "Most people would think that the offense was the problem tonight and 3-for-20 from three is probably not going to win very many games," he said. "We were close to one point per possession, so even as bad as we were offensively, that wasn't the problem. The problem was defensively. We just weren't physical enough and they were more physical."

Murray State improved to an 11-9 record overall and 5-4 in conference play after shooting an impressive 49.1 percent from the floor during the game. In the second half alone, they shot 59.1 percent, outscoring Southern Illinois by eight points.

The Salukis briefly took a lead early in the second half after Kennard Davis Jr.'s three-pointer but could not maintain it as former SIU player AJ Ferguson scored six consecutive points for Murray State, securing their lead for good.

Trailing by five with over twelve minutes remaining, Southern closed in on Murray State's lead with efforts from Sheridan Sharp and Davis but couldn't keep pace during a decisive 12-2 run by Murray State.

Reflecting on his team's effort, Nagy stated: "I talked about it at halftime that we were flat, but good teams sometimes just fight through that... It's the first time we've had even a chance to do that... We're still learning a lot, but emotionally we were flat."

Davis contributed significantly despite the loss with 20 points and seven rebounds. Jarrett Hensley added another eleven points along with five rebounds for Southern Illinois.

Ferguson stood out for Murray State with a game-high of 22 points while Nick Ellington supported him by scoring fourteen points and collecting seven rebounds.

Looking ahead, Southern Illinois will embark on a two-game road trip starting Saturday against UIC before visiting Valparaiso.

For more updates on Saluki basketball activities visit SIUSalukis.com or follow them on social media platforms including X (@SIU_Basketball), Instagram (@SIU_Basketball), and Facebook (Facebook.com/SIUBasketball). Fans can also access information via the "Salukis" mobile app available on both App Store and Google Play Store.