Carbondale Reporter

Southern Illinois University's men's basketball team delivered a strong performance in their second game of the season, defeating Kansas City 101-78 at Banterra Center on Friday. This was the Salukis' first time scoring over 100 points since 2023 and only the third occurrence since 2020.

The final score reached triple digits after Damien Mayo hit a three-pointer on the last shot of the game. Head coach Scott Nagy emphasized the importance of maximizing every possession for postseason consideration, stating, "Every possession counts. The (NCAA selection) committee looks at offensive efficiency and defensive efficiency. You never look to run up the score on anyone but you have to get players to understand every play matters."

The Salukis controlled the game throughout, outscoring Kansas City by a wide margin in points in the paint (64-38). They finished with a 65.6 percent shooting rate from the field and made 39 percent of their three-point attempts. Southern Illinois led by as many as 27 points during the contest.

Quel'Ron House was SIU's top scorer with 18 points, making seven out of nine shots. Rolyns Aligbe contributed 14 points and seven rebounds, while Davion Sykes also scored 14 points and collected four rebounds. Prince Aligbe added 12 points early in the game, helping SIU demonstrate its roster depth—11 players scored and bench players accounted for 43 points.

Davion Sykes commented on his team's balanced attack: "Every bucket that goes in puts a smile on my face, a smile on my teammates' faces. Anybody at any given night can go off. When your name is called, you just have to be ready."

Southern Illinois also had an advantage in rebounding (40-24) and forced Kansas City into 12 turnovers, converting those into 21 points. The team recorded 24 fast-break points as well.

Kansas City's leading scorer was Karmello Branch with 18 points; Jayson Petty added another 14. The Roos struggled offensively against SIU's defense, shooting just over forty percent from the field overall and less than thirty percent from three-point range in the second half.

With this victory, Southern Illinois improved its record to two wins without losses so far this season. Their next matchup is an away game against Nevada on Wednesday, November 12 at 9 p.m. CST. After several road games, they will return home to host Arkansas Little Rock at Banterra Center on Saturday, November 29; tickets are available through this link: Saluk.is/43XgPSU.