SIUE defeats W Illinois 61-66

SIUE Edges W Illinois in Thrilling 5-Point Victory

In a battle of conference titans, the visiting Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) Cardinals stunned the home crowd and dropped the Western Illinois Leathernecks 66-61 at Western Hall on Tuesday evening.

The game's primary storyline centered around SIUE's dramatic comeback, as they erased a 4-point deficit at halftime to take control of the contest. The visitors' resurgence was spearheaded by junior guard Ring Malith, who poured in 24 points and grabbed six rebounds off the glass.

Malith's outstanding performance set the tone for the SIUE offense, which shot a sizzling 47.1% from the field and connected on 40.0% of their three-point attempts. The Cardinals' bench also played a crucial role, providing significant scoring punch throughout the second half.

In contrast, W Illinois struggled to find its rhythm, particularly in the second half. The Leathernecks committed 17 turnovers, which they couldn't recover from, and allowed SIUE to capitalize on these mistakes with ease.

Lucas Lorenzen led the way for W Illinois, scoring 19 points on 2-8 three-point shooting. Karyiek Dixon added six rebounds and seven points off the glass, but it wasn't enough to overcome the deficit.

The game's largest lead came in the first half when the Leathernecks took a 14-point advantage with just under five minutes remaining. However, SIUE refused to back down, using a combination of clutch shooting and defensive stops to fuel their comeback.

In the end, the Cardinals' 5-point victory marked a significant upset in conference play, showcasing their growing prowess as a force to be reckoned with in the Missouri Valley Conference.