By: Jeff Weseloh, Director of Athletics Media Relations
Carbondale, Ill. - The Southwest Baptist University men's basketball had a strong showing in an exhibition contest against Division I Southern Illinois on Saturday afternoon, dropping the contest 79-63. The Bearcats hung tight with the Salukis, giving the Missouri Valley squad a great game.
The Bearcats and Salukis played an tightly competitive game in the opening minutes of the contest, with Southwest Baptist hitting three's to keep them close to the Division I Salukis. After a three pointer by
Derrick Stewart, SBU found themselves down two points at 10-8 with 15:20 left in the first half. SIU used a mini run to push the lead up to eight (20-12) with 11:50 left in the half. After going down 12, the Bearcats cut the lead in half when
Derrick Stewart hit a three to make it 26-20 with 6:42 left in the first. SBU held strong for a remainder of the half, going into the break down 41-30.
In the second half SIU used a 6-0 run to push their lead to 17, but Southwest Baptist continued to battle. Stewart continued to hit big three's, keeping the Bearcats within striking distance, as SBU was down single digits (51-42) with 14:47 to go in the game. Southern Illinois slowly built their lead back up as SBU ended up falling 79-63.
"We showed progress from a week ago in our last scrimmage to today," head coach
Clark Sheehy commented. "We have to continue to make progress and improve each day as we start games next week."
Derrick Stewart led the way for Southwest Baptist with a game high 28 points while hitting 8 three's.
Menas Stephens was also in double-figures for SBU, scoring 12 points and pulling down a team high 9 rebounds, while
Robert Shaw gave the Bearcats 8 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists off of the bench. As a team, SBU 38.3% from the field, 36.7% from beyond the arc, and 54.5% from the free throw line.
The Bearcats are set to open up their season by hosting the SBU Classic on Friday, November 14 and Saturday, November 15. SBU is set to host Southwestern Oklahoma State on Friday with opening tip set for 7:30 p.m. from Bolivar, Missouri.
