The Billikens’ second consecutive win lifted them to 9-3 overall and 2-2 in the Atlantic 10 Conference. Rhode Island slipped to 9-12, 6-8 with its fourth straight loss.
Goodwin led all players with 17 points, six steals (tying his career high) and six assists, and he pulled down 11 rebounds.
Javonte Perkins tossed in 16 points, including 12 in the second half, while Hasahn French just missed a double-double with nine points and a game-high 13 rebounds, matching his season best on the glass.
Gibson Jimerson scored eight of his 13 points in the second half, and Fred Thatch Jr. collected all nine of his points after the break.
SLU held Rhode Island to a season-low 32.8 percent from the field. The Billikens committed a season-low four turnovers, leading to a 15-2 advantage in points off turnovers.
Jeremy Sheppard had 16 points, Fatts Russell registered 15 points and seven rebounds, and Makhel Mitchell contributed 10 points and eight rebounds for Rhode Island.
Rhode Island narrowed a six-point halftime deficit to two less than two minutes into the second half, but the Rams would draw no closer. Saint Louis scored the next five points to lead 32-25 with 15:50 left.
Two Goodwin free throws at the 12:40 mark gave the Billikens their first double-digit lead, 42-31. Jimerson answered a Rhody 3-pointer with one of his own, and after another Rams’ trey, two free throws and a triple by Perkins upped the lead to 50-37 with 10:59 remaining.
Rhode Island drew no closer than nine points until the game was out of reach with less than 30 seconds to play.
After Saint Louis gained an 8-5 lead, Rhode Island connected three times from beyond the arc in an 11-0 spurt that put the Rams on top 16-8.
The Billikens answered with a 13-0 flurry of their own. Jimerson ignited the run with a 3-pointer and a jumper, and Goodwin followed with two triples sandwiched around a pullup jumper to put SLU in front 21-16 with 5:32 left.
The lead alternated between three and five points until Perkins scored with 10 seconds remaining for a 27-20 advantage. A Rhode Island free throw with less than a second left provided the halftime score.
The Billikens play at Fordham Saturday, Feb. 13, at 2:30 p.m. (CT). The game will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
