(Courtesy Saint Louis Athletics)
Austin McBroom scored a career- and game-high 24 points, including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 10 seconds to play, to lead Saint Louis to a 62-59 victory over Southern Illinois Saturday night at Chaifetz Arena in the season-opening game for both teams.
The game drew 10,015 fans, setting Chaifetz Arena records for a season opener and for a non-conference game.
The Billikens, who trailed most of the game, tied it at 57 on Mike Crawford’s trey with 1:52 left. After a Southern Illinois miss, McBroom buried his career-high fifth 3-pointer (5-of-7) from the top of the key. The shot followed two Saint Louis offensive rebounds that kept the possession alive.
Saint Louis chose to foul on the subsequent Southern Illinois possession to prevent the Salukis from attempting a tying 3-pointer. Anthony Beane made both ends of a 1-and-1 with 3.6 seconds remaining to narrow the Billiken lead to 60-59.
Ash Yacoubou was fouled in the backcourt and sank two free throws with 2.7 seconds left to re-establish a 3-point margin. Davell Roby then stole a long inbounds pass to preserve the victory.
“I thought Austin had a good pace to his game,” head coach Jim Crews said. “He was cutting hard. He was changing speeds. He knocked some in. When he’s open, he does a good job of that. We’re real pleased. The better he does on defense, the better his offense is.”
Yacoubou scored 12 points and collected seven rebounds to lead the Billikens to a 35-34 edge on the glass. Crawford tallied a career-high 10 points, and Roby tied for game-high honors with three assists.
Sean O’Brien led Southern Illinois with 15 points and a game-high and career-high-tying 12 rebounds, including five on the offensive boards. Beane scored 14 points.
The Billikens outscored the Salukis 20-13 at the foul line.
McBroom nailed two 3-pointers in SLU’s first five possessions to help stake the Billikens to a 10-8 lead, and it was 11-8 following a Marcus Bartley free throw.
Southern Illinois used an 11-2 run to take a 19-13 lead, and the Salukis maintained the upper hand until a 7-0 spurt put Saint Louis back in front. Roby’s four-point play at the 3:56 mark made it 31-29 Billikens.
However, SIU finished with an 8-2 flurry to take a halftime lead. Jalen Pendleton punctuated the run with a pair of buckets in the lane, and the Salukis carried a 37-33 advantage to the locker room.
It took the Billikens less than five minutes to regain the lead, with Yacoubou’s three-point play on the second-half opening possession sparking an 11-5 run. McBroom followed with a fadeaway and 3-pointer, and Austin Gillmann’s triple gave SLU a 44-42 edge with 15:31 remaining.
SIU scored on its next two possessions to take a lead it would hold until the waning seconds. However, Saint Louis did not allow a Saluki field goal over the final six minutes, helping overcome a long shooting drought of its own and setting the stage for the crucial shots by Crawford and McBroom.
“We’re very excited about our guys,” Crews said. “I think the fans will really enjoy watching them develop. It will be a fun group.”
The Billikens take on another Missouri Valley Conference opponent Tuesday, Nov. 18, traveling to Terre Haute, Ind., to face Indiana State. Tip time is 6 p.m. (CT).
