The Bears of Missouri State traveled to the Banterra Center on Friday, Feb. 4, to take on the Salukis in a highly anticipated matchup between two of the top teams in the Missouri Valley. The MSU women’s program has dominated the MVC in recent years.

It seems it’s SIU’s turn to shine at this point, as the Salukis walked away with the win on their home court, 65-49.

Missouri State managed to get on the board first to start the game just forty seconds into the game.

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On the very next play, sophomore guard Quierra Love pulled the trigger from deep, which gave SIU its first lead of the game, 3-2.

Both teams went cold over the next couple of minutes leading up until the first media timeout of the game. With 4:02 left on the clock, MSU led 9-5.

The Bears and Salukis both continued their struggles putting the ball in the basket. SIU gained momentum after a three-pointer with 16 seconds left in the first quarter, courtesy of freshman guard Tyranny Brown.

Senior center Gabby Walker regained the lead with a turnaround layup for the first bucket of the second quarter. The SIU defense wasn’t letting the Bears near the cup.

Southern Illinois then forced a turnover, which led to a wide-open layup for senior forward Mackenzie Silvey. SIU held a 16-12 lead with 8:05 left in the half.

Both teams managed to get their momentum going, as the next four minutes were a back-and-forth affair. The score was tied, 20-20, by the second media timeout of the game with 4:28 left in the second quarter.

The Salukis led by just two heading into the second half, 27-25.

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The Bears came out of the break with all of the momentum after multiple baskets. Silvey put a stop to the run with a three-pointer from the right wing. The Salukis regained the lead with 7:30 left in the third quarter, 32-30.

Brockmeyer caught fire in the following minutes, forcing Missouri State to call a timeout with 6:09 left in the third. SIU led 36-30.

Head coach Cindy Stein said Brockmeyer and Silvey are very special players, and their impact is felt insurmountably when the team needs to get out of a dry spell.

“They know when they need to step up. And not only that, but they understand when they need to give it to someone else and let them go to work,” Stein said.

The Salukis went on another run to close out the third quarter. Southern Illinois headed to the bench up 46-43.

Southern Illinois got lucky in drawing some fouls to start the fourth quarter. With the free throws SIU was able to knock down, they held a 50-44 lead with 7:30 left in the game.

The lead only increased, as the Salukis found themselves winning by almost 10 by the final timeout of the game. SIU led 55-46 with 3:02 left in the fourth.

Silvey hit a three-point dagger with 2:35 left in the game that sealed the deal. Realization set in for the Dawgs that they would be winning their first game in the past five matchups.

It was at this time that Silvey pulled off her best Stephen Curry impression after making a heavily contested three-pointer to put the Salukis up 15.

Southern Illinois coasted the rest of the way to its fourth straight win, and remained undefeated at home. The Salukis beat its rivals handily, 65-49.

As usual, Silvey led the way with 20 points (12 of those coming from the three-point line), three assists and two steals. She was aided by Walker with 13 points and ten rebounds, and Love who had arguably her best game of the year.

She put up 12 points and two steals in her heroic effort. Love said she felt confident in her performance as the season has gone along.

“I definitely think I’m a more confident player recently. My teammates and coaches push me to be more confident and believe in myself,” Love said.

The Bears will get their rematch with the Salukis on Sunday, Feb. 6, for both teams’ next game. If the Salukis want the season-sweep, they’ll have to steal it on Missouri State’s home court.

Stein said next game is going to be a battle and they might not be able to run away with it like they did tonight.

“It’s tough to think of any advantages to that (playing them twice in three days), especially a team like Missouri State. But they’ll be fresh in our mind,” Stein said.

Sports Reporter Cole Daily can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter at cdaily_de

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