Halftime’s paper-airplane toss was not the only long range bombing going on in SIU Arena Saturday.

Sophomore guard Troy Hudson and the basketball Salukis defeated Wichita State 76-54 with a constant barrage of three-pointers.

Hudson scored 35 points in the contest, 22 of them coming in the first half, and shot 55-percent in the game from the floor.

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The 9-6, 2-2 Salukis were in need of a big win after falling to Bradley University Jan. 15, 57-73, and SIUC coach Rich Herrin said the difference might have been the change from man-to-man to the zone defense.

There is no doubt that Hudson had a tremendous night shooting the basketball, but the fact that we held them to six field goals in the first half had to be the great thing, Herrin said. Our zone (defense) was very good to us defensively, and I couldn’t ask for any more effort.

Even though Hudson scored 35 points in the game, Herrin said the team still could not relax because of the absence of a dominate inside player on the squad.

When you don’t have a guy you can go to inside, you’ve got to be concerned throughout the basketball game, he said. When you live and die on the outside shot, you can die pretty quickly and let them back in the game.

It’s a good victory for us, and when Tory’s on, it helps everyone out. But, I’ve talked to Troy and told him he’s not going to have these games every night out, and he can’t let that effect him.

Unlike the Bradley game, Hudson chose his shots wisely, and was patient in waiting for the open jumper. He connected on 7-of-11 three-pointers, shooting 64-percent from behind the stripe.

I got on a role and my teammates gave me the ball when I needed it, Hudson said. I took some good, decent shots, which I didn’t do the other night (at Bradley), and I think that is what got me on a role.

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Beyond the Troy Hudson show, fellow sophomore guard Shane Hawkins and senior forwards Jaratio Tucker and Scott Burzynski made key plays that built the lead up to 18 points at the intermission and 25 points midway through the second half.

Hawkins added his 14 points to the effort, and Burzynski and Tucker both contributed eight in what seemed to be a perfect confidence builder for a team battling to make the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament.

With the Jan. 18 cancellation at Drake University due to weather conditions, SIUC had ample time to think about its loss in Peoria, and recollect its thoughts for WSU.

It had been a long time since we played at Bradley, and we had a lot of time to think about that, Hawkins said. We were all eager to get back on the floor and show that we are a team to be reckoned with throughout the Valley’s season.

We are still a very young team, even being 15 games into the season, and we are still trying to find that groove to play with each other. But, I think we’re getting more comfortable every time we step out onto the floor.