Box Score CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Southern Illinois broke open a close game at halftime and despite the Sycamores getting hot late from 3-point range still earned an 88-73 win over visiting Indiana State inside SIU Arena. 

ISU fell to 11-10, 3-6 MVC while SIU improved to 11-11, 4-5 MVC. It was the Saluki's seventh consecutive win in the series with the Sycamores.

Tyreke Key and Jordan Barnes each went over the 20 point mark for the third time this season and the first since a win over Truman State on December 8 inside Hulman Center. Key owned 25 points as he was 6-of-10 from the field and 10-of-11 from the free throw line. Key was 3-of-4 from 3-point range. Barnes added 20 points as he hit 8-of-13 from the field, including a pair of trifectas. 

Indiana State hit 27-of-56 from the field (48.2 percent), including a mark of 6-of-14 from 3-point land (42.9 percent). But SIU could not miss as they hit 18-of-26 from the field (69.2 percent) after halftime and finished the game by hitting 34-of-56 from the field -- a 60.7 percentage. Christian Williams added a career high six assists and Emondre Rickman and Jordan Barnes led the way with five rebounds. Rickman added nine points as well with eight of them coming early in the second half.

The Sycamores went to Emondre Rickman inside on its first three possessions and he came away with buckets in two of them as the two teams went back and forth. Jordan Barnes drilled his 203rd career 3-pointer at the 16:31 mark to stake the Sycamores to a 7-4 lead. Tyreke Key's conventional 3-point play at the initial media timeout pushed the ISU cushion out to 12-7. 

Southern came back to knot the game at 12 before Key drilled one from distance and ISU gained two more inside buckets from Rickman to take a 19-16 lead with just over 12 minutes to go.

An 8-0 Southern Illinois run turned a three point Sycamore lead into a 28-23 Saluki lead. The Sycamores returned to the scoring column with an Allante Holston fast break lay-up at the 5:38 mark and then following a steal, Key hit two free throws with 5:11 on the clock to draw the Sycamores within 28-27. 

A conventional 3-point play by Key at the 2:18 mark drew the Sycamores within 33-30. SIU scored five in a row to push their lead out to 38-30 before Key scored on a driving lay-up with 32 seconds left to make it 38-32. ISU got a late steal from Holston but couldn't find the bottom of the bucket at the buzzer and SIU led 38-32 at the half. Key led the way with 13 points at the break.



Southern Illinois would stretch their lead out to 49-37 with 16:31 on the clock as the Salukis hit each of their first three attempts from 3-point range after the half. The final one was a trifecta from Marcus Bartley which forced ISU to burn a timeout. Kessinger ended the run as the clock ticked towards the 16 minute mark with a lay-up which drew the Sycamores within 49-39. 

De'Avion Washington drained a triple after a missed SIU charity toss and then following a steal, Barnes grabbed an offensive put back with 14:10 remaining to make it five in a row and draw ISU within 53-46 of the Salukis. Following a Southern Illinois timeout, Barnes grabbed a long rebound off a Fletcher miss and the 7-0 run cut the SIU cushion down to 53-48.

But that is as close as the Sycamores would get as Southern Illinois eventually took a 72-59 lead despite a second 3-pointer falling with 7:07 on the clock for Jordan Barnes.

Tyreke Key hit a pair of 3-pointers around the four minute mark to push him up to 19 points in the game and trim the SIU lead down to 81-65.

Armon Fletcher led the way for the Salukis with a career-high 34 points.

Indiana State returns home on Saturday, February 2 as they host Drake in the annual Hall of Fame Game. ISU will honor DeJuan Alfonzo, the 1968 Mile Relay Team, Steve Newton, Bill Hodges, Bob Elson and Erica Moore throughout the game on the occasion of their induction into the ISU Athletics Hall of Fame.