MOLINE, Ill. – In a game that will go down as the highest-scoring game in Missouri Valley Conference Tournament history, Sycamore women's basketball lost a heartbreaker in overtime, falling to Southern Illinois, 90-89.
 
Despite the difficult ending, sophomore Jasmine Elder put on an offensive show for the Sycamores (5-15), ending with a game-high 31 points to become the first Sycamore to score 30 points in an MVC Tournament game since April Kirby put up 31 points on Mar. 9, 2000 against Drake. She is also the first Sycamore to score 30 in any game since Bilqis Abdul-Qaadir tallied 32 at Loyola Chicago on Feb. 2, 2014. 
 
Elder's outburst came on 10-of-21 shooting, including three triples and an impressive 8-of-9 at the charity stripe. The Louisville, Ky., native also added six rebounds, three assists and two steals. Jamyra McChristine also had a strong outing in the final game of her Sycamore career, contributing 17 points, eight rebounds and two steals.
 
As a team, Indiana State shot 33-of-72 (45.8%) from the floor and 8-of-17 (47.1%) from deep while holding the Salukis (9-15) to just 6-of-19 (31.6%) from three-point range. The Blue & White also took control of the glass during the game, ending with a 40-30 edge over SIU. Southern Illinois was led by Makenzie Silvey with 23 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
 
Thursday's contest was destined to be a battle from the beginning with back-and-forth action starting early in the first quarter. The opening frame featured four ties and 10 lead changes before Indiana State was able to take a 23-21 lead into the second quarter, helped by nine points from Elder.
 
The sophomore didn't slow down in the second period, tallying nine more points to total 18 in the first half, just five off of her career-high. Even with a high-scoring offensive effort from Elder, the Salukis used a 9-0 scoring run in the final three minutes to take a 42-34 advantage into the locker room for halftime.
 
After being tested late in the first half, ISU came out of halftime swinging, using back-to-back layups from Marie Hunter and Caitlin Anderson to force a Saluki timeout just 52 seconds into the second half. Indiana State would eventually fall behind by eight at the 6:18 mark after two free throws from Quierra Love to make it 48-40. The hard-nosed Sycamores once again responded, riding an eight-point quarter from Elder and five points from Hunter, to hold a 57-54 lead heading into the final frame of the game.
 
The fourth quarter felt like an entire game of its own, with neither team willing to relent. A deep three from Sommer Pitzer pushed the Indiana State lead to seven with 7:25 left in the game and two free throws from Elder would extend the lead to nine. The Salukis responded with a 12-0 run of their own to claim the lead at 69-68 with just 3:42 on the clock. Four quick points from Silvey would give SIU a four-point lead late, but ISU's Hunter would score the final four points of the quarter from either team to force overtime after SIU's Caitlin Link missed a layup as time expired.
 
Silvey was the story of overtime as the senior took over for the Salukis, putting down nine points, including two threes, to help push SIU past the Sycamores. The Trees did make things interesting, with McChristine connecting on a layup with seven seconds remaining to pull within 89-86. Silvey would hit one of two at the line before Pitzer would drain a triple as time expired, ending the ISU hopes of stopping the drought in March.
 
The overtime thriller marks the end of the 2020-21 campaign for Indiana State in a season that was riddled with injuries, quarantines and schedule changes.  
 
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