Southern Illinois drops Colorado State 82-67
FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) — Armon Fletcher scored 20 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead five Salukis in double-figure scoring and Southern Illinois pulled away in the second half to beat Colorado State 82-67 on Tuesday night.
Kavion Pippen scored 16, Aaron Cook added 15 points and Sean Lloyd Jr. had 10 for the Salukis (4-3), who shot 58 percent and outscored the Rams 44-20 in the paint. Eric McGill had 10 points with seven assists and Southern Illinois won the rebound battle 34-17.
The Rams (4-3) closed to 55-49 on Anthony Masinton-Bonner's free throw, but Darius Bean's 3-pointer sparked an 11-4 run and the Salukis pulled ahead by as many as 18 points. Colorado State hit 9 of 22 from the field in the second half and was outrebounded 20-9.
Pippens' two-handed dunk put Southern Illinois up 34-30 while the Rams went scoreless for 2:50, but Masinton-Bonner's layup tied it a 40. Cook hit a 3 on the next possession and the Salukis led 43-40 at halftime on 62-percent shooting.
Masinton-Bonner and Kris Martin scored 15 points apiece for the Rams. J.D. Paige scored 12 and Kendle Moore 10.
