National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Wichita St. 82, Southern Illinois 67
When: 8:05 PM ET, Thursday, January 2, 2014
Where: SIU Arena, Carbondale, Illinois
Officials: # John Higgins, # Paul Janssen, # Kipp Kissinger
Attendance: 4891
By SportsDirect Inc.

No. 7 Wichita State 82, Southern Illinois 67: Cleanthony Early scored 23 points to lead the Shockers to a road victory over the Salukis in their Missouri Valley opener.

Fred VanVleet scored 17 points and dished out seven assists for Wichita State (14-0, 1-0 MVC), which shot 60 percent from the field. Nick Wiggins added 13 points off the bench for the Shockers.

Desmar Jackson and Sean O'Brien each scored 19 points for Southern Illinois (4-10, 0-1), which shot 54.1 percent from the field, including 7-of-13 from 3-point range. Jalen Pendleton added 16 points off the bench, as two Saluki starters failed to score.

The game was close early on, but the Shockers used a 12-0 run to take a 13-point advantage midway through the first half. The lead reached as much as 20 before Southern Illinois rallied to cut it to 17 by halftime.

Wichita State scored the first six points of the second half to up its lead to 23, and the Salukis never seriously threatened after that. Southern Illinois scored six straight points in the closing minutes to make it a 12-point game, but a Tekele Cotton 3-pointer with 1:02 to play ended any doubt.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Wichita State tied its best start to a season ever with its 14th straight win, matching the 1953-54 squad. … The Shockers won the rebound battle 23-20 with Early and Darius Carter leading the way with five boards apiece. … Wichita State connecting on 13-of-16 from the free-throw line, compared to 20-of-28 for Southern Illinois.

Top Game Performances
 
Wichita St.   Southern Illinois
Cleanthony Early 23 Scoring Desmar Jackson 19
Fred VanVleet 7 Assists Anthony Beane Jr. 5
Darius Carter 5 Rebounds Sean O'Brien 7
Cleanthony Early 5 Free Throws Made Desmar Jackson 7
Fred VanVleet 2 Steals Anthony Beane Jr. 1
Kadeem Coleby 2 Blocks Sean O'Brien 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Wichita St. 82 60.0 9-20 13-16 17 20 4 6 6
Southern Illinois 67 54.1 7-13 20-28 11 19 3 2 11