CARBONDALE, Ill. – Indiana State closed out both halves against Southern Illinois on extended runs in route to a key 94-51 victory in the regular season’s final road contest. ISU stayed within one half game of Creighton and Northern Iowa for second place in the Missouri Valley Conference while improving to 19-7, 12-5 MVC. The Salukis dropped to 3-21, 1-14 MVC.

ISU raced out to an 8-0 advantage in the game’s first two minutes as the Sycamore defense forced three turnovers before the Salukis got off a shot. Elyse Morris – who posted 19 points in the earlier meeting between the two schools – drained a 3-pointer to inch SIU back within 8-3. Morris would get the Salukis back within one, 12-11, with 13:12 left before the half on a transition jump shot. She would go on to score Southern’s final 14 points of the first stanza en route to a 17-point performance before the break.

It was not enough as the Sycamores completely took over the contest behind the solid play of junior Ashley Clark. ISU closed the half on a 36-12 run over the final 13 minutes to take a 48-23 lead at intermission. Clark had 10 points and nine rebounds during the first 20 minutes of play.

Morris scored the last of her 22 points on a 3-pointer with 11:31 remaining to slim the Sycamore advantage to 67-41. ISU would out-score the Salukis 37-10 from that point on en route to the 43-point win.

Junior point guard Melanie Boeglin paced the team, with 22 points, hitting 9-of-14 shots from the field, including her lone 3-point attempt. Of a more important note, she recorded six steals in the contest – the 319^th of her career which bests the Indiana State career school record of 315, previously held by Barbara Graves. Boeglin’s 319 takeaways are the fourth-most by a single-player in the history of the MVC.

Indiana State placed four scorers in double-digits, paced by Boeglin. She was joined by Lisa Verhoff and Rachel Maenpaa with 13 each while Clark posted 12. The Sycamores shot 52.3% from the floor for the contest -- the fourth time in the last five games ISU has eclipsed the 50% shooting mark.

With its 37-23 rebounding edge over the Salukis, the Sycamores have controlled the boards in each of the last four games. Defensively, ISU forced 28 Saluki turnovers, tying its season-best of 17 steals, paced by Boeglin’s record-breaking six.

The 94 points scored represented the second-highest total of the season, just short of the 96 posted against William & Mary. The 43-point margin of victory is ISU’s largest in a conference game (Gateway or MVC) in school history. It also marks the largest road victory since the program moved to NCAA Division I status prior to the 1983 season.

ISU enjoys a seven-day respite before it’s much-anticipated rematch with Illinois State on March 5 as part of Senior Day at Hulman Center. The Sycamores dropped an 82-73 decision to the Redbirds on New Year’s Day. ISU will need a win against Illinois State to secure its second 20-win season in the last three seasons, as well as a 13-5 MVC record and a second or third seed at the State Farm MVC Tournament.

GAME BOX SCORE