SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State fell behind by as many as 19 points in the first half and was unable to overcome Southern Illinois' fast start in a 73-51 home setback here Wednesday in Missouri Valley Conference play.

SIU (7-11, 2-5 MVC) was led by Ali Dibba with 22 points, while Jarrett Hensley and Kennard Davis Jr. added 18 apiece in the second meeting in five days between the long-time rivals.

Missouri State (7-11, 0-7 MVC) was led by Michael Osei-Bonsu with 17 points on 7-of-11 field goals and 9 rebounds, while Jalen Hampton tallied 14 points off the bench. Mozae Downing-Rivers accounted for 5 assists in his first appearance of 2025. 

The Bears were without the services of their top scorer, Dez White.

Early in the game, Hensley continued to give the Bears headaches with 15 points in the opening half, including three triples, to push SIU ahead 35-18 at the midway point. The Bears drew within 22-14 after a layup from Hampton at the 5:37 mark before the Salukis closed out the half on a 13-4 run, including three treys and a dunk from Damien Mayo Jr.

The home side opened up the second half with some momentum, using a Hampton-led 8-4 surge to draw within 41-30 with just over 15 minutes left in the game. Hampton posted five points in that stretch before Wesley Oba's 3-pointer got the Bears within 11.

Dibba, who scored 20 in the second half, stepped up from there, posting nine points as part of a 10-3 surge from the visitors that pushed the Salukis ahead by as many as 18. The Bears went nearly five minutes during that stretch without a field goal before a big layup from Osei-Bonsu broke the slump, and five straight points from Logan Epes made it a 51-40 game with 9:11 remaining.

The Bears would get no closer as Southern then used a 15-5 stretch to put things out of reach. Four different Saluki players figured in the scoring for the visitors as their lead swelled to 21. Later, Davis' 3-pointer gave SIU its biggest lead of the night, 70-47 with two minutes to play.

The Bears shot under 40 percent for the third time during their six-game losing streak, firing at a 32.1 percent clip on 18-of-56 field goal attempts. MoState was also 4-of-18 (.222) from long range and 11-for-16 (.688) at the line with 30 rebounds, 10 assists and 28 points in the paint.

SIU was 27-for-50 (.540) overall from the field, 9-for-17 (.529) from three and 10-of-15 (.667) at the line with 35 rebounds, 17 assists and 16 turnovers.

The game marked the 99th meeting between the squads and their final regular-season matchup as Valley foes.

The Bears are back on the road for their next two games, including contests at Illinois State on Saturday (4 p.m.) and Northern Iowa next Tuesday (7 p.m.) before returning to Great Southern Bank Arena on Saturday, Jan. 25 to play Drake (3 p.m.) on Hall of Fame weekend.

The Hall of Fame Saturday game will feature an appearance from Chiefs' mascot KC Wolfe in addition to Stripe Out and Kids Day promotions.

Tickets for the Drake are available at MissouriStateBears.com/tickets or through the Missouri State box office at Great Southern Bank Arena, (417) 836-7678, during regular box office hours.