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Salukis slip by Wyoming in opener

SIU defense locks up Cowboys down the stretch while Saluki offense finds new heroes

After losing its top two scorers, the ability to score in the clutch was a major question mark for the SIU men's basketball team.

Late-game scoring proved to be no problem for the Salukis in a season-opening 67-62 win over Wyoming Saturday night in Laramie, Wyo.

"We just kind of grinded it out and were able just to hang in there," head coach Matt Painter said on his postgame radio show. "When you go on the road this is the type of game you have to grind it out and just get the win and that's what we did tonight."

SIU got two key late buckets, one from Josh Warren and the other from freshman Jamaal Tatum, his first collegiate basket, to hand Painter a win in his debut.

Warren scored on the interior with 2:25 to play, giving SIU a 63-62 lead. The junior center who will be counted on for inside offense this season finished with 12 points and eight rebounds.

"I've been doing this for four years, working hard, and this is what I've been working for, just make the big shot that got us over the hump to take the lead," Warren said on the postgame radio show.

Tatum then drove through the Wyoming defense to score a driving layup with 55 seconds remaining that gave SIU a three-point edge and sealed the win in front of more than 9,000 hostile fans Arena-Auditorium.

Tatum, who started the game, finished with two points, three assists, three assists and two rebounds.

But while offensive plays may get the accolades, team defense down the stretch was what put the Salukis in that position after trailing by as many as nine points early in the second half. The Cowboys scored their last points with more than five minutes to play.

"I've always said our offense is gonna take some time, and defensively we're pretty solid," Painter said. "We had a lot of guys play well that didn't score, and that's what we've tried to get across to them. You don't have to score to play well."

Some of the Salukis' second-half success was due to the fact that they slowed the uptempo Cowboys.

"We felt like we could play this style and play low possession type basketball against them and it would be something different they haven't seen in five weeks in practice," Painter said. "You cannot simulate that when you're not used to playing in the half court. We made them play half court basketball and it paid off."

Junior guard Darren Brooks led four Salukis in double figure scoring with 16 points to go along with his six rebounds. Senior guard Bryan Turner scored 10, as did junior college transfer LaMar Owen.

"His junior college coach said he will surprise you," Painter said of Owen. "He will get in games and do some things that he doesn't do in practice. He™≠s a gamer. There's no doubt about it."

Wyoming was led by junior guard Jay Straight, who scored 15, but most of those came early in the game.

"We just rotated guys on him and we wore him down," Painter said.

SIU opens the home portion of its season Wednesday night against new Ohio Valley Conference member Jacksonville State. The Gamecocks, winners of 20 games last season, lost several top scorers from that team.