CARBONDALE, ILL. - The University of Missouri-St. Louis men's basketball team battled NCAA Division I Southern Illinois to the end, but came up short in a 72-67 loss to the Salukis in exhibition play Thursday night.
 
UMSL will now turn its focus to the regular season, tipping off its 51st season of play next weekend by hosting the GLVC/GLIAC Challenge. UMSL officially opens the year Friday night hosting Ferris State and then on Saturday, entertaining Grand Valley State.
 
SIU scored the final seven points of the game to escape with the victory, erasing a two-point Tritons lead with under three minutes to play. The game featured 16 ties and 18 lead changes and no lead greater than six by either team.
 
UMSL scored its last points on a bucket by junior Elijah Watson at the 2:49 mark for a 67-65 lead.
 
Senior Joseph English led the Tritons with 13 points, 11 of which came in the second half. He scored UMSL's first seven points of the second stanza and finished with nine in the first four and a half minutes.
 
Senior Hunter Reine followed with 12 points and 12 rebounds, helping UMSL to a 36-31 rebounding advantage.
 
SIU Carbondale took a 36-33 lead into halftime after erasing a six-point lead by the Tritons. UMSL scored nine unanswered, including six at the free throw line, to turn a 19-16 deficit into a 25-19 advantage on a pair of Reine free throws with 7:48 to play. The Tritons went 12-of-15 from the line in the opening 20 minutes as the Salukis were called for 13 fouls.
 
UMSL finished 18-of-22 at the charity stripe, while SIU Carbondale was just 13-of-23. The Tritons shot 41.5 percent from the floor, while the Salukis connected at a 51.9 clip, including 56 percent in the final half.
 
Nine different players scored at least three points, including senior Dre Holmes, who tallied nine, netting a pair of three-pointers.