SLU’s Gibson Jimerson, who scored a game-high 20 points, makes a move toward the basket during Saturday night’s men’s basketball game against Illinois State. (Photo: Thomas Grove)
| NCAA Men’s Basketball | 1 | 2 | Final |
|---|---|---|---|
| Illinois State (1-1) | 34 | 37 | 71 |
| Saint Louis University (3-0) | 46 | 34 | 80 |
DeMarcus Dixon
Staff Writer
ST. LOUIS, MO — A busy opening week of three home basketball games concluded with three victories for the Saint Louis University Billikens on Saturday, as SLU defeated visiting Illinois State, 80-71, in a non-conference game at Chaifetz Arena.
Gibson Jimerson scored 15 of his game-high 20 points from the free throw line, and Sincere Parker tallied 19 points and a team-high nine rebounds, as four Billiken players scored in double-figures to help Saint Louis build a 24-point lead. But the Billikens had to hold on at the end, as Illinois State mounted a late comeback that nearly tied the score.
Saint Louis led 71-47 with 12:55 to go, but Illinois State went on a 10-0 run to get back into the game. Then, after a SLU free throw, the Redbirds went on a 9-0 run to pull within 72-67 with five minutes to go.
During that stretch, the Billikens committed six turnovers and missed all six shots they took.
Fortunately, Saint Louis did make eight of 10 free throws down the stretch and Illinois State went cold from the field, as the visitors made just two of its last seven shots.
Terrence Hargrove Jr. scored 12 points for SLU, including 5-of-6 free throws, where the Billikens shot 81 percent (30-of-37) from the line, outscoring Illinois State 30-14. Tim Dalger scored 11 points, which included a jam time dunk that helped build the 71-47 lead and two of the final eight free throws in the final five minutes.
Illinois State’s Malachi Poindexter led his team with 19 points, as the Redbirds suffered their first loss of the season.
SLU is 3-0 and will next be in action this coming Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, when it will play in the Myrtle Beach Invitational in South Carolina. SLU’s first opponent in the tournament will be Wyoming. That game is scheduled for Thursday afternoon at 1 p.m., and will be televised on ESPN2.
ILLINOIS STATE 71
| ## | Player | GS | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | ORB-DRB | REB | PF | A | TO | BLK | STL | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Poindexter, Malachi | * | 30 | 4-11 | 2-6 | 9-12 | 0-6 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 19 |
| 03 | Banks, Dalton | * | 39 | 7-16 | 3-7 | 0-2 | 1-3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| 12 | Lieb, Brandon | * | 18 | 3-9 | 0-3 | 0-0 | 3-9 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 22 | Lewis, Kendall | * | 9 | 2-2 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 00 | Kasubke, Luke | * | 20 | 0-4 | 0-3 | 2-2 | 0-1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 04 | Foster, Myles | 21 | 4-9 | 0-2 | 2-4 | 3-4 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 | |
| 11 | Kinziger, Johnny | 30 | 3-5 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 1-3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 8 | |
| 05 | Davis, Jordan | 11 | 1-3 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | |
| 02 | Pence, Ty | 22 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 1-2 | 1-2 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| TM | TEAM | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Totals | – | 200 | 24-61 | 9-29 | 14-22 | 9-30 | 39 | 27 | 9 | 15 | 1 | 3 | 71 |
SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY 80
| ## | Player | GS | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | ORB-DRB | REB | PF | A | TO | BLK | STL | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 | Jimerson,Gibson | * | 36 | 2-7 | 1-3 | 15-17 | 2-3 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| 21 | Parker,Sincere | * | 30 | 8-17 | 2-5 | 1-2 | 0-9 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 19 |
| 22 | Hargrove Jr.,Terrence | * | 33 | 3-8 | 1-4 | 5-6 | 0-3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 12 |
| 02 | Hughes II,Larry | * | 23 | 2-6 | 2-5 | 2-2 | 0-2 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| 07 | Meadows,Mike | * | 19 | 1-3 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 05 | Dalger,Tim | 22 | 4-8 | 0-2 | 3-5 | 0-4 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 11 | |
| 12 | Zhang,Bruce | 7 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 1-1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | |
| 01 | Medley,Cian | 20 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 0-1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| 00 | Thames,Kellen | 10 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 0-2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| TM | TEAM | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Totals | – | 200 | 22-52 | 6-21 | 30-37 | 3-31 | 34 | 19 | 8 | 10 | 3 | 6 | 80 |
2023-24 SLU Billikens Men’s Basketball Schedule
| Date | Gametime | At | Opponent | Location | TV | Radio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 16, 2023 (Thursday) | 1 pm | Neutral | Wyoming | Conway, S.C. (HTC Center) | ESPN2 | KMOX 1120AM |
| November 17, 2023 (Friday) | 11a/1:30p | Neutral | Charleston or Vermont | Conway, S.C. (HTC Center) | ESPN Networks | KMOX 1120AM |
| November 19, 2023 (Sunday) | Time TBA | Neutral | TBA | Conway, S.C. (HTC Center) | ESPN Networks | KMOX 1120AM |
| November 25, 2023 (Saturday) | 7 pm | Home | Dartmouth | Chaifetz Arena | Bally Sports Midwest & ESPN+ | KMOX 1120AM |
| November 28, 2023 (Tuesday) | 7 pm | Home | Utah State | Chaifetz Arena | Bally Sports Midwest & ESPN+ | KMOX 1120AM |
| December 2, 2023 (Saturday) | 2:30 pm | Away | Southern Illinois | Carbondale, Ill. (Banterra Center) | KMOX 1120AM | |
| December 6, 2023 (Wednesday) | 7 pm | Away | Drake | Des Moines, Iowa (Knapp Center) | KMOX 1120AM | |
| December 9, 2023 (Saturday) | 2 pm | Home | Hofstra | Chaifetz Arena | Bally Sports Midwest & ESPN+ | KMOX 1120AM |
| December 16, 2023 (Saturday) | 7 pm | Home | Louisiana Tech | Chaifetz Arena | Bally Sports Midwest & ESPN+ | KMOX 1120AM |
| December 20, 2023 (Wednesday) | 6 pm | Away | NC State | Raleigh, N.C. (PNC Arena) | KMOX 1120AM | |
| January 3, 2024 (Wednesday) | 6 pm | Home | Loyola Chicago | Chaifetz Arena | Bally Sports Midwest & ESPN+ | KMOX 1120AM |
| January 6, 2024 (Saturday) | 1 pm | Away | George Mason | Fairfax, Va. (EagleBank Arena) | USA Network | KMOX 1120AM |
| January 10, 2024 (Wednesday) | 6 pm | Home | Saint Joseph’s | Chaifetz Arena | CBSSN | KMOX 1120AM |
| January 16, 2024 (Tuesday) | 7 pm | Away | Dayton | Dayton, Ohio (UD Arena) | CBSSN | KMOX 1120AM |
| January 19, 2024 (Friday) | 6 pm | Away | VCU | Richmond, Va. (Siegel Center) | ESPN2 | KMOX 1120AM |
| January 24, 2024 (Wednesday) | 6 pm | Home | Davidson | Chaifetz Arena | Bally Sports Midwest & ESPN+ | KMOX 1120AM |
| January 27, 2024 (Saturday) | 7 pm | Home | Massachusetts | Chaifetz Arena | Bally Sports Midwest & ESPN+ | KMOX 1120AM |
| January 30, 2024 (Tuesday) | 7 pm | Away | Loyola Chicago | Chicago, Ill. (Gentile Arena) | Bally Sports Midwest & ESPN+ | KMOX 1120AM |
| February 3, 2024 (Saturday) | 1:30 pm | Home | Fordham | Chaifetz Arena | USA Network | KMOX 1120AM |
| February 7, 2024 (Wednesday) | 5:30 pm | Away | La Salle | Philadelphia, Pa. (Gola Arena) | Bally Sports Midwest & ESPN+ | KMOX 1120AM |
| February 10, 2024 (Saturday) | 11:30 am | Away | Saint Joseph’s | Philadelphia, Pa. (Hagan Arena) | USA Network | KMOX 1120AM |
| February 16, 2024 (Friday) | 6 pm | Home | VCU | Chaifetz Arena | ESPN2 | KMOX 1120AM |
| February 20, 2024 (Tuesday) | 6 pm | Away | Duquesne | Pittsburgh, Pa. (UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse) | Bally Sports Midwest & ESPN+ | KMOX 1120AM |
| February 24, 2024 (Saturday) | 2 pm | Home | George Washington | Chaifetz Arena | Bally Sports Midwest & ESPN+ | KMOX 1120AM |
| February 28, 2024 (Wednesday) | 7 pm | Home | Richmond | Chaifetz Arena | Bally Sports Midwest & ESPN+ | KMOX 1120AM |
| March 2, 2024 (Saturday) | 3 pm | Away | Rhode Island | Kingston, R.I. (Ryan Center) | CBSSN | KMOX 1120AM |
| March 5, 2024 (Tuesday) | 8 pm | Home | Dayton | Chaifetz Arena | CBSSN | KMOX 1120AM |
| March 9, 2024 (Saturday) | 11:30 am | Away | St. Bonaventure | St. Bonaventure, N.Y. (Reilly Center) | USA Network | KMOX 1120AM |
| March 12-17 Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament | TBA | Neutral | TBA | Brooklyn, N.Y. (Barclay’s Center) |