CARBONDALE, Ill. – Senior Chris Hines (Houston, Texas) scored a game-high 12 points to lead the Drake University men's basketball team to a 61-56 win over Southern Illinois Wednesday night at SIU Arena.

The Bulldogs shot 50 percent from the field and 53.3 percent from the arc to overcome 20 turnovers that allowed the Salukis to remain in the game via 21 points off turnovers.

Drake (10-11, 4-5 MVC) led by as many as 10 points in the second half before SIU (8-13, 1-9 MVC) rallied to tie the game, 54-54, with 1:33 left. A clutch three-pointer from junior Richard Carter (Detroit, Mich.) on Drake's next possession broke the stalemate with a minute to play and the Bulldogs made 6-of-8 free throws in the final minute to seal the win.

“We showed poise and composure down the stretch and made the plays when it counted with Richard's shot and making free throws,” Drake head coach Mark Phelps said. “More importantly we got stops at the other end.”

That defense kicked in early in the second half to allow Drake to roll out to a 10-point lead in the first five minutes of the half.

“The strength of their [SIU] team is driving the ball and using ball screens,” Phelps said. “We switched to a zone to slow it down and make them more of a passing team than a driving team and that really helped us.”

Despite the defense limiting SIU's chances, Bulldog miscues kept the Salukis close and back-to-back turnovers allowed SIU to tie the game at 51-51 with 4:53 left. The next three minutes saw just six total points scored to set up the suspense in the final 1:33 before Carter's three-pointer from the wing allowed DU to pull away.

The Bulldogs carried a 34-28 lead into the locker room and led by as many as nine points in the first half thanks to 52 percent shooting from the floor and 5-of-10 from the three-point arc. Hines led that three-point barrage with three makes in the half to account for his nine first half points.

“In a game that wasn't played as crisply as it should have been and where scoring was at a premium, Chris Hines' 12 points were worth a lot more than that,” Phelps said of the guard's night.

The Bulldogs return home on Saturday, Feb. 2 to host one of the hottest teams in the MVC in Indiana State. The Sycamores travel to the Knapp Center for a 6:35 p.m. tipoff fresh off of defeating league leading Wichita State.