CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – The Southeast Missouri women's basketball team (6-6) lost to Southern Illinois (7-4) Tuesday afternoon, 87-72, at the Show Me Center.
 
It was a classic cat and mouse type of game as the Redhawks would narrow the Saluki lead but quickly fall behind again.  
 
Deja Jones tallied her third-straight double-digit point game with 17 points. Aside from Jones, Southeast had two other players with double-figure points.
 
The Salukis started the game off going up 13-0 on the Redhawks in the first three minutes in of the game. The early 13-point lead would prove to be too much to overcome for the Redhawks the rest of the game.
 
Imani Johnson put the Redhawks on the board with a jumper with 6:13 to play in the period.
 
Southeast began to chip away at the early deficit by holding SIU scoreless for two and a half minutes. The Redhawks pulled within eight, 14-6 with four minutes to play.
 
Southeast was able to pull within three, 17-14, with 1:30 to play but finished the period down six, 21-15.
 
Down 43-33 with 3:39 to play in the first half, the Redhawks went on a 7-0 run to narrow the lead to to three, 43-40, with just under two minutes to play.
 
A made 3-pointer by Kylie Giebelhausen finished the first-half scoring with the Salukis on top, 46-40, going into halftime.
 
Jones picked up her third-straight double-digit point game in the first half with 10 points to lead the Redhawks. Hannah Noe had eight first-half points.
 
Erin Bollmann was the Redhawks' rebounding leader with four in the first half.
 
Both teams shot an even 50% from the floor in the first 20 minutes.
 
The Redhawks pulled within two points a couple times in the first half of the third period but never tied the game. SIU went on an 8-0 run in less than a minute to widen the lead back to 10 with 4:35 left in the frame.
 
With one second on the clock, Jones ended the third period with a put-back off a missed free throw by Adrianna Murphy.
 
Southeast finished the third quarter down seven to the Salukis, 60-53.
 
Southern Illinois put up a game-high 27 points in the final quarter. The Salukis' largest lead of 16 came with just 35 seconds to play.
 
The big fourth quarter was enough to keep the Redhawks at bay, closing the game behind SIU, 87-72.
 
Noe tied a career-high 15 points in Tuesday's game. She drained six field goals, a new career-best. Bollmann also ended in double-figure points with 11. Bollmann finished as the Redhawks' rebound leader with seven in the game, the most she's had since Wichita State (8) on Dec. 4.
 
Murphy had eight assists in the game, the most she's had since recording 12 at Western Illinois Nov. 24. Noe had a career-best five assists in the contest.
 
Each team shot about 45% with SIU shooting 28-of-62 (45.2%) and Southeast shooting 28-63 (44.4%). The difference came down to 3-point shooting as the Salukis shot 52.9% and Southeast shooting 26.7% from beyond the arc.
 
All five Southern Illinois starters finished in double-digit points, led by Rishonda Napier's 21 points.
 
The Redhawks will return to action after the Christmas holiday when they host William Woods in the non-conference finale on Dec. 30. The Redhawks and Owls are set to tip off from the Show Me Center at 11 a.m.