Box score

Bill Coen Press Conference

Bill Coen Interview with ESPN

A career-high 19 points from sophomore Joel Smith and a swarming defense that forced 23 turnovers powered Northeastern to a 63-62 overtime-thrilling triumph at Southern Illinois on Tuesday morning in front of a live national viewing audience as part of ESPN's 24-Hour Tip-Off Marathon.

Northeastern turned 23 SIU turnovers into 20 points in a contest that featured 10 ties and nine lead changes. The last time the Huskies forced 23 turnovers was in a 73-50 victory over Hofstra on Jan. 5, 2009.

Senior guard Chaisson Allen attained the Huskies' lone double-double, with 12 points and 10 boards, despite getting into foul trouble early in the second half. Nine of Allen's 10 rebounds came on the offensive side of the glass.

Sophomore Alwayne Bigby forced a team-best four turnovers along with eight rebounds and seven points while sophomore Kauri Black netted nine points with NU's lone block. Sophomore Jonathan Lee and rookie Alex Harris contributed eight points apiece while Lee hauled in four rebounds.

Smith went 50 percent from downtown, swishing 4-of-8 attempts from 3-point land.

John Freeman and Gene Teague were the Salukis' leading scorers with 13 apiece.

Southern Illinois jumped out to a 10-5 lead thanks to an old-fashioned 3-point play from SIU's Jack Crowder on a running layup and free throw, but a 7-0 run gave NU a 12-10 advantage at 11:32.

The Salukis commanded the offensive tempo in the next couple exchanges as SIU went on a 14-7 spurt to claim a 24-17 edge with 5:27 to play in the first half. Teague capped the run with a rim-shaking dunk on a dish by Carlton Fay from the top of the key.

The remainder of the first half became a free-throw shooting contest as both squads totaled 12 fouls in the first 20 minutes of action. The Huskies converted 70 percent of their first half free tosses (7-for-10) while Southern Illinois drained 9-of-11.

Northeastern cut SIU's lead to five on two separate occasions to close out the first half. Allen made a swipe in NU's half and lobbed it up-court to Harris for the slam at 4:01. The Huskies ate some clock on a possession with three offensive boards highlighted by Smith's deep 3-pointer, but Freeman answered with a trey of his own.

Bigby's offensive put back with 31 seconds to play sealed the first half scoring, 33-27. Each team swapped turnovers to close out the first period of play.

Fay started the second half with a pair of buckets to mount SIU's advantage to 10, 37-27, but stingy defense forced a slew of Saluki gaffes and the Huskies went on a 15-2 run to reclaim the lead at the 13:31 mark of the second, 42-39.

Allen's steal that yielded a hard-fought lay-up by Bigby ignited the Huskies' charge. Allen committed his fourth foul at 17:18, so Northeastern turned to Lee and Black for support. Great ball movement at the 13:00-minute mark led to Lee's wide-open basket from downtown.

Teague ended NU's run down low, sparking a 10-5 run for the Salukis to cinch the game back up at 49-49 after a leaner by Freeman with 6:32 to play.

Southern Illinois mounted a three-point lead, but Allen took matters into his own hands and scored six-straight points for the Huskies, including a fall away jumper to take a one-point edge, 60-59, with 37 seconds to go.

Fay closed it up by converting the backend from the charity stripe, 60-60, but Allen was put on the line for a one-and-one with 00:03 to play. Allen's toss missed deep and forced the contest into overtime.

Allen took control in the extra session, accounting for all three points, including the game-clinching free throw with 2.5 seconds remaining on the clock. A player for Southern Illinois hailed for a timeout on the floor when the Salukis did not have any in their possession. The infraction put Allen on the line as SIU was hampered with a technical foul, leading to a Northeastern triumph.

Northeastern returns home to Matthews Arena for a Saturday matinee against Siena of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC). Tip-off is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.

For those who cannot make it to Matthews Arena, follow the Huskies live on GoNU.TV or on Channel 81 on HuskyCable. Channel 81 on HuskyCable is available to Northeastern students in on-campus residence halls and any other TV location on the Northeastern campus.