Skip To Main Content

Upcoming Events and Recent Results

Western Illinois University Athletics

Dalan Ancrum
69
Winner Western Illinois WIU 4-0
67
SIUE SIUE 1-3
Winner
Western Illinois WIU
4-0
69
Final
67
SIUE SIUE
1-3
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Western Illinois WIU 30 39 69
SIUE SIUE 35 32 67

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | WIU Athletic Communications

Career Night From Ancrum Lifts Leathernecks Past Cougars In Thriller

Dalan Ancrum netted 34 points including a game-winning three-pointer with 2.6 seconds left.

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill.- With the Leathernecks down by one and two seconds to go on Wednesday (Nov. 22), Dalan Ancrum pulled up from 27 feet and drained his fifth trifecta of the night to lift Western Illinois over the SIUE cougars, 69-67.
 
"The young man is growing each and every day as far as being a two-way player, and letting it come to him," said head coach Billy Wright. "We just try to get him the ball in those situations, and he's done a really good job of stepping up for us."
 
On a night where WIU trailed for 34 minutes and 19 seconds, Ancrum put through a career-high 34 points to keep Western undefeated on the season, the second time in three years Western Illinois has claimed a 4-0 record.
 
"Let's give all the credit to the kids. Obviously, they work very hard each and every day," Wright said. "Hats off to them, they were encouraging each other when things weren't going our way. (It's) life on the road, and we just had to look in the mirror, keep getting stops and making plays to win.
 
"I couldn't be more proud of them. The biggest thing was, there was no finger-pointing. It was guys encouraging (other) guys, and coaches encouraging players. It was a great feeling to be in that huddle, and a great feeling postgame to be in that locker room."
 
The first half featured a lot of back-and-forth play as the Leathernecks and Cougars battled inside the Vadalabene Center. Brandon Gilbeck, who finished with a double-double, swatted the first Cougar shot and Kobe Webster put the Leathernecks on the board with a three-pointer with 18:03 in the first half.
 
SIUE's Daniel Kinchen put six of his 26 in within the first four minutes of the game, helping the Cougars pounce out to a 13-5 lead. With 8:26 to play in the first half, Ancrum swished a three-pointer to pull the Leathernecks within one point, 18-17.
 
With 7:30 to go in the first half, C.J. Duff spun past two Cougar defenders and knocked down a jumper in the lane that put the Leathernecks back on top, 21-20. With under three minutes to play in the first half, the Cougars made two buckets that were answered by Ancrum finding Webster open beyond the arc for three. Kinchen sank a three-pointer to extend SIUE's lead to five with under 10 seconds in the first half, 35-30, a score that stood at the half.
 
SIUE put the first points on the board in the second half with a Jalen Henry jumper in the lane. WIU answered as Gilbeck found Webster open for a 13-foot jumper. Down 37-32, Ancrum caught the ball at top of the key, made a defender miss and then finished with two hands that ignited the Leatherneck bench.
 
With 13:38 left, Ancrum drained a pull-up three-pointer that was quickly answered by a four-point play from Kinchen. Jeremiah Usiosefe then hit back-to-back three-pointers to put Western on top by a point, 44-43.
 
The Leathernecks withstood a five-minute and 29-second period without making a field goal that was ended by an Ancrum jump shot with about five minutes left. Down 64-62, Ancrum nailed a long three-pointer to put the Leathernecks up by a point.
 
With 18 seconds to go, SIUE got a steal that turned into a bucket and a one-point lead with 11 seconds to go.  Ancrum silenced the home crowd and hit the game-winner with 2.3 ticks remaining, On the ensuing possession, Kinchen's three-point attempt hit the backboard and rimmed out, sealing the Leatherneck win.
 
The undefeated Leathernecks travel to Ames, Iowa for a contest against Iowa State on Saturday (Nov. 25) at 7 p.m.
 
GAME NOTES:
-Ancrum netted a career-high 34 points.
- Three Leathernecks scored in double digits: Ancrum (34), Webster (13) and Gilbeck (10).
-Gilbeck recorded four blocks.
-Gilbeck logged his third double-double of the season.
-Western outrebounded SIUE 36-33.
-Ancrum knocked down 5-for-6 of his three-point attempts.
   
Print Friendly Version