RENSSELAER, IND. - Tyler Hackstadt unleashed 28 points on Saturday as Southern Illinois University Edwardsville defeated Saint Joseph's in the Great Lakes Valley Conference men's basketball opener.
         Hackstadt shot 9 of 13 from the field, including 5 of 7 from three-point range.
         SIUE evened its record to 2-2 with a 1-0 mark in the GLVC. Saint Joseph's fell to 2-2 and 0-1.
         Calvin Sykes turned in a strong performance at point guard with 15 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Ron Jones added 12 points for SIUE.
         Saint Joseph's took control of the game early. Saint Joseph's led 20-11 by pushing SIUE to a nine-point deficit at 10:28 of the first half on a Quinton Gibson layup. But SIUE shoved back later in the half.
         Joel Jaye gave the Cougars the lead for good at 29-28 on an old-fashioned three-point play, splitting the net with a free throw after the made shot.
         SIUE led all of the second half. The Cougars did not dominate the Pumas in a boxscore, losing the rebound battle 47-36 and recording six more turnovers. Still, SIUE did it with strong defense, holding Saint Joseph's 31.6 shooting for the game while the Cougars hit 52 percent of their shots.
         The Cougars now head to Indianapolis to face the Greyhounds. Tip-off time is set for 7:30 p.m. at Nicoson Hall on Monday.
                -siue cougars-