|


         EDWARDSVILLE, ILL. - Seniors Tim Bauersachs and Dan Heimos each recorded double-doubles as Southern Illinois University Edwardsville slipped past Northern Kentucky 69-66 in Great Lakes Valley Conference men's basketball on Thursday night.
         No. 7-ranked SIUE improved to 17-3 overall and a GLVC-leading 10-1 in league play. The Cougars stay a perfect 12-0 at the Vadalabene Center. Northern Kentucky drops to 9-9 overall and 5-7 in conference action.
         Heimos netted 16 points while grabbing 12 rebounds. Bauersachs scored all 13 of his points in the second half to go along with 13 boards. SIUE outrebounded Northern Kentucky 42-32.
         The Cougars battled back and forth with the Norse in the first half, gaining 37-30 lead at the half. SIUE made it 40-30 on a three-pointer by Anthony Jones to start the second half. The Norse wouldn't go away, going on a 12-4 run made it a two-point game with 13:33 left in the contest.
         The Norse cut the lead to 51-50 on a jump shot by Courtney Ferguson with 9:12 left. Joel Jaye's three-pointer gave SIUE a 63-56 advantage with 2:47 left in the contest. Northern Kentucky cut the Cougars lead to 68-66 in the final seconds on a 35-foot three-pointer from by Steve Purdon, but SIUE's Anthony Jones made one of two free throws to seal the win.
         Freshman J.B. Jones tallied 16 points adding four assists. Anthony Jones came off the bench to score 11 points as SIUE shot 48 percent from the field.
         Mike Kelsey shot 5 of 12 from the field, including 2 of 7 from three-point land to lead Northern Kentucky with 15 points. Derek Smith netted 14 points, and Pat Cary and Purdon each had 12.
         The Cougars held the Norse to 23.8 percent (5-21) shooting from beyond the three-point arc. SIUE was 17-29 (58.3 percent) from the free throw line. The Norse committed only seven turnovers in the game.
         SIUE next faces Indianapolis as the Greyhounds visit the Vadalabene Center on Saturday. Game time is 3 p.m.
                  -siue cougars-