ST. LOUIS -- Mike Rodriguez scored 16 points, Sean Lloyd had 14 and fourth-seeded Southern Illinois held off fifth-seeded Loyola Chicago 55-50 on Friday in the quarterfinals of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament.
A week after the Salukis (17-15) beat the Ramblers (18-14) 72-70 with a late 3-pointer to close the regular season, both teams struggled.
Southern Illinois, which faces top-seeded Illinois State in a semifinal on Saturday, led 49-41 on a Rodriguez layup with 1:14 to play. But the Salukis missed 6 of 10 free throws in the last minute, including the front end of two 1-and-1s.