Carbondale, Ill.--A career-high night for junior guard Clevin Hannah sparked an all-out battle at SIU Arena on Saturday night, but would not result in a Shocker victory as they fell in the thriller, 72-68.

Refusing to accept a loss in the final regular-season game of the year, sophomore J.T. Durley ripped the ball away from Southern Illinois' Ryan Hare and laid it in, bringing the score to 71-68 with 12 seconds on the clock. The effort capped a valiant effort by the Shockers on the road, but was not enough to knock off the Salukis on senior night.

Playing in front of more than 9,000 at SIU Arena, Tony Boyle made the most of his senior night. He recorded a double-double for the Salukis with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Freshman Kevin Dillard led the home team with 21 points, including nine from behind the arc.

As for the Shockers, Hannah shot lights out. The point guard knocked down five threes for the Shockers en route to his 26-point evening. He also grabbed five steals and dished out five assists. Durley added 13 points and five rebounds, including that near game-changing bucket in the final seconds.

Wichita State cut a nine-point first half deficit to two before halftime, and carried that momentum into the second half to tie the game not quite four minutes in, starting a battle that would last until the final buzzer. Even though the Shockers never led in the contest, their constant effort never saw them trail by more than nine.

After hovering around the 50 percent shooting mark for most of the first half, the Shockers and Salukis continued to trade baskets for the game's entirety. Foul trouble crept up as a problem for the Shockers as early as seven minutes into the second half when senior Ramon Clemente picked up his third. With 11 minutes to play, the Shockers were called for their seventh team foul compared to the Salukis' one.

The Salukis took advantage, knocking down 26-of-33 attempts from the charity stripe to WSU's 11-of-18. Boyle led the charge as 14 of his 20 points came from the line.

A three-point play by Dillard and a three from Justin Bocot again put the Salukis ahead, 52-43, before Hannah buried back-to-back threes midway through the second half to fuel the back-and-forth scoring fire.

Hannah's fourth three highlighted the Shocks' roaring back to a mere 56-54 deficit. It was Hannah who had the answer for the Salukis' late surge, nailing clutch shots to combat late Saluki free throws. Trailing by five with 67 seconds remaining, Hannah hit both free throws to make it one-possession game, 69-66.

In the first half, the Salukis got off to a hot start, hitting four of their first five attempts to take an early, 11-6 advantage. Boyle racked up four points and three rebounds in the first four minutes of the game. Counteracting his effort was WSU's senior, Clemente, who also scored four in that time.

A perfectly executed alley-oop pass from Hannah to junior A.J. Hawkins resulted in a lay up, followed immediately by a jumper from Hannah cut the early 22-13 deficit in a hurry. Although the Salukis responded with a quick 5-0 run, Hannah sunk five-straight points of his own to keep his team close. Taking advantage of a cluster of Saluki turnovers forced by an effective Shocker zone defense, the Shocks pulled within two with three minutes before the break.

Sophomore Aaron Ellis' jumper tied the game before Dillard unleashed a long three to regain the lead with 45 seconds on the clock. The Salukis took a 32-30 lead into halftime. Despite a relentless fight by the Shocks, it was a lead the Salukis would not give up.

The Shockers' postseason fate and information will be available on goshockers.com.

-Wichita State-