CARBONDALE, Ill. – Wichita State secured its fifth-straight straight win and now stands alone in first place after a convincing 83-58 victory at Southern Illinois on Saturday.

A sold-out SIU Arena was silent for long stretches after the Shockers (10-5, 4-0 MVC) raced to a quick 28-10 lead at the midway point of the first half. The Salukis – 14-3 (3-1 MVC) after being picked ninth in the Missouri Valley Conference preseason poll– never recovered.
 
WSU took the hosts out of their comfort zone, forcing 17 turnovers while holding SIU to 37 percent from the field. The Salukis collected just two assists on 17 baskets.
 
The Shockers were a sizzling 12-of-24 from three-point range (7-of-12 in the opening half) and easily won the battle of the boards, 40-25.
 
Three days after keeping Evansville's D.J. Balentine in check, WSU's defense clamped down on another elite scorer. Zach Brown, McDuffie and Baker took turns on Anthony Beane, who finished with 15 points but went just 3-of-14 from the field.
 
WSU's Ron Baker led all scorers with 18 points – 16 of them coming in the first half – to go with five rebounds and three steals. Conner Frankamp tacked on career-high 14 points, going 4-of-7 from deep, and Markis McDuffie chipped in 10 points.
 
A total of nine Shockers scored at least five points

Fred VanVleet snagged a career-high 12 rebounds and, in the process, became just the second player in the MVC history to record the career combo of 1,000 points, 500 assists and 400 rebounds (joining former Indiana State star Jake Odum).

Up 43-29 at the intermission, the Shockers put the game away with a 15-2 run to start the second half. The Salukis first field goal didn't come until the 11:32-mark, at which point WSU led by a comfortable 29-points.
 
The Shockers upped the margin to 33 points with 7:05 to go on back-to-back buckets by McDuffie.
 
WSU finished at 46.5 percent from the field (27-of-58) and went 17-for-21 at the foul line.
 
WSU is 4-0 in MVC play for the fourth-consecutive year after an impressive week that saw it knock both Evansville and SIU – two opponents that entered the week with a combined 26-4 record – from the ranks of the Valley unbeatens.
 
Those wins, coupled with Illinois State's Saturday loss at Indiana State, gives the Shockers sole possession of the conference lead.
 
WSU travels to Missouri State on Wednesday, Jan. 13 for an 8 p.m. tip on Cox Channel Kansas. The game will be shared with Fox Sports Midwest (subject to blackout in the Cox Kansas and Kansas City markets).
 
Notes:
 
-WSU topped the 80-point mark for the fourth time in its last five visits to SIU Arena.
 
-WSU won its third straight in Carbondale, matching a program best. Since losing 11-straight from 1999-2009, the Shockers have taken six of the last seven games there.
 
-VanVleet became the first Shocker to record double-figure rebounds in a game this year, the same night that his nine-game double-figure scoring streak came to an end. As a result, WSU is still looking for its first double-double performance of the season.
 
-WSU won its sixth-straight MVC road game, dating back to last February.
 

-Wichita State-