SALEM, WV - The Salem International University Tigers looked to ring in the new year with a victory in front of its home crowd on Monday night (Jan. 2) against Ferris State University. The Tigers struggled in the first-half of play, shooting just 13.2 percent from the floor en route to a 104-65 loss to the Bulldogs.

The game would be tied for the first 1:38 as both teams looked to get the offense going. It would be an all-around effort for the Bulldogs in the opening stanza as 11 different players would find the score sheet. Mory Diane paced Ferris State with seven points off of the bench on 3-of-4 shooting. Senior Dominique Robinson led the Tigers with nine points and a 4-for-7 effort at the charity stripe.

Ferris State quietly stretched its lead to 20 points mid-way through the first-half of action. The Bulldogs committed more turnovers (nine) than SIU (seven) in the half, but would score 14 points off of the miscues.

The charity stripe would keep the Tigers close in the half as they had 22 chances at the line, converting 14 times. Junior Saquan Epps scored all five of his points at the line, while senior Victor Blakey went 2-of-4 for SIU. The Bulldogs were 7-of-11 from the free throw line and 5-of-14 from downtown.

19 points would be the deficit for the Tigers heading into the locker room as Ferris State led 46-27, out-scoring SIU 18-4 inside of the paint.

Freshman Jarius Farrow gave the Tigers offense some light in the second-half as he scored a team-high 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting. He also went 3-of-4 from downtown and 1-for-1 at the charity stripe.

Drew Cushingberry paced the Bulldogs offense with 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting in the half. D'angelo Hughes scored nine points, while teammate Noah King tallied eight points for Ferris State.

SIU would shoot better as a team from the floor in the second-half, shooting 32.5 percent (13-of-40), but the effort wouldn't be enough as Ferris State hit 45.7 percent of its shots (21-of-46) and 50 percent of its three-point attempts (9-of-18). The largest lead for the Bulldogs (41 points) would come with 9:46 left in the contest. The Tiger did go 9-of-10 from the free throw line in the second-half, compared to Ferris State's 7-of-13 effort at the line.

Farrow finished the contest with 16 points, four rebounds, and two blocks for SIU, while Robinson tallied 13 points, four rebounds, and a 8-for-11 effort at the free throw line.

Cushingberry would be one of five Bulldogs to score double-digits in the contest, finishing with 15 points. Diane recorded 13 points, while king tallied 13 points and seven rebounds. Markese Mayfield recorded a team-high nine rebounds for Ferris State, while adding 12 points.

Salem shot 18-of-78 from the floor, 6-of-20 from downtown, and 23-of-32 at the free throw line in the contest, while Ferris State shot 38-of-84 from the floor, 14-of-32 from downtown, and 14-of-24 at the free throw line. The Bulldogs out-rebounded SIU 48-29 and out-scored the Tigers 40-24 inside of the paint. Ferris State also cashed in on second-chance points with 26.