The victory snaps a four-game losing streak for the Salukis, who had not won since its 58-51 win at Cedar Falls.
A.J. Green hit a 3 with 3:43 left to get Northern Iowa within 3, 53-50, but the Salukis pushed the advantage to 13 points before Green hit two 3s in the final minute to get the final deficit to single digits.
Southern Illinois (10-10, 3-4) shot 50 percent from the field (26 of 52), including 7 of 20 from long range.
Green hit 6 of 7 from distance and finished with 22 points for Northern Iowa (8-12, 3-4).
