Til the Whistle Sounded

The Kansas Jayhawks found out first hand Thursday night that the substantial amount of media attention paid to the SIU Salukis was not one bit hype.

KU survived 61-58 to advance to the Elite Eight round of the NCAA tourney. Southern ended with 29 wins, tops in school history.

Seniors Jamaal Tatum (19) and Tony Young (14) paced the Dawgs in scoring. When he walked off the court, Young had participated in more victories than any man ever to wear an SIU hoops jersey. Randal Falker muscled his way to 11 points and 9 rebounds. Defying a painful ankle injury, Matt Shaw logged 36 minutes, posting 9 points, 6 boards and 3 assists. Southern had a 28-22 edge on the glass.

The Dawgs were down 8-2 in the first five minutes, but roared back to trail by just 27-24 at the break. The final 20 minutes saw maroon clad Salukis body surfing over every square inch of hardwood, contesting every loose ball. Announcer Dick Engberg gushed approvingly over Southern's manic scrapping. SIU dictated the tempo throughout, and matched Kansas' 34 second half points.

For Kansas, Brandon Rush collected 12 points. Although no other Jayhawk could reach double figures, KU displayed an uncanny touch on the 10 foot bank shot in traffic. Today the short jumper is a shot that's almost obsolete, but it's mastery brought them victory.

On court, it was a game crammed full of hustle, but nearly devoid of hysteria. Coach Lowery and staff were steaming in frustration over a couple of questionable calls, most notably a Jayhawk dunk which took place after the shot clock expired.

Can the emotion of such an intense game be distilled in a single moment of chance? Perhaps. When SIU's Bryan Mullins made a clean steal, he drove hard to the basket, but his bid for a left handed layup rolled off.... and Jamaal Tatum's tip in came EVER so close to climbing over the rim!

Yes. but no regrets. What an incredible season the Salukis and Chris Lowery recorded. They performed with fortitude and class under witheringly stressful conditions time after time. Many of them played hurt and made no excuses on the rare occasions they were defeated.

Ultimately they were superb representatives of SIU, the Valley, and the whole of Southern Illinois. That's how basketball is supposed to be played...with consummate skill and shoulder to shoulder teamwork. Well-deserved applause and cheers are echoing across the Land between the Rivers. Thanks, Dawgs, for a phenomenal year. What a ride!

Not even close- Salukis pound Va Tech 63-48

With one starter going down the other four stepped up. Jamaal Tatum was unstoppable hitting 6 of 9 from three point range and pouring in a game high 21 points. The entire team was hot from behind the arc combining to hit 12 of 21 (57%) from downtown.

Tony Young and Brian Mullins played their usual stout defense and succeeded against the Va Tech pressure- where the Illini guards failed. In the exact spot where the Illini coughed up their huge lead SIU played it cool and collected, milking the shot clock, getting offensive rebounds, and never letting the Hokies pressure become a factor.

It was a turbulent start for SIU with Jamaal Tatum only hitting 1 of his first 5 shots from the floor. Even with the slow start, SIU's defense was good enough to hold Va Tech to a 15-15 tie with 6 minutes remaining in the first half. After Mullins hit a running layup JT caught fire and nailed three straight 3's to give SIU a 28-20 lead at the break. For a team that controls the tempo as well as SIU does an 8 point lead felt more like 16.

Randal Falker showed why he is the defensive player of the year in the MVC. Falker had some dynamic blocked shots in the second half and never allowed Va Tech to get established down low. The Hokies had to settle for jumpers and aside from a few great plays from Deron Washington they were never able to get into a groove against the smothering SIU defense.

Many have questioned Chris Lowery's "slow down" offense over the last 3 years but good luck finding one such critic today. The idea is to wear teams out on both ends of the floor and shorten the game. This strategy is especially effective for closing teams out late in the game when you have the lead. Many teams get a lead and become passive trying to protect it but SIU is accustomed to using the entire shot clock so it's just business as usual for the Salukis as they quietly put their opponents to sleep.

A perfect example of Chris Lowery's slow down offense came at the 10 minute mark in the second half of today's game. With a 12 point lead SIU burned a full minute off the clock by drawing 2 fouls, collecting an offensive rebound, and eventually scoring from the free throw line in the possession.

The Salukis are headed to the sweet 16! The major media has ignored SIU so far this tournament but they can't ignore them any longer. The Salukis will travel to San Jose, California to play the winner of today's Kansas/Kentucky matchup. The media will undoubtedly favor SIU's opponent but that won't deter this group of players. Give this team another challenge so they can overcome it- they wouldn't want it any other way.

Dawgs Bowl Over Crusaders 61-51

With an injured Matt Shaw scowling morosely from the bench Friday night, it seemed the Salukis' were in for a mighty difficult second half.

Despite a 30-25 halftime lead, the Salukis' chances appeared to have dimmed considerably when Chris Lowery sent Tony Boyle forth to do battle. As it turned out, what was the problem?

Boyle, who later growled, "Sometimes you gotta suck it up", was more than adequate. In fact, he was absolutlely inspirational. After Shaw had led all scorers with 11 in the first half, Boyle turned up the heat on the staggering Crusaders with 14 of his own. He canned 4 0f 5 from the field and six of eight from the stripe. He wrestled down five boards, to boot. Ball game!

Possessors of staunch defensive prowess themselves, Holy Cross had the audacity to go snoot to snoot with the Dawgs and try to beat them at their own game. After all, low post "hoss" Tim Clifford, (who has 5 inches and 15 pounds on Carlos Zambrano) figured to be an asset in a low scoring game.

Then there was the issue of Keith Simmons' 44 game streak of double figure games. The pesky Torey Thomas could steal a brick out of the pyramids. Did SIU really have the sort of game to match all this? Yep.....

The thing is, nobody....not Lowery...not TV analysts.... actually nobody can really figure out exactly what make the Dawgs tick. Take away one thing, they invent something else.

Not that in-your-chest defensive basketball is particle physics. It's just that SIU keeps tinkering with the exact formula of the thing. On Saturday they concocted still another winning combination.

The no-nonsense Boyle was abetted by a flyin' version of Jamaal Foster, who parachuted out of the rafters for a gawk-inducing tip in. Then there was Bryan Mullins, whose multitudinous methods of engineering a victory are becoming things of wonder. Case in point: (method # 257)...after being involved in a grisly turnover on offense , which resulted in a Crusader rocketing away with the ball,. Mullins slammed on 200 meter dash speed, ran down the scofflaw on the sideline and freaked him so much he boomed the ball four feet over his partner's head and into the crowd.
S.I.U. ball. Thank you Bryan. Oh, yes, heck of a job on that three from the corner down the stretch.

Southern' defense was so startling that Holy Cross just couldn't bear up. They played tough and earned respect...but just couldn't reel the Dawgs in. Southern limited Simmons to just 4 pts. and who else ever did that? Thomas nailed 9 free throws to get a creditable 15 for the game. Clifford displayed a nice touch from ten feet in, netting 9 for the night.

Peeking out from within a forest of arms, SIU's Randal Falker managed to tally twelve. Meanwhile, Jamaal Tatum used six free throws to get 10.

It's probable Shaw will not play Sunday. Virginia Tech wins it, right? They're tough, talented, motivated, etc. Not so fast. The Salukis have an uncanny cohesion and an immunity to pressure. As Lowery looks down the bench, he may still have no idea what some of his troops might be able to do. One thing Tony Boyle has taught them all. You don't worry one bit. Just get out there and tear 'em up. A win Sunday would be an all time victory record for Southern and clinch a spot in the sweet 16. They'll suit up and be out there. You can count on it.

A Look Across the Court

Ralph Willard, previously the head coach at Western Kentucky, hasn't faced SIU since Rich Herrin's years at the helm in Carbondale. Meanwhile, a lot has changed for the Dawgs and in the MVC. It's a safe bet, however, that the Holy Cross Crusaders' mentor has been doing his homework.

His squad, ranked sixth nationally in defense, (57.4) plays a lot like the Salukis. Look for a high pressure defensive struggle, topping out in the 60's.

Two seniors lead the Patriot League champs. 6-5 forward Keith Simmons (17.3) is a three time league all-star. He's hit for double figures 44 times in a row. An all-league defender, 5-11 guard Torey Thomas adds 13.6 and specializes in steals. Steals. Remember that word. To defeat Holy Cross you must take care of the ball........

Tim Clifford is a mountain in the middle. He's 6-10 and 270 and brings an 11.8 average into play.

HC has a road loss at Duke, and was stalled by Niagara by six on a neutral floor. 6-2 Junior guard Kyle Cruse and 6-8 Soph. Alex Vander Bann round out the starters. Pat Doherty is perhaps the most valuable of the reserves.

So what should we expect? In previous NCAA appearance the Crusaders have given solid performances against the likes of Marquette, Kentucky and Kansas. They will play with passion, pride and considerable skill.

The Dawgs have a bone-bruising personna, and it's real. Every coal miner and dirt farmer in the Land Between the Rivers grins at that kind of effort. In a way it exemplifies the hard working people of Southern Illinois. The team can be beaten, but never disgraced. They'll play the full 40 minutes every night.

Chris Lowery allows no excuses. There no longer is a tremendous divide between regions. Not a lot of snooty nonsense about dusting off those rubes from clear across the country. That's as it should be. Both teams have earned the right to this game. Nothing else is guaranteed. Ten young men take the court. The ball goes up. They settle things from there.

Game time is 9:40 Eastern, 8:40 Central, Friday night.

Tourney Time

Ladies and Gentlemen the moment you've all been waiting for... the NCAA Tournament! The Salukis have had plenty of time to regroup and travel to Ohio for the opening round on Friday night.

Southern's first opponent is Holy Cross, not a nationally known team, but an experienced club that has been dancing 3 times in the last 6 years. As Tom Webber pointed out in the Dawg Tracker there is no such thing as an easy win in the NCAA Tournament. The Salukis have only won 4 NCAA games in school history so being a favorite to win in the first round is quite an accomplishment for this team with an unknown mascot from an unknown town in America's Heartland.

When these two teams get on the court we should see a familiar style of basketball. All signs point to this game having an "MVC feel." Holy Cross likes to play the same kind of low scoring game that SIU does but they might not always do it by design. Each team boasts a conference player of the year (Jammal Tatum and Keith Simmons) and both players will be the key to their team's offense.

Simmons represents a bit of a matchup problem for SIU. He is a 6-5 shooting guard who averages 17 points and 6 boards- leading the team in both categories. Chris Lowery would be wise to use Tony Young to neutralize Simmons even though the 6 foot Young will be giving up 5 inches in the matchup. It will be crucial for Young to stay out of foul trouble because SIU could be forced to turn to Tyrone Green for this assignment when Young is out of the game.

Holy Cross has played some decent teams this year but they have not beaten anyone of note. Holy Cross took it on the chin aginst Duke, Syracuse, Dayton, and George Mason. They are 1-2 playing at neutral sites and 10-6 on the road. These numbers bode well for SIU.

My advice to Saluki fans is.... Enjoy This! We have become spoiled to great basketball in Southern Illinois and it is something our community should be very proud of. Wear your maroon, buy your refreshments, and tune into CBS on Friday night as YOUR Salukis take center stage in the greatest basketball tournament in the world.

Offical Salukihoops prediction SIU over Holy Cross 57-49 setting up a second round rematch with Va Tech. Sound off with other Saluki fans at SalukiTalk and check back right here for a full recap after the game.

Time to Dance

No need to sweat out selection Sunday this year as SIU is a lock for the NCAA Tournament. The only question is about seeding- and we will find out the answer on Sunday (Salukihoops predicts a 4 seed in the Lexington, KY Bracket). If your going to be in Carbondale on Sunday you can join the team at Copper Dragon to see for yourself.


The Southern Illinois University men's basketball team will host a Saluki Selection Show Celebration event on Sunday afternoon from 4:00-7 p.m. at Copper Dragon in Carbondale. From 5-6 p.m., fans can join the team to watch as CBS Sports unveils the NCAA Tournament bracket. 710 Bookstore will have NCAA merchandise for sale as well as other officially licensed SIU items. The Salukis (27-6) earned the regular season championship of the Missouri Valley Conference and look to gain their fifth at large bid in the last six years. The Salukis were the automatic qualifier from the MVC last year.

In other valley news, due to the amount of upsets in the 1 bid leagues, Missouri State appears to be out of the dance as it stands today. This is really too bad for MSU who appears to be haunted by the fact that they changed their name. I have said all along that you cant just change your name. Seriously though, Missouri State beat Wisconsin this year, got third in the conference, and made it to the MVC Touney Semi-finals, they should be in. If the MVC had a third place game it would have been interesting to see the Bears and the Braves duke it out in a pseudo-NCAA play in game.

Check out the Sunday Sports Review on 91.1 WDBX on Sunday morning at 10am as I will be guest hosting the week. In the meantime you want to interact with other fans check out www.salukitalk.com.

Wild Times in the River City

Monday, March 5th, dawns bright and cheery over the State of Nebraska. The Creighton Blue Jays flew into St. Louis and swooped away with the MVC Tourney title. In the process they landed a coveted berth in the NCAA tourney.

Elsewhere in the Valley clouds obscure the sun. In Carbondale, the Dawgs are licking their wounds after a nationally televised thrashing in the Arch Madness finale. Over in Springfield, MO the MSU Bears will be on pins and needles on selection Sunday. In Peoria, Bradley's Braves have a distant shot at the post season after giving the Dawgs fits but coming up short on Saturday.

The Northern Iowa Panthers and the Wichita State Shockers will likely draw the woeful duty of slogging through the NIT. Winning that one is like proving you're the best third baseman in Turkestan.

85,000 people surged through the turnstiles, and dropped an estimated 20 million dollars on St. Louis merchants over the weekend. For that, MVC leader Doug Elgin must be beaming. A new contract to keep the dynamic and exciting tournament in town seems assured.

Chris Lowery might do well to dial up Jerry Kill and arrange a tryout for defensive linemen who aspire to double in basketball. Creighton's Anthony Tolliver proved conclusively, Sunday, that no team is complete without a bruiser in the paint. Not necessarily a guy who can juggle while jitterbugging, mind you, but a guy who can run the floor at 260 and make his opponents look like guys who have run into a lamppost.

Nate Funk is an NBA guy in my book. He has the pro game. That's another reason the blue pennants are waving in Omaha today. He rose above all this weekend and delivered his team to the title.

After disposing of Drake in workmanlike style, 71-59, the Salukis came roaring back late Saturday to clip Bradley 53-51. A capacity throng of over 22,000 was on it's feet screaming as Matt Shaw soared out of a struggling mass of players to drop home the game winner with 3.9 seconds left. Physically and emotionally drained, however, the Dawgs were not the same in the title contest.

After 17 years in St. Louis, Arch Madness has arrived as a true spectacle. It is a welcome late winter vacation for many, who book rooms and make a weekend of it. ScottTrade was mobbed. Bistros were crowded far into the night. Backers of every team mingled and had a marvelous time. Several thousand Dawgs fans hit town barking, but, to their chagrin, left it howling......

Hey, how bout that Saluki pep band? As an old Marching Saluki myself, I gotta say those guys and and gals are fantastic. I really dig their version of "Big Noise from Winnetka". The cheer squad and the Shakers worked mightily to fire up the Dawgs, too.

Now here's the good news. Chris Lowery and company will rise again. On March 11 the name of Southern Illlinois will flash across TV screens nationwide. In the battle room at SIU a handful of young warriors and their courageous coach won't care what seed they get. No longer a team with a lengthy winning streak, they are once again a team with something to prove. Go get 'em Dawgs.......... we're all still behind you.

SalukiHoops MVC Tourney Preview

Arch Madness is here! SIU is locked into the #1 seed and ready for action.

The Salukis are headed into the Tourney with an 11 game winning streak and they just added some hardware.

Jamaal Tatum has been named MVC Player of the Year! JT also pulled in a more important award, earning a 3.57 GPA and All-American Academic Honors. Congrats to JT.

Randal Falker had a few nice awards of his own- All-MVC First team and MVC Defensive Player of the Year. Falker leads the conference in blocked shots and becomes the sixth player in school history to win MVC Defensive POY.

One look at the All-Defensive first team explains why Southern's defense was so good all year. Tony Young, Bryan Mullins, and Randal Falker all represented SIU on the squad. Look for Mullins and Falker to be right back there next year.

Wesley Clemmons would not be left out of the action. Clemmons earned All-Bench team honors for the second year in a row. It's safe to say this is the last time Clemmons will win this award.

When Coach of the Year is announced Chris Lowery should win in a landslide.


Moving on to basketball action. SIU is set to play the winner of the Thursday night Evansville\Drake matchup (Friday at Noon). If Evansville wins their play-in game SIU will have to play the Aces for the second time in six days. Evansville has already beat SIU once this year so they could make SIU work hard to earn a victory.

Should the Salukis advance to the semifinal (Saturday 1:35PM) they will play the winner of the Bradley\UNI contest. Both Bradley and UNI have wins over SIU this season so this game will again be a battle. Bradley is a hot team coming into this tournament. They finished at 10-8 in the MVC but they are on the outside looking into the NCAA at-large picture according to bracketology. Bradley needs to win this tournament to get in. I expect to see Bradley face SIU in one of the best games of the Tournament. Bradley will look to beat UNI by shooting the three ball and if they play SIU their strategy will stay the same.

If SIU can make it into Sundays Championship game (1:05pm CBS) they will have the opportunity to show a national audience why they deserve a protected seed in the Big Dance. Southern would most likely face Missouri State or Creighton in the title tilt. Bracketology currently has both of those opponents in the NCAA tournament but you can be sure Missouri State does not want to take any chances after being snubbed last season.

SIU will have the most time to rest and recover between games because of their #1 seeding. That will be important because of the lack of depth down low for SIU. Shaw and Falker will be asked to play big minutes three days in a row and it could have an impact on their play by the time Sunday rolls around. Tony Boyle will be a key player to watch this weekend, if he can step up and play 15-18 minutes of quality basketball he could give Shaw and Falker all the rest they need.

If you are in the St. Louis area you can hear Salukihoops on the radio on Thursday night around 6:15pm. I will be the guest of Mike Huss on WGNU AM 920 talking SIU Basketball.

For those of you heading to STL this weekend here are two events that you won't want to miss.

The Alumni Association is sponsoring the Southern Illinois University Saluki Expo & Brunch at the Hilton at the Ballpark Hotel in St. Louis on Saturday, March 3, 2007. The Saluki Expo & Brunch will be held from 10:30 am to 12:30 pm. Over 20 booths will showcase regional businesses, SIU departments and SIU-affiliated organizations. An extensive brunch buffet will also be served during the Expo/Brunch!

All the guys from Salukitalk will be at the newly-relocated Hooters at 7th and Chestnut (just north of the Saluki host hotel - Hilton at the BallPark, at the old site of Mike Shannon's Restaurant) after the Friday evening session. It should be a lot of fun so make sure and stop by if you are in town.

Check out the Sunday Sports Review at 10am on WDBX 91.1 in Carbondale or on the web for a recap of the first two days of action. We'll be right back here on Sunday night when the dust settles so check back for a full recap of all the weekend's action.