Was it a failure?

The roar of the crowd is now a distant echo. The custodial staff has slicked up the Arena and only the hum of the exit signs drifts over the hardwood.

Meanwhile, national TV crews have long since flown to distant sites. In Southern Illinois hoops fans have turned to watching high school baseball or piloting bass boats around chilly lakes. Most fans, however, are back knocking out a 9 to 5 job, or hitting the books. Yes, here the season is over, but a question lingers.....

Was it a failure?

No, the 2008 Salukis 18-15 season was not a failure. In fact, it should not even be mentioned in the same sentence with the word. This year's Dawgs made us proud.

Certainly, we hoped for more. A berth in the NCAA and another sweet 16. Perhaps a conference title and three wins at ScottTrade.

The Salukis have accomplished so much in recent seasons as to create an unquenchable thirst for more distinctions among their legions of fans.

This time banners with colors other than maroon and white flew in victory.

Western Kentucky, Illinois State, and Drake and many more earned their success this season. That the Dawgs were fairly beaten down 15 times, by various opponents is the gift our foes have given us.

Defeat engenders the grim resolve to shoot another half hour after practice....to lift one more set in the steamy weight room, or to run more sprints when you think you're too tired.

This year's Salukis certainly lacked in certain ways, but their effort was never in doubt. Surely, they were discouraged at times, but they drew themselves up and ripped Oklahoma State when some teams would have given a half-hearted effort. They went down battling at Arizona State with two of their best men sidelined by injury. From seniors on down, they learned, and college is about learning.

Sometimes you learn you don't always win.

But these Salukis are winners. Coach Lowrey is a winner and a fine man, at that. He's also an exceptionally good teacher. With talented recruits on the way SIU's basketball future is bright.

Salukis fall in NIT second round

Losing Bryan Mullins was a difficult blow but an additional injury to Tony Boyle left the Salukis short handed on the road, a combination that was too much to overcome.

Give Arizona St credit, they have a really solid club that probably should have made the NCAA Tournament. Southern might not of been able to beat them on their home court even at full strength.

The Salukis finish the season with 18 wins, which isn't too bad for a "down year". They didn't have much depth at guard this year, and it showed. Next year Chris Lowery should have plenty of options to choose from returning a solid group of players in addition to adding some key recruits for 08-09.

Salukis rout Cowboys in NIT opener

After having played only two games in the last 17 days, the Salukis showed no signs of rust while routing a lethargic Oklahoma State squad 69-53 at the SIU Arena.

The Salukis looked loose and played with confidence. Matt Shaw and Randal Falker set the tone and combined for 36 points and 18 rebounds. Josh Bone hit some big 3's and along with Shaw, forced Oklahoma State to cover the perimeter, which left one-on-one matchups for Falker and Tony Boyle all night. Tyrone Green did an excellent job of running the point, handing out 8 assists, and not turning the ball over a single time.

The 5300 faithful fans that attended tonight's game seemed to feed off of the energy provided by the Salukis and vice-versa. When Christian Cornelius threw down a tip-dunk in the first half, the place was up for grabs. Hustle plays and contributions from role players received standing ovations. For 40 minutes, the Salukis seemed to come up with every loose ball and ended with a 39-21 advantage on the glass. The Saluki "D" had the Cowboys rattled from the opening tip and limited Oklahoma State to just 35% shooting, including 4 of 25 from beyond the arc.

This is not quite the storybook ending that was written back in November, but the Salukis played a great game tonight, the seniors got a final "W" at home and the March to the Garden continues on Thursday night at Arizona State.

Salukis to host Cowboys at SIU Arena

The Salukis are set to take the floor against the Cowboys of Oklahoma State tonight at 8:00 in a first round NIT matchup. This will be SIU's first NIT appearance since 2000, when the Dawgs defeated Colorado and fell to BYU in the 2nd round, and the 9th overall appearance in program history.

Oklahoma State (17-15 , 7-9) is led by freshman guard James Anderson who is averaging just over 13 ppg. The Cowboys have a balanced attack, with four players averaging in double figures, but they tend to live and die by the three.

On the defensive end, Marcus Dove was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year for the second consecutive season. The Cowboys have seen some of the best individuals and teams in the nation this season and only yielded 65.5 ppg. Three players average over 1.5 steals per game. They also managed to defeat Kansas when they visited Gallagher-Iba Arena in Stillwater.

For the Salukis... the good news is that the Salukis are playing at home where they compiled a 12-3 record and knocked off two ranked opponents this season.

The bad news is that Bryan Mullins has been sidelined with a stress fracture and will not play in the postseason.

Josh Bone will likely get the start in his place. Expect Dion Coopwood to get some minutes, too. In order to win, Randal Falker and Matt Shaw will have to take control early and the Salukis will have to shoot well from the perimeter, which they have been able to at home this year.

Chris Lowery might want to consider using a lineup consisting of 3 big men to take some pressure off of Bone, Clemmons, and Green who will carry an increased burden with Mullins out.

A front line of Falker, Boyle, and Shaw would give SIU a chance to control the glass and limit Ok State's second chance opportunities. Carlton Fay should also be given 20+ minutes to provide an offensive spark off the bench.

The Salukis take the court for only their second time in the last 17 days so they should be well rested. Even with rest on their side it would take a sublime performance from the Salukis to defeat Oklahoma State without Bryan Mullins.

NIT home game for the Dawgs

It's not the NCAA's but at least it's a home game. The Salukis will host Oklahoma St. on Tuesday at 8pm in the first round of the NIT. The game will be seen on ESPN2.

Ok State is a solid team coming off a 7 point loss to an outstanding Texas club in the Big 12 tournament.

Other teams in Southern's portion of the bracket are Arizona St, Florida, and Creighton. This might be the most difficult of the 4 regions leading to the NIT championship in New York.

The Salukis still have a lot to play for and a win against a Big 12 opponent would be huge. Unfortunately, the Salukis will be forced to play with out the services of PG Bryan Mullins. This is a huge blow to a team that already had issues at the guard position. Look for walk on senior Dion Coopwood to get some minutes at the PG spot. Southern can still win this game but they'll need huge performances from Shaw and Falker to make up for the absence of Mullins.

NIT-ology

Well, this is different. Usually this time of year Saluki fans are waiting to see what kind of seed the Salukis will be getting in the big dance... but not this year. The good news is there will be postseason basketball for the Salukis, only this time it will be of the NIT variety.

One website, nitology.com has SIU in the NIT as a 4 seed. That would be good enough to get a first round home game. The question that comes to my mind is - would SIU Arena sell out for a home NIT game?

The potential opponent might have something to do with it. If Oklahoma State or Minnesota were to come to Carbondale I think fans would be more interested in the matchup.

What about the CBI you ask? While the CBI does intend to compete with the NIT for bids, it looks like most schools will view the NIT above the CBI, at least until it becomes more established. Also, the NCAA now runs the NIT so schools might feel a bit of pressure to go where the NCAA leads them.

It's too bad Illinois wasn't just a little better this year because it would have been fun to see these two teams meet in the postseason. For the second year in a row Illinois did not hold up their end of the bargain so it's not going to happen this season.

Whoever the Salukis play, they will have plenty of time to prepare. Since the MVC tournament is a week earlier than most tournaments the Salukis will get some much needed time off. Bryan Mullins and co. will benefit from nearly two weeks of rest before their next game.

Southern loses heartbreaker 54-49

Southern had a chance to tie the game with 9.7 sec remaining but a Matt Shaw 3 point attempt rattled in and out and Southern took the loss.

Shaw was on fire in this game and scored 22 points total. He had a great look at the basket on his final shot, but it wasn't meant to be.

Randal Falker battled foul trouble in the second half and Eric Coleman took advantage of Southern down low with Falker on the bench. Falker's 4th and 5th fouls both came on questionable calls but give UNI credit for capitalizing when they had a mismatch.

Coleman finished with 22 points, hitting an impressive 14 of 19 from the foul line. Adam Viet got it done from downtown hitting 6 of 9 from deep, and finishing with 19 points total.

The loss knocks SIU completely out of NCAA Tournament contention and ends a run of 6 straight tourney bids. Southern will likely head to the NIT, which we will discuss in the coming days. For now it's a disappointing loss at the hands of UNI and the Salukis end the MVC Tournament with a 17-14 record overall.

Rough and Rugged First Half Favors SIU

Elbows were flying and bodies were hitting the floor in the first half, just the type of game the Salukis are known for.

Southern was ice cold to start the game but they were able to grind out a 22-20 advantage at intermission.

UNI had a 7-0 lead to start the game when Matt Shaw nailed a ‘3’ to put the Salukis on the board with just 15 minutes remaining. Bone followed with a jumper to pull the dawgs within 2.

Moments later Matt Shaw nearly landed in my lap on press row, while barreling towards a loose ball. The Salukis still weren’t hitting shots but they kept the game close with solid defense and hustle plays.

Northern Iowa led most of the half until Josh Bone tied the game with a 3-ball that sent the smaller than usual Saluki following into a frenzy.

In the final moments of the half Southern forced a shot clock violation on UNI, earning the last possession of the half. Mullins milked the clock and hit Josh Bone with a pass on the baseline that Bone deposited in the basket to give SIU a 2 point lead at the break.

If Southern can step up their shooting percentage just a tick, they should be able to pull this one out in the second half.

SIU vs UNI game notes

Southern did a great job against UNI the last time these teams met. They were shooting the ball extremely well and played terrific post defense. Tonight Southern will need to establish their offense early, playing in a building that they haven't traditionally shot well in.

UNI was playing shorthanded last time and that allowed Southern to key on Eric Coleman. Coleman just happens to be playing his best basketball of the year right now, averaging 2o points and 12 rebounds over his last 3 games. The Falker/Coleman match-up will once again be crucial to each team's success.

Win or lose SIU should be playing post-season basketball. SIU has a top 50 RPI and the #3 strength of schedule (out of 341 teams) in the country, which goes a long way towards explaining their 17-13 record.

Creighton tops Bradley, advances to semi-final

Creighton held on for a 74-70 win over Bradley, but this game went down to the wire and Bradley actually came all the way back to take the lead with 2:36 remaining.

Fortunately for Creighton, Cavel Witter was able to close out Bradley by scoring the last 6 points of the game for the Jays. Whitter's two foul shots with 4 seconds remaining iced the game for CU.

Illinois State will take on Missouri State in the first game of the evening session. Rumors are swirling that Barry Hinson is on the hot seat at Mo State so this game goes a long way in dictating Hinson's future in Springfield.

The Bears and the Redbirds have just taken the floor for a shoot around. We'll be back in a few hours with live game action between the two teams. Then we'll start gearing up for the game we've all been waiting for, the Salukis vs the Panthers at 8:30 pm this evening.

Run 'n Gun

Creighton and Bradley are at least trying to get to triple digits in this game. It's 40-27 Creighton at halftime and the Jays are red hot, shooting 53% in the first half and 7 of 15 from downtown.

Bradley's defense has not been very good. They are allowing Creighton to beat them on the dribble and it's opened up a lot of opportunities for CU.

Crouch and Ruffin are a combined 2-8, which is a really bad sign for the Braves. A game of this tempo favors the deeper team and Creighton played 10 guys in the first half. Look for more fireworks in the second. Barring a complete collapse by the Jays it'll be Creighton and Drake in tomorrow's first semifinal match-up.

Friday afternoon MVC action

Well, the Drake Bulldogs showed why they’re the #1 seed, moving swiftly past Indiana State 68-46. Klayton Korver was impressive, hitting three from beyond the arc and moving closer to becoming Drake's all time leader in 3-pointers made.

Next up... Bradley and Creighton in what should be a fun game to watch. Really not much has changed since these teams played a 2-OT thriller last week. I do expect this to be a lower scoring game than last time with both teams in a fairly unfamiliar shooting environment.

This game will probably go down to the wire, but if I had to make a pick... I’d take Creighton because of their depth and the coaching of Dana Altman. It should be a good one.

Live from the MVC Tournament

We're here at the Scottrade Center in downtown St. Louis getting ready for all of today's action.

First up on the docket is Drake vs Indiana State. Drake comes in as the top seed but in years past that has not necessarily been a good thing in the MVC. The top seed has not won the tournament since Illinois State did it in 1998. Drake will attempt to break the trend this weekend.

Indiana State pulled to .500 (15-15) with their win over Wichita State last night. Indiana State has a decent amount of depth with 9 guys averaging over 12 minutes a game but Marico Stinson and Gabe Moore will have to come up huge for ISU to have a chance at an upset today.

We'll be checking in all weekend from the Scottrade Center so email in your questions and comments to salukihoops@gmail.com and check back for updates throughout the tournament.

Looking ahead to Arch Madness

The Salukis will need to win the MVC Tourney to get a bid, that much we know. Bracketology has SIU on the bubble but on the wrong side of it. Drake (5 seed) and Illinois State (11 seed) look like they are going dancing, but if a third team claims the automatic bid, the MVC could be a 3-bid league in 2008.

The first round matchup against UNI is no gimmie, the Panthers beat SIU earlier this season, but Southern will be a strong favorite in this game after beating UNI by 20 just two weeks ago.

If the Salukis advance to the second round, they would probably get a rematch with Illinois State. The Redbirds have already beat the Salukis twice this year, but are they really that much better? Osiris Eldridge and his mohawk mojo give Illinois State the go-to guy that Southern seems to be lacking so he would no doubt be the x-factor once again in this match-up. It's too early to predict a winner since both teams still have to win a game to get there, but I think it would go down to the wire.

That's just one half of what could be a sensational Saturday in St. Louis. (Get your tickets early, it's gonna be a madhouse.) On the other side of the bracket, the winner of the Creighton/Bradley rematch would potentially play Drake in one of the best match-ups in the country. Drake has taken a few lumps lately but they do a great job of spreading the floor on offense and it allows them to consistently get good looks at the basket. While Drake is powered by Josh Young's 16ppg the Bulldogs are still a balanced team, and that balance will make them tough to beat.

Drake is the #1 seed for a reason and I think they have the best chance of winning the tournament. However, I think Creighton, Bradley, Illinois State, and SIU all have a shot at this thing. Creighton's depth would give them an advantage playing 3 games in 3 days but they also have an incredibly difficult draw. Bradley would be a sleeper pick but they could also be out in the first round. Overall I would give Drake a 40% chance of winning and give Creighton, Bradley, Illinois State, and SIU a 15% chance of cutting down the nets at the Scottrade Center.

Eldridge sinks Salukis

Illinois State guard Osiris Eldridge dropped 27 points on the Salukis to lead the Redbirds to a 57-49 victory, clinching the #2 seed in the Valley tournament.

Eldridge was the only Illinois State player to score double figures, but he was all the Redbirds needed as the Salukis shot blanks most of the night. The Saluki defense failed to contain Eldridge, allowing him to work both sides of the baseline and fire open shots from the perimeter, and he made them pay.

When the dust settled on Senior Night at SIU Arena, the Saluki seniors were tagged with the second home MVC loss of their SIU careers. While it was a disappointing way to go out, a 30-2 career record at home in conference play is nothing to be ashamed of.

The Salukis (17-13, 11-7) will have the #3 seed in the Valley tournament and face UNI on Friday night. You can view the complete bracket here. Illinois State will take the #2 seed and will play the winner of the Missouri State/Evansville play-in game.

While this loss may be emotionally difficult for the Salukis, there is almost no difference between a #2 and #3 seed in the Valley Tournament. Missouri State is actually a hotter team than UNI right now, having won 4 of their last 5 including a win over Drake. Of course Mo State would have to beat Evansville to get to Illinois State and would also have to deal with fatigue from playing on back-to-back nights.

Both Illinois State and SIU may have dodged a bullet by avoiding Drake, Creighton, and Bradley on their half of the bracket. Drake is the #1 seed for a reason. Creighton and Bradley are both scorching hot and played a 111-110 double overtime game Saturday night that Creighton was able to win in order to secure the #4 seed. Their reward? ... A Friday night rematch with Bradley.

Check back later next week for a tournament preview and we'll be coming at you live from STL next weekend. In the meantime, tune into the Sunday Sports Review at 10am on 91.1 FM in Carbondale or listen online for more coverage of the Salukis' attempt to keep their NCAA Tournament streak alive.