The '09 Saluki recruiting class and Jeremy Felton

Saluki fans have been asking for a JUCO big man all year, and Chris Lowery has delivered just that with 6-foot-7 forward Jeremy Felton. So who is Jeremy Felton? I spoke with one of his former coaches this week to get a better feel for what kind of player the Salukis will be getting. Here are some thoughts.

-A very athletic kid, hops are described as "ridiculous"

-Outside jumper needs work, but the Salukis won't be asking him to shoot outside of his comfort zone anyway. However, his JUCO coach Corey Tate recently told bnd.com "he's sharpened up a lot of skills he had as far as shooting the ball and running the floor, being more than a dunker."

-He's been listed at various heights, but he's either 6-7 or a very solid 6-6

-Felton's defense in high school was not great, but he has the talent to be a plus defender if he buys in to Lowery's system.

-He transfered around all 3 Belleville area high schools (also played for Love-Joy as an 8th grader) so some might assume that he has attitude problems, this does not appear to be the case. Felton was described to me as a "yes sir, no sir" type kid.


It's difficult to recruit two strong classes in a row, because most kids don't want to come to SIU and sit on the bench or redshirt. After assembling a blue chip class in '08, recruiting the same caliber players two years in a row was going to be a challenge. That being said, Felton is exactly the type of player that Lowery needed to add to the '09 class. With Tony Boyle set to graduate, Felton has the talent and physical attributes to come in as a junior play a role off the bench.

The addition of Felton takes a lot of pressure off 6-8 recruit Jordan Meyers who profiles as a bit of a project. The Salukis should have the low post covered next season with senior Christian Cornelius, juniors Carlton Fay and Jeremy Felton, and sophomores Nick Evans and Anthony Booker.

To round out the '09 class the Salukis already have a verbal from PG Kendal Brown but could still use a pure 3 point shooter to replace Josh Bone. Drew Barham a 6-6 shooting guard from Memphis, TN could fill that need (click here to watch video of Barham repeatedly knocking down open 3's). Southern will once again be in a recruiting battle with Miami-OH along with Stanford, Davidson, Belmont, St. Josephs, and Butler also vying for Barham's services.

Update- Barham has given a verbal commitment to SIU.

Photo Credit- stltoday.com and rivals.com

Rumor Confirmed- Josh Bone leaves Salukis

The rumor that Joshua Bone has left the team is now official.

Bone was one of the few Salukis that didn't fare well on the Canada trip. In the three games played he went 1-13 shooting for a combined total of 4 points. He fouled out in 18 minutes during the first game, and only played 11 minutes in the next two.

Bone probably should have been red shirted his freshman year, after missing the first 9 games of the season due to injury. However, the Salukis were in the midst of a Sweet 16 run and it's understandable that the coaches wanted to have some additional depth at the guard position in case they needed it.

As a sophomore Bone averaged 8.1 points in 27 minutes per game. It's likely that he would have seen a sharp decrease in playing time as a junior with the arrival of Kevin Dillard, Torres Roundtree, Justin Bocot, and Ryan Hare. There wouldn't have been much of an increased opening for playing time his senior season either, with Iowa transfer Tony Freeman waiting in the wings.

As far as career highlights go Bone hit 5 of 6 from three point range in a win over Miss St last season. He also scored a career high 19 points against Butler, and followed that with a 17 point performance helping SIU to a 79-71 win over Missouri St.

In his Saluki tenure Bone showed tremendous shooting potential as well as weakness defending against the dribble. Also, in my opinion he was a pretty nice kid. No word yet on where Bone will play next but he'll likely have to sit out two full semesters after transferring. In addition to SIU, Bone was recruited by UNC-Wilmington, Arkansas St., Bradley, George Mason, and Miami-OH.

Photo Credit- SIU Sports Information Dept.

SIU Basketball talk on 91.1 FM

Listen in on a clip from the Sunday Sports Review on 91.1 WDBX. Saluki Basketball is discussed.

Lowery talks about Canada trip

Chris Lowery answered questions Thursday about the team's recent trip to Canada. Below are some of the topics that were covered along with some of my thoughts on this years team.

-The level of competition the Salukis went up against was strong, the team got to face 6-8 and 6-10 big guys and also gained experience defending against a disciplined Princeton offense.

- Dillard, Bocot, and Hare, all spent time at point guard during the trip and Lowery was happy with their play. Also, Bryan Mullins was extremely pleased that he didn't have to bring the ball up the court every time.

-After taking most of the summer off to rest his injured foot, Mullins was rusty on offense but Lowery described him as a "nightmare" for opponents defensively. The increased depth allowed Mullins to stay fresh, roam the floor, and he was able to get more steals as a result.

-The depth of this team looks to be a huge strength and Lowery sounds like he plans on staying with a deep rotation even when the regular season begins. If the Salukis are going to give 10 or more guys regular playing time I would expect to see an aggressive full court defense that will wear down the opposition. In my opinion the biggest challenge of playing so many guys will be establishing roles on offense and teaching the young players how to play hard without fouling. If those issues can be addressed other teams in the Valley will have their hands full.

-With 5 big men on the roster (Boyle, Fay, Booker, Evans, Cornelius) Lowery has no plans of playing a 4-guard lineup this season.

-Roundtree was cleared to play yesterday, and while he could have played in Canada the coaching staff decided to rest him and make sure that he was completely healthy. This was a good decision by the staff, but with a crowed backcourt it will be interesting to see if this will affect how much playing time Roundtree will be able to earn. Can Lowery really find playing time for 7 guards? edit 9/7 These things do have a way of working out, and I can easily see the Salukis playing a 6 guard lineup this season.

-Carlton Fay did some great things on the trip and Lowery feels that last season Fay did too much to try to "blend in" with Shaw and Falker and as a result didn't play up to his full potential. Fay stepped up big time in the final moments against Western Ontario hitting two 3's and grabbing two rebounds in the final minutes of a close win.

-Blocking out and rebounding is the area that needs the most improvement. Lowery feels that if this team can do a good job on the boards then they'll be able open things up in transition.

Photos- Credit SIU Sports Information Department

Kelly still an '09 option for Salukis

Update- 9-1-2008, Kelly is heading to Miami, OH. This is a good pull for the RedHawks. Speaking of Miami, OH they may make sense as a future opponent for the Salukis. Last season the RedHawks finished with an RPI of 73, the Salukis finished with an RPI of 62.

How important is coaching continuity to recruiting? 6-7 forward Drew Kelly was on his way to Western Kentucky before their coach, Darrin Horn, departed for South Carolina. "I would have gone there for sure" said Kelly. As of right now Kelly doesn't have an offer from the new WKU staff and Horn doesn't have a scholarship open for him and South Carolina.

What does that mean for the Salukis? With Tony Boyle scheduled to graduate after this season, the Dawgs have a strong need for a big man to compliment Booker, Fay, and Evans. Unfortunately the '09 class for big men is not particularly deep. While it appears that Mike Broghammer is heading elsewhere Kelly could fill a need the Salukis while giving himself a good opportunity to play right away on a winning team.

A two sport athlete from Franklin, Tennessee; Kelly also has football offers from Louisville, Vanderbilt, and Memphis but says he would prefer to play on the hardwood at the college level.

Kelly has said he likes SIU, but Miami of Ohio, Notre Dame and Iowa are also in pursuit. It's too early to tell if he'll choose Southern Illinois, but when you combine Kelly's strength in defense and rebounding with the Floorburn U style of play there's no doubt he'd look good in the Maroon and White.