Roundtree and Dillard
Bryan Mullins
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Monday, October 13, 2008
Notes from Saluki interviews
The Salukis talked with the media on Monday, answering questions about the upcoming season. Below are some notes from those conversations. Check back later this week to listen to audio interviews with Bryan Mullins, Torres Roundtree, and Kevin Dillard.
Justin Bocot- When I asked Bocot about why he chose SIU, he said the Saluki coaches were in on him early and that was a major factor in his decision. This was a common answer from first year players, and shows that Lowery and his staff are doing a great job of identifying talented players early.
Bocot said he worked on getting physically stronger over the last year. He's confident in his jump shot and ability to get to the hole; while listing defense and boxing out bigger players as areas that he is working to improve.
Ryan Hare- Decided to come to SIU because he felt the Salukis played the type of physical basketball that he wanted to play, and he also wanted to stay fairly close to home. Hare says he is comfortable playing anywhere on the court but sees himself playing mostly the "2" or "3" positions at SIU.
Wesley Clemmons- Admitted the Salukis were short on guard depth last season, but said that will not be an excuse this season. Clemmons says that if players are tired they'll come out of the game and there will be another talented player ready to come in and play hard. Clemmons feels that all everyone is getting along well, and that the team will be able to do a good job playing together early, even with all new additions.
Anthony Booker- When asked about why he chose SIU, Booker said he was a "late bloomer" but Lowery was in on him before he was recruited by others and that was a big reason why he became a Saluki. Booker admitted that other schools tried to coax him away from Southern, but he was already confident that he had made a good decision.
Booker was glad to have the experience of matching up with bigger players inCanada
Check back later this week to listen to Bryan Mullins talk about his new role on the team, and hear Kevin Dillard and Torres Roundtree talk about their first impressions of Saluki basketball.
Justin Bocot- When I asked Bocot about why he chose SIU, he said the Saluki coaches were in on him early and that was a major factor in his decision. This was a common answer from first year players, and shows that Lowery and his staff are doing a great job of identifying talented players early.
Bocot said he worked on getting physically stronger over the last year. He's confident in his jump shot and ability to get to the hole; while listing defense and boxing out bigger players as areas that he is working to improve.
Ryan Hare- Decided to come to SIU because he felt the Salukis played the type of physical basketball that he wanted to play, and he also wanted to stay fairly close to home. Hare says he is comfortable playing anywhere on the court but sees himself playing mostly the "2" or "3" positions at SIU.
Wesley Clemmons- Admitted the Salukis were short on guard depth last season, but said that will not be an excuse this season. Clemmons says that if players are tired they'll come out of the game and there will be another talented player ready to come in and play hard. Clemmons feels that all everyone is getting along well, and that the team will be able to do a good job playing together early, even with all new additions.
Anthony Booker- When asked about why he chose SIU, Booker said he was a "late bloomer" but Lowery was in on him before he was recruited by others and that was a big reason why he became a Saluki. Booker admitted that other schools tried to coax him away from Southern, but he was already confident that he had made a good decision.
Booker was glad to have the experience of matching up with bigger players in
Check back later this week to listen to Bryan Mullins talk about his new role on the team, and hear Kevin Dillard and Torres Roundtree talk about their first impressions of Saluki basketball.
Thursday, October 02, 2008
The '08 Saluki schedule and the 2k Sports Classic
Finally, the Coaches vs. Cancer 2k Sports Classic teams have been announced. Per Dawg Tracker SIU will play Division II California (Pa.) at home in the opening round on November 11th. After winning that game (yes, I'm already predicting a blowout) they'll play UMass with a trip to semi-finals at Madison Square Garden on the line. All games in New York will be televised on ESPN2.
Getting to play a home game against a quality program like UMass is a major benefit of playing in
the 2K Sports Classic. The Minutemen come in at #57 on the college hoops net pre-season rankings.
On the flip side, the Salukis had previously scheduled California (Pa.) on Nov. 16th but apparently the 2k Sports people could not find another team to come play in Carbondale. So to accommodate the tournament organizers the game was changed to a first round tournament game. I get the feeling the 2k Sports folks ran into the same problem that the Salukis have every year- teams don't want to come to SIU Arena because they know they'll probably get beat.
Now the Salukis are a short a home game, and it's getting pretty late in the year to get something else setup. Maybe the coaching staff has a trick up their sleeve, but I'd be surprised if the Salukis can get a quality opponent to come to SIU Arena on this late of notice.
The process of creating a schedule in NCAA basketball is no easy task and is often misunderstood. Here are a few of the basic guidelines as I understand them.
NCAA rules allow teams to play up to 33 games, not including conference tournament or NCAA tournament games. Teams can schedule less than 33 games but it's obviously advantageous to play as many games as possible.
Teams can play two exhibition games. The Salukis will use these games as home game tune-ups against DII competition.
Teams can play up to 4 games in an exempt tournament. That's the 2k sports classic this year. As long as they make it to New York they'll play the max total of 4 games. Evan if they fall in the semis, there is a 3rd place game in this tournament.
That puts the number of remaining regular season games at 27.
18 of those 27 games are conference games leaving SIU with 9 non-conference games to play this season. It's important to get high quality teams in these games to build a high RPI but it's also important to get some home games to generate revenue.
Two of these remaining 9 games are the Bracket Buster, the Wooden Classic (vs St. Mary's).
That left SIU with the flexibility to schedule 7 more games against opponents of their choice. So far 6 of those spots are filled. There are 3 homes games against St. Louis, Charlotte, and Western Michigan; and 3 road games at Western Kentucky, Northern Illinois, and Nevada.
The California (Pa.) game was originally scheduled for Nov. 16th but is now an empty space. If this game isn't replaced and the dawgs were to (gasp) get beat by UMass on Nov. 12th they would have a two week stretch in the middle of November where they would not play a basketball game. So while this game doesn't have to be replaced it would be nice to give this young team another home game, as well as additional game experience before potentially taking on Duke, UCLA, or Michigan at MSG.
Getting to play a home game against a quality program like UMass is a major benefit of playing in
the 2K Sports Classic. The Minutemen come in at #57 on the college hoops net pre-season rankings.On the flip side, the Salukis had previously scheduled California (Pa.) on Nov. 16th but apparently the 2k Sports people could not find another team to come play in Carbondale. So to accommodate the tournament organizers the game was changed to a first round tournament game. I get the feeling the 2k Sports folks ran into the same problem that the Salukis have every year- teams don't want to come to SIU Arena because they know they'll probably get beat.
Now the Salukis are a short a home game, and it's getting pretty late in the year to get something else setup. Maybe the coaching staff has a trick up their sleeve, but I'd be surprised if the Salukis can get a quality opponent to come to SIU Arena on this late of notice.
The process of creating a schedule in NCAA basketball is no easy task and is often misunderstood. Here are a few of the basic guidelines as I understand them.
NCAA rules allow teams to play up to 33 games, not including conference tournament or NCAA tournament games. Teams can schedule less than 33 games but it's obviously advantageous to play as many games as possible.
Teams can play two exhibition games. The Salukis will use these games as home game tune-ups against DII competition.
Teams can play up to 4 games in an exempt tournament. That's the 2k sports classic this year. As long as they make it to New York they'll play the max total of 4 games. Evan if they fall in the semis, there is a 3rd place game in this tournament.
That puts the number of remaining regular season games at 27.
18 of those 27 games are conference games leaving SIU with 9 non-conference games to play this season. It's important to get high quality teams in these games to build a high RPI but it's also important to get some home games to generate revenue.
Two of these remaining 9 games are the Bracket Buster, the Wooden Classic (vs St. Mary's).
That left SIU with the flexibility to schedule 7 more games against opponents of their choice. So far 6 of those spots are filled. There are 3 homes games against St. Louis, Charlotte, and Western Michigan; and 3 road games at Western Kentucky, Northern Illinois, and Nevada.
The California (Pa.) game was originally scheduled for Nov. 16th but is now an empty space. If this game isn't replaced and the dawgs were to (gasp) get beat by UMass on Nov. 12th they would have a two week stretch in the middle of November where they would not play a basketball game. So while this game doesn't have to be replaced it would be nice to give this young team another home game, as well as additional game experience before potentially taking on Duke, UCLA, or Michigan at MSG.
Friday, September 26, 2008
SIU Basketball Recuiting Spotlight- Phillip Jackson
With the class of '09 squared away, Chris Lowery and co. can turn their full attention the recruiting class of 2010. The '10 class is widely regarded as a strong class for big men, and the Salukis will be in the market for at least one post player. Currently on the Saluki radar is 6'8' forward Phillip Jackson.
Jackson has already gained a reputation as a high energy player with loads of athleticism. Not only does he run the floor and rebound, but he's also shown the ability to knock down a jump shot. Jackson raised his stock this summer while playing AAU ball for the Mac Irvin Fire. He'll look to continue his development this season playing for Providence St. Mel high school in Chicago.
Jackson profiles as a bit of a late bloomer, so it could be a while before he makes his decision. He currently has offers from Southern Illinois and Indiana State, but he's also receiving interest from Illinois, Kentucky, and Depaul. If Jackson has a huge season for Providence St. Mel, some big name coaches could try to swoop in and attempt to land him.
It's too early to call the Salukis the favorite but they do have two major factors in their favor. The first being that Lowery has shown in the past that when he gets in on a recuit early he can keep them even after the major conference schools come calling (see Booker, Anthony). Another huge factor is new Saluki assistant coach Lance Irvin. Irvin has earned a reputaion as an outstanding recruiter and his father runs Jackson's AAU team, the Mac Irvin Fire.
Jackson has already gained a reputation as a high energy player with loads of athleticism. Not only does he run the floor and rebound, but he's also shown the ability to knock down a jump shot. Jackson raised his stock this summer while playing AAU ball for the Mac Irvin Fire. He'll look to continue his development this season playing for Providence St. Mel high school in Chicago.
Jackson profiles as a bit of a late bloomer, so it could be a while before he makes his decision. He currently has offers from Southern Illinois and Indiana State, but he's also receiving interest from Illinois, Kentucky, and Depaul. If Jackson has a huge season for Providence St. Mel, some big name coaches could try to swoop in and attempt to land him.
It's too early to call the Salukis the favorite but they do have two major factors in their favor. The first being that Lowery has shown in the past that when he gets in on a recuit early he can keep them even after the major conference schools come calling (see Booker, Anthony). Another huge factor is new Saluki assistant coach Lance Irvin. Irvin has earned a reputaion as an outstanding recruiter and his father runs Jackson's AAU team, the Mac Irvin Fire.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Talking Saluki Hoops on 91.1FM
Check out a clip from the Sunday Sports Review w/Mark Bausch of stlsports.com.
You can listen to the Sunday Sports Review at 10a.m. on 91.1 FM or listen online.
WDBX is listener supported so if you enjoy the Sunday Sports Review you can contribute by making a secure paypal donation online.
You can listen to the Sunday Sports Review at 10a.m. on 91.1 FM or listen online.
WDBX is listener supported so if you enjoy the Sunday Sports Review you can contribute by making a secure paypal donation online.
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