Saturday, November 03, 2012

2012 Salukis ranked #138 by ESPN

The Salukis are ranked #138 overall by ESPN the Magazine for 2012.   This ranking seems a bit high to me but I would take the following factors into consideration.

1) The transfer of Desmar Jackson- This guy is a serious baller and SIU gets some credit for adding this level of player to their roster.

2) Coaching Change-  Barry Henson may not have the "big name" appeal but he did come from Kansas and someone from the East Coast Sports Network probably noticed that a changing of the guard at SIU is a good thing.

3) Fond Memories- ESPN writers probably remember the Saluki teams that were on national TV playing that rugged lock down defense and decided that this is a top 150 team

4) Ignorance is bliss-  These writers don't have time to put every NCAA team under the microscope and the recent brutal injury problems were not a factor in this ranking.

All this being said if this team lives up to this #138 ranking this season I think most Saluki fans would pleasantly surprised. 

Thursday, November 01, 2012

Shutterhut Photo Booth

If you are looking to add some fun to your Party or Event then I would recommend getting a Photo Booth from Shutter Hut Photo Booth.  I booked this photo booth for our Wedding and our guests LOVED IT!  

This is a Southern Illinois company that does events for birthday parties, weddings, Prom nights, and other events.  They are pretty reasonably priced and it's cool because you get to save a copy of all the crazy pictures that were taken, lol.... Anyway, if your looking to add fun to an event in Southern Illinois area check 'em out at http://shutterhutpb.com/

Thursday, October 28, 2010

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Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Notes from SIU Media Day

Chris Lowery addressed the media on Wednesday and had the following things to say: 

- Lowery is confident that the team will get back to playing the way they want to play.

- The team is much more committed in the weight room, and everyone's commitment level is higher this year.

- He'd like to get back to a ball control style of offense.

- The new facilities have helped in recruiting, and it feels more like a home court.

- Working out with the football team was impressive to the basketball players because the football team was not just talking about winning a conference championship but a national championship.

- The current players want to do what's right and this group of players has not complained about the work they've done so far.

- Lowery says the biggest area of improvement will be defense and he says that during the last two years he watched other teams do the tough things while his team just complained, and that it's not going to be that way this year.

- The biggest adjustment that the coaching staff has made is to talk about Saluki 'culture' as much as possible. He went on to say that they have been ashamed of the 'culture' that was created during the past two seasons because they didn't have the personnel to play the way they wanted to play.

- He said it's very difficult to convince players who don't think that what you're doing can win games, which is crazy to him because that's why those players came to SIU in the first place. Lowery says he has no hard feelings towards the people who are not here any longer, that he's moved on and has guys who want to wear the SIU jersey and in the past when he's had guys who want to wear the jersey they've been successful.

- There is not an obvious vocal leader on this team, but the team has seen a lot of players leading by example in practice.

- The biggest on-court question is who will play in certain situations. The team has a lot of utility guys, like Seck and Freeman, who can do a lot of different things, but the #1 thing is that the players will play defense and that is what will ultimately determine playing time.

- Lowery expects to rotate 9 or 10 guys, so they can play the style of basketball they want to play. He said the team will not just be picking up defensively at half court anymore.

- The coaching staff has challenged Teague to show improvement physically and he has embraced that challenge. His mile time is down almost 4 minutes from last year and he weighed in at 288 a few days ago, which is down from 310 at this time last year.

- The team will not run a lot of sets this year and will focus on running the motion offense. There will be lineups where Fay plays as a 5 and Seck plays as a 4, because Seck's defense will make that possible.

- Lowery is not sure if he will redshirt Devonte Drinkard or not. Drinkard is still 17 years old and will not be 18 until April. However, his body is very mature and he is making Teague work in the paint.

(EDITORS NOTE- Drinkard is listed as being born on April 11, 1992 which would make him 18 years old. I'm not sure why Lowery is saying that he's 17 unless there is an error on his listed date of birth)

Sunday, August 29, 2010

2011 PF Dantiel Daniels verbals to SIU

Dantiel Daniels, a 6'5" 225lb forward out of the St. Louis area (Wentzville Holt High School), has given a verbal to SIU for the 2011 class.

Daniels has been dominating bigger players on the AAU circuit this summer, and may end up being closer to 6'6" or 6'7" once he gets on campus.

Honestly, Saluki fans should be glad that he's not two inches taller right now because he probably wouldn't have given a verbal to SIU this early if the high major schools didn't consider him a touch undersized.

It's impossible to project how Daniels' college career will unfold, but at first glance this appears be a low risk recruit who will at the very least be able to play the post and rebound against good forwards in the MVC. Check out the quick video of Daniels below.



This is the second verbal of the 2011 class for Lowery. The first commitment came from Treg Setty, a 6'8" PF that is considered one of the top players in the state of Kentucky. I have to say it's refreshing to see SIU get back to recruiting more high school players and less JUCO quick-fixes.

One more 2011 roster spot remains for Lowery and he has some flexibility, but I would recommend grabbing the best available guard. Will Sullivan is a SG out of York (Elmhurst) and is rumored be a target, but he visited Miami-Ohio last week and may wait 'til Spring to decide. I think he's hoping for an offer from Wisconsin or other Big Ten schools, but he'd fit SIU like a glove.

In the meantime Derrick Marks, a strong 6'2" shooter from Plainfield Central (IL), is planning an official visit to Carbondale on September 17th. Marks also has visits scheduled with Boise State and Colorado State among others, but if Lowery can get him to cancel those trips and give an early verbal then it would be clutch. Things could always change, but for a team coming off a 15-15 season, I'd have to say that the 2011 recruiting class is shaping up much better than I expected.