BY TODD HEFFERMANTHE SOUTHERN

CARBONDALE — Carlton Fay hadno bones about doing what he had todo to earn his degree at SouthernIllinois University. He just hopes hedoesn’t have to use it after his four-year basketball career comes to aclose this year.

“Hopefully, I’ll just get to playbasketball the rest of my life. That’swhat I’m hoping on,” Fay said. “Ifnot, I’m a history major, and,hopefully, I can get into someteaching and the things I learnedhere I can use as a coach.”

Fay has played pretty well for theSalukis (12-18) as the team’s onlyfourth-year senior. The 22-year-oldright-hander hit double figures inseven straight games earlier thisseason, the first time he’s done thatin his entire career.

Fay enters tonight’s opening gameof the State Farm Missouri ValleyConference tournament againstIllinois State (12-18) as SIU’s leadingscorer (13.3 points per game) andfree-throw shooter (104-of-122,85.2 percent).

He’ll likely have to settle foranother, less distinguishable honor,of being the first four-year player atSIU to never play in the NCAAtournament since 2001. The Salukismade the NIT when he was afreshman, but will have to becomethe first squad in the history of thetournament to win four games infour days to reach the Big Dance thisyear.

Built more like a prize fighter thana basketball forward, Fay could haveset a Valley record for charges takenif statisticians kept numbers like

that regularly. In a help-friendlydefense, Fay has helped as muchas anyone, and will go down asone of the best scorers in schoolhistory.

His career scoring number of 1,156points ranks him 28th all-time, butwhat the numbers don’t show you ishis versatility with the basketball. Acareer 32.9 percent 3-point shooter,Fay can deliver beyond the arcquicker than anyone on the team. Ata stout 230 pounds, he’s also strong,and savvy enough, to score on theblock with a short hook, the shortcorner jumper or an up-and-undermove.

SIU coach Chris Lowery saw thepotential when he signed him priorto the 2007-08 season.

“It was a very big get for us at thetime, and where he is now, he’s veryversatilite,” Lowery said. “He can doa lot of different things, and hisability to shoot the basketball justmade him that much more of apriority for us.”

todd.hefferman@thesouthern.com / 618-351-5087

I’m a crazy optimist when itcomes to athleticcompetition.

Back in my younger days ofplayground baseball orbasketball, I always wanted tobe on the team that seemed tobe undersized andoverwhelmed. I alwaysbelieved that a set ofcircumstances could play outthat would allow me and myteammates to win.

Upsets happen every day.Having said that, I don’t have

a good feeling about SouthernIllinois University at theMissouri Valley Conferencetournament this weekend.

I was optimistic about theSalukis entering MissouriValley Conference play. I reallydidn’t think this team would beplaying on Thursday night.

At the time, there seemed tobe several reasons foroptimism.

First, the team had madesome improvements in keyareas. Shot selection wasatrocious the previous twoseasons. The Salukis actuallyseemed to understand time andsituation this year.

Second, the team seemed tohave recovered its spine. Theyactually showed a bit ofresiliency at times.

Third, Mamadou Seck andJack Crowder had becomeimportant contributors. Seck,or course, was the mostpleasant surprise. He showedearly on that he was goodenough to carry the team attimes.

Crowder, a non-factor lastyear, gave the team an elementof toughness that had beensorely lacking. In addition,early in the year he was deadlyfrom 3-point range.

Finally, Carlton Fay did whatgood seniors always do, heelevated his game.

All those factors led me tobelieve that this team wascapable of finishing in fifth,maybe sixth place, avoiding theThursday night stigma.

Unfortunately, the bus wentoff the cliff and team chaosappeared.

To be brutally honest, thelast two months have beenugly. The inconsistency in bothcaliber and intensity of playhas been staggering at times.

It was rare for this team to beconsistent through a half,much less an entire game.

Coach Chris Lowery and hisstaff were never able to groomanyone to assume a leadershipposition on the floor. Therewasn’t anyone on the teamwilling, or capable, of takingcharge at a critical juncture ofthe game.

In most cases the point guardis that player. However, thepoint position remainedunsettled the entire season.

Second, players simplydidn’t, or weren’t developed,as I anticipated.

Gene Teague’s demise hasbeen a disappointment. Aftershowing flashes of brilliancelast year, he’s virtuallydisappeared.

John Freeman appeared to bemaking strides at the end oflast season. While Freeman be-came a steady contributor, hedidn’t become a game changer.

I certainly didn’t anticipateJustin Bocot’s drop-off inproduction. Bocot was streakyearly in the year, and thenbattled injuries through theconference season. He isplaying well again, but it hasbeen too little, too late.

To say the fans are angry isan understatement. Playersand coaches were booed duringgames this season, somethingthat hasn’t happened fordecades.

Fans are calling, vocally, for acoaching change.

I don’t know what willhappen on the coachingfront, but even an optimistlike me can foresee noimmediate happy ending tothis situation.

LES WINKELER is the sportseditor for The SouthernIllinoisan. Contact him atles.winkeler@thesouthern.com,or call 618-351-5088.

2C THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011 2011 MVC TOURNAMENT www.thesouthern.com

LES WINKELER

OffTarget

There’s nohappy endingin sight at SIU

One last shotBY TODD HEFFERMANTHE SOUTHERN

Southern IllinoisUniversity was ajumping off point

for Illinois State’s men’sbasketball team earlier thisseason.

The Redbirds, mired inan eight-game losingstreak, the longest sincedropping nine in a row in2002-03, earned their firstMissouri ValleyConference win of theseason against the Salukison Jan. 23 in Normal.Illinois State (12-18, 4-14MVC) went on to post itsfirst three-game winningstreak since lateNovember, toppingBradley and Drake inovertime a week later.

Tonight, in the openinground of the State FarmMVC tournament in St.Louis, SIU (12-18, 5-13MVC) tries to plant itspivot foot into theRedbirds beginning at6:05 p.m. The Salukishave dropped nine of theirlast 11 and their last fourValley games, but turntheir attention to their last“new” season of theseason with high hopesand little to lose.

“As a player, we have totake it like a new season,”SIU forward MamadouSeck said. “What we did,nobody’s happy about it.The coaches, the players,fans, everybody. I think wehave another chance toprove that, at least, we cando something. I just feellike it’s a chance for theteam to prove that they’rebetter than what they’veshown.”

Many expect SIU to slideout of the bracket asquickly as they appeartonight. The Salukis havedone just that the lastthree seasons, and entertonight’s tournamentopener all but assured oftheir second losing recordin the last three years.Center Gene Teague is stilldealing with what coachChris Lowery calls“personal issues” and isnot expected to even bewith the team.

Guard Jack Crowder isexpected back afterattending a family funeralearlier this week, buthasn’t practiced foralmost a week.

Picked to finish ninth inthe preseason poll, SIUdropped five straightgames between Jan. 23-Feb. 5, four of them to thebottom half of the league,to nearly get there. Thedefense that was hoveringaround the 62 points-per-game line split its pants inearly February, opening upfor 69 or more five of eightgames. A good reboundingteam most of the season,SIU got out-boarded ninestraight times to end theregular season.

But, SIU can claim oneof the two best startingfrontcourts, and havewitnessed the rise ofguards Justin Bocot andDiamond Taylor. CarltonFay, the team’s activescoring leader with 1,156points, put up a season-high 33 points againstIllinois State Jan. 9 in afour-point Saluki victory.Seck, the Valley’s leadingrebounder at eight pergame, made the MVC All-Newcomer Team andleads SIU with six double-doubles.

“Now it’s just who’splaying the best right now,and, you know, if wecome, we’re playing thebest, we can get somewins and, maybe, shake afew things up,” said Fay,who hopes to avoid beingthe first four-year Salukinot to play in the NCAAtournament since 2001. “Ithink we’re going in therewith a little bit moreconfidence knowing thatwe can play with the bestteams in this league.”

Bocot scored a season-high 24 points off thebench in SIU’s 75-60 loss

at IndianaStateSaturday.Taylor, a6-foot-4redshirtfreshman,has made6-of-10from behindthe arc in hislast threegames and isexpected tostart hiseighthstraightgame

tonight.SIU handed second seed

Wichita State one of itsfour Valley losses thisseason and managed tobeat two-time defendingchampion Northern Iowa57-55 on New Year’s Day atSIU Arena. Against the tophalf of the leaguestandings, the Salukis are2-8. Against the bottomhalf, they’re 3-5.

“That’s the, kinda,ironic thing about us,”Lowery said. “We playedmuch better against thetop half of the division,and extremely pooragainst the lower half.There is absolutely noexplanation for that, but,it is what it is, and that’swhat we created it, andmade our bed. We have tolive in it. Going forward,this is a one-and-donedeal, and that’s how we’reapproaching it.”

No team seeded lowerthan fifth has ever won thetournament, or even wonmore than two games.Bradley, a No. 7 seed in1998, beat 10th-seededDrake and then toppledsecond-seeded Creightonbefore falling to MissouriState in the semifinals. Allin all, teams from theplay-in round are acombined 1-28 all-time atthe Valley tournamentafter the first round.

SIU knows it needs Fayto play big to have achance. The Salukis are3-7 when the 6-8 seniorforward doesn’t score atleast 10 points, and Fayhas produced nearly halfof SIU’s points thisseason against IllinoisState. In two games, hehas scored 48 of SIU’s 118points.

Illinois State knows itneeds a big performancefrom seniors like AustinHill and Tony Lewis. Hill,the Redbirds’ leadingscorer and a SoutheasternIllinois College transfer,has averaged 12.4 pointsper game and shot 50.5percent from the field inhis last 12 games. Lewis,who tied for the game highwith eight rebounds and 15points against SIU Jan. 23,had led the Redbirds offthe glass 18 times thisseason.

“I hope he continues toplay like a senior,”Redbirds coach TimJankovich said. “It’sdifferent for the seniors,because they see thatclock on the wall, and theurgency really sets in, andI have seen that in Tony.Tony is always a guy thatplays with a lot of energyand passion. That wouldbe a very critical asset forus.”

Etc.: SIU is 4-3 againstIllinois State at thetournament. … A loss willsend SIU to 12-19, itsworst mark since going11-18 in 1995-96. It wouldbe the most losses by theSalukis since they dropped20 in coach Rich Herrin’sfirst season in 1985-86.Herrin’s club went 8-20.He went on to a Hall ofFame career. … Four teamsin the last four seasonshave won their conferencetournament in a four orfive-day span. Houstonwon last season’sConference USAtournament, andPittsburgh, Georgia andCoppin State won theirleague tournaments in2008.

todd.hefferman@thesouthern.com 618-351-5087

Salukis try to salvage downseason at MVC tournament

Lowery

Seck

STEVE JAHNKE / THE SOUTHERNSIU’s Carlton Fay shows his disappointment as he pumps his fist in the air aftergetting called for a foul against Wisconsin-Green Bay earlier this season.

Fay hopes Valley tournament is not his final hoops hurrah

Carlton Fayby the numbers

119 Career3-pointers

395 Careerfield goals

2 Game-winning shotsthis season

21 Games in doublefigures this season

Fay

NO. 9 ILLINOIS STATE VS. NO. 8 SIUWhere: Scottrade Center (21,472), St. LouisWhen: 6:05 p.m. tonightCoaches: Tim Jankovich (83-49 at ILS, 186-120 overall); Chris Lowery (136-92

at SIU, 136-92 overall)Records: ILS is 12-18, 4-14 MVC; SIU is 12-18, 5-12 MVCSeries: SIU leads 73-65, split 1-1 this seasonTV: MVC-TV (Dan McGlaughlin, Rich Zvosec), Mediacom in Carbondale (Ch. 22

or 85), Fox Sports Indiana, Fox Sports Kansas City (outside St. Louis Bluesviewing area), DirecTV Ch. 657, Dish Network Ch. 448, AT&T U-Verse Ch. 694

Radio: Saluki Radio Network (WVZA 105.1 FM, WRXX 95.3 FM, WRUL 97.3 FM,KYRX 97.3 FM, WEBQ 102.3 FM, WMOK 920 AM, WHCO 1230 AM, KSLG 1380AM, Mike Reis, Greg Starrick), WXOS 101 FM in St. Louis area (HarrySchroeder, Kevin Paulus)

Tickets: Available, $10-$32 single session, $110-$150 all-sessionInternet Audio/Video: www.siusalukis.com (Game Central, $4.95 audio)On thesouthern.com:

Check out our website for live scoring, a live blog and the halftime updateCheck out the Dawg Blog (www.thesouthern.com/dawgblog) for pre-game

and post-game analysis

MVC Titles By TeamCreighton — 10Southern Illinois — 5Illinois State — 4Tulsa — 4Northern Iowa — 3Bradley — 2Indiana State — 2Wichita State — 2Drake — 1Missouri State — 1

Records By SeedNo. 1 — 67-21No. 2 — 61-21No. 3 — 51-28No. 4 — 28-33No. 5 — 22-33No. 6 — 4-34No. 7 — 11-34No. 8 — 5-32No. 9 — 11-16No. 10 — 6-14

Tournament Facts1-Point Games In Tournament History: 172-Point Games In Tournament History: 203-Point Games In Tournament History: 22Overtime Games In Tournament History: 13Record of home teams: 63-13Record of home teams in first round: 37-6Record of home teams in semifinals: 17-4Record of home teams in finals: 9-3Most points in one game, team: 110, Tulsa vs. Indiana State

3/6/1984Most points in one game, team, in a half: 66, Tulsa vs.

Creighton 3/2/1982 (second half)Most field goals in one game, team: 46, Tulsa vs. Indiana

State, 3/8/1983Most field goal attempts in one game, team: 91, West

Texas State vs. New Mexico State 3/8/1983Most rebounds in one game, team: 55, New Mexico State

vs. Drake 3/1/1978Most assists in one game, team: 33, Tulsa vs. Indiana State

3/8/1983; Wichita State vs. Drake 3/5/1981Most 3-pointers in one game, team: 15, Drake vs.

Evansville 3/1/2007Most points in one game, player: 41, Hersey Hawkins,

Bradley, vs. Indiana State 3/5/1988Most field goals in one game, player: 16, Herbert Johnson,

Tulsa, vs. Indiana State 3/8/1983Most rebounds in one game, player: 21, Xavier McDaniel,

Wichita State, vs. Southern Illinois 3/5/1985Most assists in one game, player: 20, Willie Scott, Bradley,

vs. Indiana State 3/2/1982Most 3-pointers in one game, player: 8, Kai Nurnburger,

Southern Illinois, vs. Creighton 3/7/1989; Chad Adkins,Indiana State, vs. Missouri State 2/27/1999; Brandon Mells,Southern Illinois, vs. Evansville 3/4/2000; Jason Holsinger,Evansville, vs. Drake 3/1/2007

MVC Tournament Most Oustanding Players1986 — Brian Rahilly, Tulsa1988 — Hersey Hawkins, Bradley1989 — Chad Gallagher, Creighton1990 — Rickey Jackson, Illinois State1991 — Bob Harstad, Creighton1992 — Jackie Crawford, Missouri State1993 — Ashraf Amaya, Southern Illinois1994 — Cam Johnson, Northern Iowa1995 — Chris Carr, Southern Illinois1996 — Shea Seals, Tulsa1997 — Rico Hill, Illinois State1998 — Dan Muller, Illinois State1999 — Rodney Buford, Creighton2000 — Ryan Sears, Creighton2001 — Michael Menser, Indiana State2002 — Kyle Korver, Creighton2003 — Kyle Korver, Creighton2004 — Ben Jacobson, Northern Iowa2005 — Johnny Mathies, Creighton2006 — Randal Falker, Southern Illinois2007 — Nate Funk, Creighton2008 — Adam Emmenecker, Drake2009 — Osiris Eldridge, Illinois State2010 — Kwadzo Ahelegbe, Northern Iowa

THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011 7C2011 MVC TOURNAMENTwww.thesouthern.com

TOURNAMENT INFORMATION

Year By Year MVC Tournament ChampionsYear Champion Runner-Up Score1977 Southern Illinois W. Texas State 82-691978 Creighton Indiana State 54-521979 Indiana State N. Mexico State 69-591980 Bradley W. Texas State 62-591981 Creighton Wichita State 70-641982 Tulsa Illinois State 90-771983 Illinois State Tulsa 84-641984 Tulsa Creighton 70-68 (OT)1985 Wichita State Tulsa 84-821986 Tulsa Bradley 74-581987 Wichita State Tulsa 79-74 (OT)1988 Bradley Illinois State 83-591989 Creighton Southern Illinois 79-771990 Illinois State Southern Illinois 81-781991 Creighton Missouri State 68-521992 Missouri State Tulsa 71-681993 Southern Illinois Illinois State 70-591994 Southern Illinois Northern Iowa 77-741995 Southern Illinois Tulsa 77-621996 Tulsa Bradley 60-461997 Illinois State Missouri State 75-721998 Illinois State Missouri State 84-741999 Creighton Evansville 70-612000 Creighton Missouri State 57-452001 Indiana State Bradley 69-632002 Creighton Southern Illinois 84-762003 Creighton Southern Illinois 80-562004 Northern Iowa Missouri State 79-74 (2OT)2005 Creighton Missouri State 75-572006 Southern Illinois Bradley 59-462007 Creighton Southern Illinois 67-612008 Drake Illinois State 79-492009 Northern Iowa Illinois State 60-57 (OT)2010 Northern Iowa Wichita State 67-52

MVC Tournament Titles By SeedNo. 1 — 13 (Last: Northern Iowa, 2010)No. 2 — 13 (Last: Creighton, 2007)No. 3 — 6 (Last: Creighton, 2006)No. 4 — 1 (Creighton, 2000)No. 5 — 1 (Indiana State, 2001)

STEVE JAHNKE / THE SOUTHERNSIU’s Mamadou Seck takes the ball to the basket against Indiana State’sDwayne Latham earlier this season at SIU Arena.

BY TODD HEFFERMANTHE SOUTHERN

No Adam Koch. NoLucas O’Rear. Sameapproach for NorthernIowa, which has capturedthe last two State FarmMissouri Valley Confer-ence tournaments.

“We’re approaching itthe same way we have thelast two years. Theyunderstand the obviousdifferences, going downthe last two season as theNo. 1 seed and going downthis year as the four seed,”UNI coach Ben Jacobsonsaid. “Other than that,we’re approaching it thesame way. No. 1, be pre-pared. No. 2, the mindsetthat we’re going downthere to play as hard as wecan for as long as we can.”

UNI (19-12, 10-8 MVC)played longer than anyother Valley team last sea-son, reaching the EliteEight of the NCAA tourna-ment and earning thenation’s admiration for anupset of top-seededKansas along the way. Thisseason, without Valleyplayer of the year Koch andO’Rear, the Panthers werepicked third and finishedfourth.

O’Rear, a senior forwardwho helped UNI go 17-6this season, fractured hisankle at the end of thePanthers’ 53-51 victoryover Illinois State onFeb. 2. Without the 6-foot-6 power forward,UNI has struggled to findan adequate frontlinereplacement and slipped inthree straight gamesentering its opener againstfifth-seeded Creighton(18-13, 10-8 MVC) onFriday night. UNI is 2-6without O’Rear, but stillhas one of the best closersin the league in seniorpoint guard KwadzoAhelegbe.

Ahelegbe, the tourna-ment’s most outstandingplayer last year, climbed towithin three points oftying Cam Johnson forninth place in scoring atUNI. With a win againstthe Bluejays, Ahelegbe willtie Koch for the all-timegames played record, andis probably one of the rea-sons many are looking atthe Panthers as a possiblestumbling block to theanticipated MissouriState-Wichita Staterematch in the champi-onship game.

The Bears (23-7) andShockers (23-7) earned thetournament’s top twoseeds. Like the Panthers,they also have experiencedpoint guards at the helm.

“His experience, I think,is probably the key when itcomes to this weekend,”Jacobson said. “To have aguy that’s not only playedin the tour a couple times

and had a big role, butplayed well down there.For our basketball team, tohave a senior that’s playedwell in St. Louis andhelped us win a lot ofgames over the year, I thinkthat really helps.”

Creighton is the onlyValley team the Panthershave never beaten at thetournament. They metonly one time before thisweekend, when theBluejays beat UNI, 80-65,in 2002.

Missouri State awaits thewinner of tonight’smatchup between No. 8Southern IllinoisUniversity (12-18) and No.9 Illinois State (12-18) inFriday’s first game. TheBears swept both teamsduring the regular season.Wichita State will playeither No. 7 Drake (13-17)or No. 10 Bradley (11-19)Friday at about 6:05 p.m.at Scottrade Center in St.Louis. The Shockers wontheir four games againstthose two teams all bymore than 10 points.

Third-seeded IndianaState (17-13) hopes to avoida season-sweep by sixth-seeded Evansville (15-14)in the other quarterfinalFriday. The Purple Acesbeat the Sycamores by fivein Evansville and by threeat Hulman Center in TerreHaute, Ind.

No team seeded lowerthan fifth has ever won theMVC tournament, butDrake coach Mark Phelpstried to keep the faith forhis Bulldogs. In fact, 17teams across the nationhave managed to win atournament over four orfive days, including four inthe last four years.

“Certainly 7-10 havetheir work cut out forthem, more then 1-6, hav-ing to play an extra game,but if you come out andplay with a lot of energyand effort, and start mak-ing shots, I don’t thinkthere’s a team 1-10 thatcan’t get it done,” Phelpssaid.

Etc.: The league willhonor its millionth fan thisweekend at the tourna-ment with a prize packagethat will include lifetimetournament tickets fortwo, a hotel package for the2012 tournament, and,possibly, a jersey presenta-tion at one of the games. …UNI is going for its thirdstraight tournament title.SIU (1993-95) is the onlyprogram to ever win threestraight Valley tournamenttitles. … The worst seed tobe at the tournament? No.6. Sixth seeds are 4-34 all-time at the event (an 11.8percent winning percent-age), 2-20 since it moved toSt. Louis in 1991.

todd.hefferman@thesouthern.com618-351-5087

8C THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011 2011 MVC TOURNAMENT www.thesouthern.com

Missouri State Bears

Coach: Cuonzo Martin(58-39 at MSU, 58-39overall, third season)

Record: 23-7, 15-3 MVC(first place)

Leading scorers: KyleWeems 16.3 ppg., Will Creekmore 12 ppg., Jermaine Mallett11.3 ppg.

Leading rebounders: Kyle Weems 7 rpg., Will Creekmore6.5 rpg., Jermaine Mallett 5.6 rpg.

Last season: 24-12, 8-10 MVC; won CollegeInsider.comtournament

Tournament history: 24-19, champions in 1992Outlook: The Bears won their first regular-season MVC

title with a home win over No. 2 seed Wichita State, andenter St. Louis as the favorites. Missouri State has all theparts — a closer in Weems, good size in the 6-9 Creekmoreand two centers off the bench, and great defensivetoughness. Now MSU just has to put it together for threegames in three days. Look for the Bears to reach the titlegame and build off a potentially big following at theScottrade Center.

EvansvillePurple Aces

Coach: Marty Simmons(50-70 at UE, 148-143overall, 10th season)

Record: 15-14, 9-9 MVC (sixth place)Leading scorers: Colt Ryan 15.8 ppg., Kenny Harris

8.4 rpg.Leading rebounders: Kenny Harris 6.3 rpg., Colt Ryan

3.3 rpg.Last season: 9-21, 3-15 MVCTournament history: 4-16, no titlesOutlook: The only team never to win the MVC

tournament title will have to do something it hasn’t doneall season to win this year’s crown: Put together threestraight wins in three straight days. The Purple Aceswon four straight earlier this season, but just ended afour-game skid with a 73-67 home win over Illinois State.Ryan has a tendency to go off, and can make it fromalmost anywhere on the court, but UE needs somemore, offensively, to go with him to stay in St. Louis pasttonight.

Wichita StateShockers

Coach: Gregg Marshall(76-54 at WSU, 270-137overall, 13th season)

Record: 23-7, 14-4 MVC(second place)

Leading scorers: J.T. Durley 11.3 ppg., David Kyles10 ppg., Toure’ Murry 9.7 ppg.

Leading rebounders: Gabe Blair 6.2 rpg., J.T. Durley5.1 rpg., Toure’ Murry 5 rpg.

Last season: 25-10, 12-6 MVC; lost in first round of NITTournament history: 23-29, champions in 1987 and

1985Outlook: The Shockers played their best away from Koch

Arena, going 8-1 in Valley play. WSU had the second-bestscoring defense in the league, is about as long and athleticas you get at the mid-major level, and is the deepest teamin the league. The Shockers play 10 guys more than 10minutes per game. WSU has four great seniors and threetremendous juniors, and should challenge for the title. Lookfor a WSU-MSU rematch Sunday in the title game.

Indiana StateSycamores

Coach: Greg Lansing(17-13 at INS, 17-13 overall,first season)

Record: 17-13, 12-6 MVC(third place)

Leading scorers: Dwayne Lathan 11.6 ppg., Carl Richard10.3 ppg., Jake Kelly 9.3 ppg., Jake Odum 9.1 ppg.

Leading rebounders: Carl Richard 6.8 rpg., Myles Walker5.4 rpg., Dwayne Lathan 4.9 rpg.

Last season: 17-15, 9-9 MVC; lost in first round of CollegeBasketball Invitational

Tournament history: 18-28, champions in 2001 and 1979Outlook: Indiana State may be the sleeper of the

tournament, along with Northern Iowa and Creighton,because of the expected return of guard Jake Kelly, who hasmissed 12 games this season. The Sycamores have won fiveof their last six, have great guard play with Lathan, Kelly andOdum, and led the Valley in field-goal percentage defense(41 percent).

Northern IowaPanthers

Coach: Ben Jacobson(108-55 at UNI, 108-55overall, fifth season)

Record: 19-12, 10-8 MVC(fourth place)

Leading scorers: Kwadzo Ahelegbe 14 ppg., AnthonyJames 12.6 ppg., Adam Koch 9.8 ppg., Johnny Moran9.6 ppg.

Leading rebounders: Adam Koch 5.1 rpg., Johnny Moran3.3 rpg., Anthony James 3.3 rpg.

Last season: 30-5, 15-3 MVC; reached Sweet 16 of NCAAtournament

Tournament history: 16-15, champions in 2010, 2009 and2004

Outlook: It’s a little different speed for the two-timedefending tournament champs, but if Ahelegbe and Jamescan score as well as they have, and the Panthers can find away to rebound with the best teams in the league, UNI maybe back in the title game again as the third seed. UNI stillplays great defense (60.6 points per game allowed thisseason), has a great closer in Ahelegbe, and a provenwinner in coach Jacobson.

Drake BulldogsCoach: Mark Phelps

(44-52 at DU, 44-52 overall,third season)

Record: 13-17, 7-11 MVC(seventh place)

Leading scorers:Rayvonte Rice 13.8 ppg.,Ryan Wedel 10.9 ppg., SethVanDeest 8.9 ppg.

Leading rebounders: RayvonteRice 4.8 rpg., Jordan Clarke 4.7 rpg., Seth VanDeest 4.5 rpg.

Last season: 14-19, 7-11 MVCTournament history: 15-31, champions in 2008Outlook: Drake hasn’t won four straight games all

season, and now has to turn around to face a team thatjust beat the Bulldogs by 26 points in their opening gameof the tournament (Bradley). Drake has pretty goodleadership from Wedel, a terrific perimeter scorer, but stillappears to be a year away from challenging for the leaguetitle. Watch the game simply to see Rice, if nothing else.The All-Freshman Team member leads the Bulldogs inscoring, rebounding, steals and is tied for the blocks leadwith 22.

SouthernIllinois Salukis

Coach: Chris Lowery(136-92 at SIU, 136-92overall, seventh season)

Record: 12-18, 5-13 MVC (eighth place)Leading scorers: Carlton Fay 13.3 ppg., Mamadou Seck

10.7 ppg.Leading rebounders: Mamadou Seck 8 rpg., Carlton Fay

4 rpg.Last season: 15-15, 6-12 MVCTournament history: 31-26, champions in 2006, 1995,

1994, 1993 and 1977Outlook: SIU has played some of its best stretches of

the season against Wichita State and Missouri State, butwill have to find a way to put four games together in fourdays to avoid missing the postseason for the thirdstraight season. Lowery is facing some heat with hissecond losing season in the last three years if he’s unableto lead the Salukis to the title. Seck and Fay will show up.SIU needs Justin Bocot, Kendal Brown-Surles or DiamondTaylor to play the best they have all season to have achance.

Illinois StateRedbirds

Coach: Tim Jankovich(83-49 at ILS, 136-106overall, eighth season)

Record: 12-18, 4-14 MVC (ninth place)Leading scorers: Austin Hill 10.5 ppg., Jackie Carmichael

9.9 ppg.Leading rebounders: Tony Lewis 6.5 rpg., Jackie

Carmichael 5.4 rpg.Last season: 22-11, 11-7 MVC; lost in first round of NITTournament history: 35-25, champions in 1998, 1997,

1990 and 1983Outlook: Like SIU, Illinois State has struggled of late,

dropping seven of its last eight. The Redbirds havestruggled to find a second consistent scorer to go with Hill,who has scored a combined 80 points in his last five games.Illinois State does match up well with SIU, however, which iswhy the Redbirds could find their way to Friday. Lewis hasbeen a beast off the boards against SIU, and if the Redbirdsshot it better (they have made a league-worst 42.4 percenton the season), they’d potentially be pretty dangerous withtheir athleticism.

BradleyBraves

Coach: Jim Les (153-139at BU, 153-139 overall, ninthseason)

Record: 11-19, 4-14 MVC(10th place)

Leading scorers: Andrew Warren 19 ppg.,Dodie Dunson 10.4 ppg., Dyricus Simms-Edwards10.2 ppg.

Leading rebounders: Jordan Prosser 5.5 rpg., AndrewWarren 5.5 rpg., Will Egolf 4.2 rpg.

Last season: 16-15, 9-9 MVCTournament history: 28-29, champions in 1988 and

1980Outlook: If Bradley can re-ignite its spirits from its final

home game of the season, Drake may be in for some troubletonight in St. Louis. The Braves scored a season-high 90points, led by a career-high 33 from Warren. Bradley hashad great guard play this season with Warren and Simms-Edwards, but needs more of a threat from Prosser and Egolfdown low to be a factor at the tournament. Seniors arealways the last to give up, and Warren won’t let BU go downeasily.

CreightonBluejays

Coach: Greg McDermott(18-13 at CU, 298-208overall, 17th season)

Record: 18-13, 10-8 MVC(fifth place)

Leading scorers: Doug McDermott 14.3 ppg., AntoineYoung 13.6 ppg., Gregory Echenique 13.2 ppg.

Leading rebounders: Doug McDermott 7.6 rpg., GregoryEchenique 5.7 rpg., Kenny Lawson Jr. 5.5 rpg.

Last season: 18-16, 10-8 MVC; reached third round ofCollege Invitational Tournament

Tournament history: 36-19, champions in 2007, 2003,2002, 2000, 1999, 1991, 1989, 1981 and 1978

Outlook: When you have the preseason player of the yearcoming off the bench, you know you’ve got some depth.Doug McDermott, the coach’s son, has been tremendouslyconsistent for a true freshman, and gives the Bluejays atough, smart and talented forward. Young has won gamesin the final seconds and led the league in assists.Creighton’s defense has been inconsistent at times, but theBluejays should be able to score enough to challenge for thetitle.

TEAM CAPSULES

ALAN ROGERS / THE SOUTHERNUNI’s Lucas O’Rear is guarded by SIU’s Davante Drinkardearlier this season at SIU Arena in Carbondale.

Northern Iowacomes limping into St. Louis