Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Men's Basketball to Host Illinois State Saturday
01/03/2002 | 12:00:00 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 3, 2002
CARBONDALE, Ill. - Tickets for Saturday's game are still available at the athletic department ticket office, which is open from 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m., or by calling (618) 453-2000.
The game will be televised regionally on Fox Sports Net Midwest, Fox Sports Net Chicago and Metro Sports in Kansas City. Announcers for the game are Dan McLaughlin (play-by-play) and Scott Highmark (analyst).
Satellite Coordinates: Galaxy 3 TR4, Digital Slot A, Digital KU band, 9 Megahertz, 11771 Megahertz Horizontal
Complete Game Notes in PDF Format
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SIU Off to Best Start Since 1991-92 Season The Salukis' 11-2 start is the best since the 1991-92 team began the season 14-2. If Southern Illiois beats Illinois State Saturday, this year's team will be only the fourth team in school history since World War II to begin the season 12-2.
Front Court Tandem The inside tandem of Rolan Roberts (6-6, 250, Sr.) and Jermaine Dearman (6-8, 220, Jr.) have become a dangerous front court duo. Roberts is second on the team in scoring (13.5 ppg) and rebounding (7.8 rpg), and leads the team in blocks (2.6 bpg) and steals (1.5 spg). He also shoots a team-high 60.0 percent from the field. Dearman leads the team in rebounds (8.0 rpg) and is third in scoring (11.2).
Williams 19th in Career Scoring at SIU Junior guard Kent Williams is the 34th player in school history to reach the 1,000-point plateau. The team's leading scorer now ranks 19th in career scoring at SIU with 1,192 points.
The Series vs. Illinois State Southern Illinois leads the all-time series with Illinois State, 59-58. However, the Redbirds won both meetings between the schools last year. In fact, one or the other school has swept the season series each of the past six seasons. Season Sweep W-L 1995-96 SIU 2-0 1996-97 ISU 2-0 1997-98 ISU 3-0 1998-99 SIU 2-0 1999-00 SIU 2-0 2000-01 ISU 2-0
Dawg Bites Five players scored in double figures against Evansville...Williams had 22 points against UE, his sixth 20-point game of the season...Dearman has scored double figures in six straight games...In the last three games, Roberts has scored 61 points and grabbed 36 rebounds... The Salukis have held every opponent except Colorado State below 45 percent shooting...SIU has outrebounded its opponent by an average of 13.3 rpg in the last three games.
National Rankings The Salukis are currently 41st in the AP Poll and 32nd in the Coaches Poll. The only time SIU has been ranked was during a three-week span in late Nov./early Dec. in 1976. SIU rose as high as #18.
Defense Much Improved Southern Illinois' defense has improved dramatically since last year. Only one team, Colorado State, has shot better than 45 percent against Southern Illinois this season. SIU has held eight of its 13 opponents below 70 points this year. Last season, the Salukis held opponents below 70 points just 13 times in 30 games.
Freshmen Make Impact A pair of freshman guards, Darren Brooks and Stetson Hairston, have made a major impact so far this season. Brooks, a redshirt, is the team's top scorer off the bench (10.3 ppg) and fourth-leading scorer overall. He is also third in rebounds (4.5 rpg) Hairston has started every game and is fifth in scoring (6.2 ppg) and fourth in rebounding (4.0). He is also second in assists and is one of the top defenders on the team.
Block Party Last year, SIU averaged 2.3 blocks per game. This season, the Salukis are averaging 4.8 blocks per contest. Rolan Roberts leads the team with 34 blocks (2.6 bpg). Sylvester Willis adds 0.6 bpg.
Playing a Role Every player on the 15-man roster has a well-defined role to play this season. The Salukis have used only one starting lineup throughout the season, and virtually the same playing rotation in every game. Last year, Coach Weber experimented with five different variations on the starting lineup.
Redshirting Three players will likely redshirt this season. Expected to redshirt are sophomore center Josh Warren, freshman center Stefan Jabkiewicz and freshman guard Matt Miller.
