Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Southern Illinois-Connecticut Preview
03/20/2002 | 12:00:00 | Men's Basketball
March 20, 2002
GAME: No. 11 Southern Illinois (28-7) vs. No. 2 Connecticut (26-6).
REGIONAL: East, semifinals.
TIME: Friday, 7:38 p.m. EST.
SITE: Carrier Dome, Syracuse, N.Y.
Southern Illinois has already defeated two coaches who won national championships. To continue their surprising run in the NCAA tournament, the Salukis will have to get by a third.
The 11th-seeded Salukis try to reach the regional finals for the first time in school history when they face Jim Calhoun's second-seeded Connecticut Huskies in an East Regional matchup.
Southern Illinois (28-7) is in the round of 16 for the second time, the first since the tournament expanded to 64 teams. Missouri, No. 12 in the West, is the only lower seed remaining in the tournament.
The Salukis advanced by upsetting No. 6 Texas Tech and No. 3 Georgia in Chicago, knocking off three-time national champion Bobby Knight in their opener and 1995 champion Jim Harrick in the second round.
Now they get the surging Huskies, the 1999 national champions who are in the regional semifinals for the eighth time under Calhoun.
Connecticut (26-6) has won 11 straight after victories in its two games in Washington. Only Kent State, with 20 consecutive victories, has a longer active winning streak.
The Huskies beat Hampton and North Carolina State largely behind the play of star forward Caron Butler. After scoring 21 points in the first round, Butler carried UConn to a 77-74 victory over the Wolfpack on Sunday with a career-high 34 points, making all 12 free throws and grabbing nine rebounds.
"As far as a clutch performance at this time of the year, that's how you measure players," Calhoun said. "He made the most special plays at the most special time and got us to the Sweet Sixteen."
UConn is trying to reach the regional finals for the fifth time under Calhoun. The Huskies lost in that round in 1990, '95 and '98 before finally reaching the Final Four in 1999.
This year's path is similar to the one they traveled in 1998, when as the No. 2 seed in the East they won twice at the MCI Center before beating a No. 11 seed (Washington) in the regional semifinals.
Southern Illinois enjoyed somewhat of a homecourt advantage in the first two rounds, playing at the United Center in Chicago. The Salukis now have to move to Big East country for the game at the Carrier Dome, where UConn has played 21 times.
The Salukis, who have set a school record for wins in a season, also reached the round of 16 in 1977 when the tournament had 32 teams. Their best national success was in 1967, when future New York Knicks star Walt Frazier led them to the NIT championship.
Southern Illinois should have no fear of UConn. The Salukis have faced two other teams in this year's round of 16, beating Indiana and losing to Illinois by three points.
A victory Friday makes the Salukis the first Missouri Valley Conference team to reach the round of eight since Wichita State in 1981.
"We said we wanted to make the NCAA tournament, we wanted to win our conference and we wanted to go to the Sweet 16," said Jermaine Dearman, who scored a career-high 25 points against Georgia.
"We've reached all our previous team goals. Our new goal now is to beat UConn."
Both teams have flaws that could prove costly if the game is close. UConn is turnover-prone, committing 21 on Sunday and having a minus-1.4 margin for the season.
Southern Illinois struggles from the foul line. The Salukis were 14-for-26 against Georgia and shoot a dismal 62 percent as a team.
The winner advances to face top-seeded Maryland or No. 4 Kentucky on Sunday.
PROBABLE STARTERS: Southern Illinois - F Dearman (12.2 ppg, 7.7 rpg), C Rolan Roberts (13.5 ppg, 7.0 rpg), G Marcus Belcher (6.2 ppg, 2.2 rpg), G Stetson Hairston (7.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg), G Kent Williams (16.0 ppg, 2.6 rpg). Connecticut - F Butler (20.0 ppg, 7.7 rpg), F Johnnie Selvie (11.7 ppg, 6.1 rpg), C Emeka Okafor (7.9 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 4.3 bpg), G Taliek Brown (9.1 ppg, 3.3 rpg), G Tony Robertson (11.2 ppg, 2.3 rpg).
HOW THEY GOT HERE: Southern Illinois - At-large bid, Missouri Valley Conference, beat No. 6 Texas Tech 76-68, first round, beat No. 3 Georgia 77-75, second round. Connecticut - Automatic bid, Big East tournament champion, beat No. 15 Hampton 78-67, first round, beat No. 7 North Carolina State 77-74, second round.
ALL-TIME TOURNAMENT RECORD: Southern Illinois - 3-4, 5 years. Connecticut - 27-21, 23 years.
