Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Southern Illinois University
22-5, 16-2
Illinois St.
7-20, 5-13
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southern Illinois | 32 | 46 | 78 |
| Illinois State | 30 | 32 | 62 |
Salukis Storm Past Illinois St.
03/03/2003 | 12:00:00 | Men's Basketball
March 3, 2003
NORMAL, Ill. (AP) - Darren Brooks had a team-high 20 points and nine rebounds as he led Southern Illinois to a 78-62 victory over Illinois State at Redbird Arena on Monday night.
Brooks shot 9-of-16 from the field and made five assists for the Salukis (22-5, 16-2 MVC), who sit atop the Missouri Valley Conference. He was helped by Kent Williams who scored 18 points and Jermaine Dearman who scored 17.
The Redbirds (7-20, 5-13 MVC) took a 9-8 lead early in the game, but a succession of turnovers led to a 8-0 run by Southern Illinois and put them ahead 16-9. Toward the end of the first half, Dearman hit two free throws to give Southern Illinois a five-point lead, but Gregg Alexander's 3-pointer put the Redbirds within two at 32-30 at halftime.
Andy Strandmark made both free throws in the first minute of the second half to tie the score at 32. But Brooks answered with a 3-pointer which prompted a 12-4 Saluki run and put Southern Illinois up 44-36 at the 16-minute mark. Illinois State would get no closer than six points.
Illinois State was led by Andy Strandmark with 22 points and Marcus Arnold who scored 12.
Southern Illinois finished the regular season in sole possession of first place, one game ahead of 19th-ranked Creighton. On Saturday at 12:05 p.m., the #1-seeded Salukis will play the winner of Friday's Drake-Illinois State game in the second round of the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament.
Bruce Weber Postgame Quotes
"We had a 10-point lead late in the first half, and Illinois State cut it to two. More than anything, it gave us a sense of urgency at halftime. We realized we had to play. The second half we got rythym offensively and made some shots. We got the ball inside and got some easy buckets, and we really D'd them up in the second half. We didn't give them anything."
"It's a heckuva acomplishment for our kids to go 16-2 in the league. We were not very good back in December, but we've made a lot of progress, and I think everybody has bought in. Now we're a pretty good team."
"We still have some unfinished business. Hopefully, we come to play at the conference tournament. There's a good chance we'll play these guys again Saturday, and I'm sure it won't be easy to play the same team twice in one week."
"I really believe (Kent Williams, Jermaine Dearman and Darren Brooks) should be on the all-conference team. Kent should be the Player of the Year. We won the league at 16-2 and nobody expected it. Not only should Kent be the MVP, but he and Kyle Korver should be co-MVP. They've been the top two players in the league the last two years, and they both deserve it."
"I didn't think (Brooks) could dunk, but he got two back-to-back. It didn't look very pretty, and our players laughed at it, but he got that thing down. Darren's explosion in the second half was very important."
"If we had lost this thing tonight, it would have crushed our chances at an at-large bid. Now, we're still hanging in there."
