Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Men's Basketball Holds Awards Banquet
04/06/2004 | 12:00:00 | Men's Basketball
April 6, 2004
CARBONDALE
By Seth Whitehead
www.SIUSalukis.com -
The night belonged to the Salukis -- not to the uncertainty surrounding their head coach.
Matt Painter made sure of that Tuesday at the annual SIU men's basketball awards banquet.
Even though each and every one of the 500-plus Saluki fans in attendance were hoping for some indication of where Painter was leaning on the "Purdue situation," Painter devoted 100 percent of his attention at the banquet to celebrating his team's magical 25-5 season.
"Tonight is for our players," Painter told reporters in an impromtu press conference just before the festivities. "Tonight is about a team that went 25-5 and was ranked in the country for six weeks. I hope this type of attention doesn't deflect from that, because these guys deserve this night."
SIU won its third straight Missouri Valley Conference regular-season title this past year and earned a third straight at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. The Salukis also put together a 16-game winning streak and finished 17-1 in MVC play - accomplishments well worth celebrating no matter how anxious Saluki fans are about the program's future.
"People need to understand, what happened this year may never happen again," Painter said. "And that has nothing to do with me. It has to do with our players."
Behind the scenes, Painter did address the situation that's hit the region like a bad case of d?j? vu. Bruce Weber left SIU for Illinois just 11 months ago.
Painter confirmed he is "torn" between staying at SIU and taking a job as an assistant at Purdue that would lead to the head post at his alma mater in 2005-2006.
Painter said his decision probably would come within the next two days.
"It could happen in 12 hours or it could happen in 48 hours," Painter said. "I'm not really sure.
"Right now it's just a very tough decision. It's a decision I didn't know would be on my plate. It's just one of those things where you're torn."
One thing is for certain -- Painter would not mind going back to being an assistant.
"I feel more comfortable being an assistant coach anyway, to tell you the truth," Painter said. "My personality allows me to be that way. I don't look at myself as a head coach when I'm actually out there standing and being a head coach. I'm just trying to help our players, trying to help our team win and just trying to be a part of the program."
He acknowledged that both situations offer up plenty of pros and cons.
The appeal of coaching for his alma mater is obviously very attractive.
"You just don't think something like this will be on your plate ever, especially at my alma mater," Painter said. "Working with Gene Keady would be great. He's been like a father to me."
But that would mean leaving a Saluki team poised for another great season.
"I'm not into predicting things, but this team has got all the pieces together," Painter said. "And you guys are going to love these new guys -- I promise you."
Painter would be saying goodbye to a potential preseason top 25 team, not to mention a place that has become home since moving to the area six years ago.
Painter's wife is from Carterville, and the couple recently bought a house there. They also have a 9-year-old and are expecting a baby in four months.
But the toughest part of leaving might be saying goodbye to players that went through a coaching change just 11 months ago.
"I've discussed it with our players and told them I'm torn," Painter said. "I don't know what to do. They're the reason I'm torn."
"It's a dream for me to go back for Purdue. But it's also a dream for me to coach here. (They're) two very good programs. It's just a difficult situation...I keep finishing it that way.
"I'll go 15 minutes where I think I'll be at one place or the other, then I'll flip it around. I really don't have an answer for you at this point"
Though there wasn't a peep about the subject at the banquet, there was a noticeable apprehension hanging air.
Leave it to Sylvester Willis to lighten things up.
One of three seniors being recognized, Willis made sure his last hurrah as a Saluki was a memorable one, taking control of the microphone on several occasions.
On one occasion, Willis looked down the table at long-time SIU assistant Rodney Watson and quipped, "Coach Watson, you showed me the ropes. Now it's time for me to leave the ring, so I'm out!"
"I guess it was my last official appearance as a Saluki," Willis said. "So I just wanted to have fun with it. It's kind of one of those things where it's kind of sad, but it's also good to get back together and reflect on the season. It was fun times."
All three Saluki seniors - Willis, Bryan Turner and Brad Korn - came away with an individual honor.
Willis was awarded the Seymour Bryson Scholarship.
"Any award you can get is great," Willis said, "and just me knowing Dr. Bryson -- I can remember meeting him the summer before my freshman year --I respect him as a person so much. For me to get his award, it means that much more to me."
Turner won the Courage Award, as Painter praised the point guard's attitude and leadership on and off the court.
"Bryan gave up a lot of individual things to run the show and be a good teammate," Painter said.
Turner takes pride in the fact he can use these qualities away from the basketball court.
"You're not going to play basketball your whole life," Turner said. "If you keep faith in God and put God first, everything will fall into place. It's just how I carry myself every day. That means a whole lot, because off the basketball court I'm Bryan Turner the person. It means a whole lot that he's able to appreciate my courage."
Korn received the Most Improved Award after stepping into the starting lineup for the first time this season and finishing second on the team in scoring at just under 10 points a game.
"Brad didn't get a lot of minutes (early in his career) because Jermaine Dearman was a good player," Painter said. "He just needed an opportunity."
It's ironic that this group was receiving individual accolades, considering they've become more known for their winning ways and teamwork than big numbers.
Korn leaves SIU as the Salukis' all-time winningest player, while Willis will leave at No. 2 on that list. Turner went 49-11 in his two years in Carbondale.
"Maybe we didn't have all the individual accolades and score a lot of points," Willis said (even though he has requested a "500-point ball"). "But we did win. That's the bottom line. That was the main goal -- to go out there and win games -- and we accomplished that."
"The individual awards, they'll come and they'll go," Turner said. "But I think one of the things that stood out in coach's speech tonight is that you wake up every day a champion. I think I take that to heart the most. Not so many times in my past career was I able to say that. To be able to say I'm a champion means a whole lot."
To absolutely nobody's surprise, Darren Brooks took the Paul Lambert MVP Award and Harry Gallatin Rebounding Award. Brooks also won the Play Hard Award, while LaMar took the Mr. Hustle Award. Both players received standing ovations for their efforts this past season.
The biggest surprise of the night was redshirt freshman Tony Young winning the Lynn Holder Defensive Player of the Year award. Surprising, considering that Brooks was the MVC Defensive Player of the Year. But Young's teammates recognized the man who earned the nickname "the Secretary of Defense" -- a testament to just how strong SIU's defense was this year.
Watson pointed out what may have been Young's most impressive stat and key to getting the award- Young's hounding "D" forced opposing players to physically fall down in 10-straight games this year.
"You know when a guy's guarding full-court and he's smiling he's a little crazy," Watson said.
It is bittersweet that the many Saluki accomplishments this past year have directly led to Painter's possible departure. Painter's players made him a hot commodity.
"They give head coaches too much credit when the win and too much credit when they lose," Painter said. "I tried to do things I thought was best for our personnel and stay out of the limelight. Those guys won too many games, so I was stuck."
