Southern Illinois University
24-6, 14-3MVC
Wichita St.
19-7, 12-5MVC
Men's Basketball Makes It a Four-Peat
02/26/2005 | 12:00:00 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 26, 2005
By Scott Mees
www.SIUSalukis.com
CARBONDALE, Ill. - They did it again. For the fourth year in a row, the Salukis won the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season title. It was especially gratifying for the team because it happened on Senior Day with the maroon-clad faithful looking on.
Darren Brooks scored 17 points, and played nearly the entire game, Saturday as the Southern Illinois University men's basketball team defeated Wichita State 65-55, in front of a sold-out SIU Arena crowd. It was the 36th straight MVC home victory for SIU.
The SIU (24-6, 14-3) players were engulfed in a sea of maroon as Saluki fans rushed the floor as the final buzzer sounded. The team cut down the nets, and the four seniors - Brooks, Stetson Hairston, Josh Warren and LaMar Owen -- had one hoop all to themselves. Brooks snipped the few remaining bits of the net off as Queen's "We Are the Champions" came out of the speakers.
"It felt really good just cutting those nets down and thinking about my four years here," Brooks said. "I had a lot of memories going through my head when I was out there."
The win was also a big deal for the first-year head coach, who is also a former standout point guard for the Salukis.
"It's very special," said SIU head coach Chris Lowery. "First of all, this is my alma mater, and I always want to see them win. That's the most important thing."
It was a fitting end to a terrific regular-season home schedule, in which the Salukis did not lose at SIU Arena.
"We may never see two guys (Brooks and Hairston) like that ever again," Lowery said.
Coach Lowery indicated how Brooks and Hairston put winning above everything else and always value team goals over personal stats. The coach also said the younger players really love and respect the seniors, and that it was an emotional day for everyone involved.
Even though the Salukis led by 13 points at the half, it was certainly going to be a fight to the finish.
In the second half, the Salukis led by seven points, 55-48, with just under four minutes remaining. Jamaal Tatum nailed a clutch jump shot as the shot clock was winding down. Owen sank a pair of free throws, and Tatum - running some time off the clock - drove toward the basket and drilled another big-time basket. SIU led 61-48, at this point, with 2:48 left in the game.
But, the Shockers (19-7, 12-5) were not about to quit. Kyle Wilson responded with a quick 3-pointer, and Randy Burns converted an old-fashioned 3-point play. The Saluki advantage had been trimmed to seven points, 61-54, with under two minutes to play.
Hairston made two key free throws with 1:18 left, and then the Saluki defense stepped up and put the swarm on the Shockers. The Salukis hounded Wichita State, and Burns forced up a mid-range jumper that Owen deflected. Tatum buried a couple more foul shots, and that was all she wrote.
A crowd favorite could never be defined easier than mentioning Owen's name. The Dawg Pound - the SIU student section - goes crazy whenever he is near their area.
"Coming to SIU, I didn't even know what I was getting myself into," Owen said. "The fans made me who I am today. I play for my fans and the team."
SIU shot 43-percent from the field and - as usual - extremely well from the free-throw line. The Salukis made 14-of-16 foul shots for an outstanding 87-percent clip. Southern also won the rebounding battle with 32 boards to just 27 for Wichita State.
The Shockers were atrocious from the charity stripe - especially in the first half - as they made only 52-percent of their free throws. They were 2-of-8 in the opening 20 minutes.
Wichita State shot well from the field in the first half (12-for-21), but committed 11 turnovers, which is why SIU led 40-27 at halftime.
In the first half, Brooks was simply the man - scoring 14 of his 17 points - and playing 19 out of 20 minutes.
Wichita State's Jamar Howard made one free throw to put the Shockers up 8-7 in the early going; but, SIU took action and went on a 9-0 run - which included 3-pointers from Brooks and Tony Young. The Salukis built a 16-8 lead and would not trail in the basketball game again.
SIU also went on a 12-0 run a few minutes later, and the team led by 14 points, 30-16, with five minutes left in the first half. During that stretch, Brooks scored five points, Hairston drained a 3-pointer, and Tatum added four - including a driving bank shot in the lane.
Tatum scored 16 points and grabbed five rebounds in the contest. The sophomore was also perfect from the free-throw line (6-of-6). Hairston added 10 points including 2-of-5 from downtown. The senior played the entire second half except for a few seconds - in the game's final minute - when Lowery took the four seniors out so the crowd could show its appreciation.
"This was the best one by far," Hairston said, in reference to the four championship teams he has played on. "Especially for coach Lowery in his first year, I had to get it for him."
Owen delivered some crucial baskets down the stretch and finished with six points, four rebounds and three steals. Warren tallied four points and three rebounds in 24 minutes of action.
"I feel like we are the best team in the conference, and we proved it by winning it again this year," Warren said. "Our year isn't over yet. We still want to go to St. Louis and win that tourney. We still want to go to the NCAA and do damage there."
Freshman Randal Falker scored two points - on a thunderous follow-up dunk - and had seven rebounds. Young played just 10 minutes in the game but scored six points on a pair of 3-pointers.
Wilson led the Shockers with 13 points, Howard added 11, and Burns contributed 10 points.
"To win four league championships with three different coaches is absolutely amazing," said Wichita State head coach Mark Turgeon. "Chris (Lowery) is on his way. Those players are pretty special."
Lowery addressed the fact that even though his team had a few rough stretches on the road, that the overall goal was accomplished - winning the MVC regular-season crown.
"It's a marathon, not a sprint, and we won the marathon," Lowery said.
The Salukis wrap up the regular season on Monday at Indiana State. The game is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m.
