Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Men's Basketball Receives Bid to NCAA Tournament
03/13/2005 | 12:00:00 | Men's Basketball
March 13, 2005
By Scott Mees
www.SIUSalukis.com
CARBONDALE, Ill. -- The Dawgs will be dancing on the big stage for the fourth year in a row.
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The Southern Illinois University men's basketball team was selected as a No. 7 seed - in the Chicago Regional - and will face the No. 10 seed, St. Mary's, on Friday at approximately 2 p.m. CT in Oklahoma City, Okla.
The seventh seed is the highest for SIU (26-7) in the school's history at the NCAA Tournament.
The scene was Mugsy McGuire's in
The coach admitted he was he relieved that the Salukis' selection came up near the beginning of the NCAA Selection Show broadcast. A season of hard work and non-basketball difficulties merged into a terrific seed and some national respect.
Gonzaga acquired a No. 3 seed, but it is debatable whether it is still considered a mid-major program. The Salukis have earned the admiration of the national media - as well as the NCAA Selection Committee - and will look to make the most of their No. 7 seed.
"It's safe to say that it doesn't happen hardly at all in the mid-major level," Lowery said. "We're just very happy to be back in the tournament and get a great seed."
St. Mary's (25-8), out of the West Coast Conference, spilt a pair of games with Gonzaga during the regular season. The Gaels also lost to Gonzaga in the championship game of the West Coast Conference Tournament.
The Gaels are led by guard Paul Marigney (6-3, Sr.) and forward Daniel Kickert (6-10, Jr.). Marigney averages 17 points-per-game, and Kickert scored just over 16 per game. Both players shoot well from downtown - Kickert shoots 48-percent and Marigney has a 44-percent clip.
"We know they're very good and they can shoot the basketball," Lowery said. "We don't know a whole lot about them, but as a mid-major, we watch each other, and we look and see who does a good job."
The Missouri Valley Conference Tournament loss is a distant memory for the Salukis, and Lowery said his team has moved on.
"It's frustrating, but we're very glad that the NCAA looked at our entire body of work," Lowery said. "We won 14 out of 16, and nine in a row, down the stretch.
"We want to win the conference tournament, but not doing that doesn't take anything away from what we've done all season."
Creighton (automatic bid) and
"Three teams in the NCAA Tournament, from this type of league, speaks volumes for the type of coaches that are also in this league," Lowery said. "Obviously, your heart goes out to
Many of the Salukis' players were thrilled about the selection and the seed, but it will be business as usual, this week, in preparing to win that first game.
"Thinking about who we were going to play, I just got goose bumps thinking about it," said forward LaMar Owen. "I've talked to family and things, and I think that they're going to make it. A lot of our fans will be able to get there, so it's just a great experience for all of us and we're just ready to be there."
One analyst on CBS picked the Salukis to go to the Sweet 16, and that type of exposure from the national media will help the school in the years to come.
"We're just trying to put
Darren Brooks (the MVC's top player on both sides of the ball) even broke out a smile after the announcement.
"It's hard to even speak on or find the feelings that we went through," Brooks said. "It's really special coming here as a 17-year-old. I couldn't imagine everything that was going to happen to me. I'm just excited, and hopefully, I can finish my career with a bang."
Many of the players were disappointed about the MVC Tournament because they really wanted to get that trophy for coach Lowery. Brooks expressed similar sentiments on his first-year head coach.
"He's a soldier," Brooks said. "He went through a lot of problems early on, even before the season started. He just fought his way through it. He just kept on pushing us, and we fought for him.
"He deserves all the credit that he gets."
SIU is a higher seed than its opponent and will likely be favored to win the opening-round affair with St. Mary's.
"We're not even looking at a favorite or an underdog, we just have to come in and play," said guard Jamaal Tatum. "It feels good because we've put in so much hard work toward this moment. In the same sense, we've got to look past all that hype and be ready to play St. Mary's."
It would have been extremely difficult to wipe the grin off of freshman Matt Shaw's face. The Centralia, Ill., native was all smiles after the Saluki selection was revealed on the big screen televisions.
"It's hard to explain," Shaw said. "It's just a very exciting time for the team, for the program, and for this community. I'm just ready to play the game."
