Southern Illinois University
22-11
West Virginia
21-10
Men's Basketball eliminated by West Virginia in NCAA Tournament
03/17/2006 | 12:00:00 | Men's Basketball
March 17, 2006
By Tom Weber
www.SIUSalukis.com
Box Score | Photo Gallery | Postgame Podcast
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Score one for the big boys.
In a matchup between the Big East and Missouri Valley conferences, West Virginia rained down a hailstorm of 3-pointers to beat Southern Illinois, 64-46, Friday at The Palace.
The Mountaineers (21-10) buried 11 shots from outside the arc, the most allowed by an SIU team in more than three years. The 18-point loss was the worst for Southern since Bruce Weber's team lost by 24 to Creighton in the MVC championship game in 2003.
Seven players made at least one 3-point basket for WVU, which attempted 32 of its 50 shots from downtown.
"I don't know if there is a better shooting team in the country," SIU head coach Chris Lowery said.
After the Salukis (22-11) jumped out to a 6-2 lead, the Mountaineers went on a 15-2 run that featured a trio of triples, including one by Kevin Pittsnogle, who finished with a game-high 18 points.
In yesterday's press conference, Saluki head coach Chris Lowery tried to downplay the importance of senior leadership -- his team has no seniors in its lineup.
But clearly, West Virginia had the edge in tournament moxie. The Mountaineers start four seniors from last year's Elite Eight squad. They seemed to grab every loose ball, every long rebound. They made big runs -- knocking down shots with or without a hand in their face.
"Their experience level far outreaches our tradition," said Lowery. "Yes, we have great tradition and we expect to win, but the difference was their tremendous experience over us."
Suprisingly, West Virginia was better than advertised on the defensive end, as well. The Mountaineers began the game in a man-to-man defense, but quickly switched to a mixture of zones.
They extended their zone pressure beyond the 3-point line, which puzzled Southern's guards.
"The way (the Mountaineers) play is unique," Lowery explained. "The 1-3-1 (zone) gives everybody problems. There is a reason why they made a deep run (last year), because people aren't used to seeing a 1-3-1."
The Salukis made a nice run of their own midway through the first half, cutting a nine-point deficit to three, 20-17, on a Jamaal Tatum 3-pointer with 8:48 left in the half. Tatum led SIU with a dozen points.
But West Virginia went on a 14-0 run in the next four-minutes that featured four 3-pointers.
"Our youth showed," Lowery said. "We really threw the ball around -- up top, back and forth --way too much, and we never got the ball down low. When we did, we either got a layup or a wide open shot.
"We chalked that up to experience. They see now, and that's hindsight. When you're young, you look back and say `wow, we could have taken advantage of these teams,' but in a one-and-done, you can't play them again next week."
Foul trouble reared its ugly head again for the Salukis. Forward Randal Falker, the MVP of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament, spent most of the first half on the bench with two fouls. He admitted after the game that he has lost 12 pounds since the beginning of the week from a bout with a stomach virus.
Many of the first-half fouls were blocking calls, in which a Saluki defender tried to take a charge.
"It deflated our defensive schemes and our kids kind of got attitudes," Lowery said. "We just lost our composure."
The Salukis trailed by a dozen at halftime, but traded baskets with the Mountaineers for the first 10 minutes of the second half. SIU trailed 47-37 with 10:10 to go, when WVU went on a 12-0 run to seal the victory.
"To get abused like that is good for them," Lowery said. "It's like big brother stuff. You get kicked around and then you go to college and grow up. That's how we have to look at it."
All five Saluki starters will be back in 2006-07. Rest assured, they won't forget this one.
