Men's Basketball travels to Illinois State on Sunday

Jan. 4, 2014

CARBONDALE, Ill. - Southern Illinois (4-10, 0-1) plays it first conference road game of the season when it travels to Illinois State (7-6, 0-1) in a non-televised matchup on Sunday at 1 p.m. The Salukis hold a 75-68 lead in the all-time series between the schools, but the Redbirds have won the last three meetings, including a series sweep in 2013.

Southern Illinois (4-10, 0-1) at Illinois State (7-6, 0-1)
Date	Sunday, Jan. 5, 2014
Time	1:05 p.m. CT
Location	Redbird Arena, Normal, Ill. (10,200)
Radio	Saluki Sports Network
TV	None
Audio Stream	Saluki All-Access
Video Stream	Redbird All-Access
Game Notes	Southern Illinois
Live Stats	Gametracker
Social Media	@SIU_Basketball

Series versus Illinois State
Illinois State has won the last three meetings between the schools and nine of the last 13. SIU has a six-game losing streak at Redbird Arena, with the last win coming on Dec. 29, 2006. Four Salukis scored in double figures that day in a 68-49 win, led by Randal Falker's 10-point, 17-rebound and four-block performance.

The last meeting
On Feb. 2, 2013, Illinois State handed SIU an 83-47 defeat, the most-lopsided margin in the 143-game series between the schools and the fourth-worst loss in SIU history. The Salukis trailed by 12 points at halftime, but the bottom fell out midway through the second half. ISU ended the game on a 28-7 run. Head coach Barry Hinson was ejected in the final minute. The bright spot was the loss helped motivate the team to upset No. 24 Wichita State in its next game and proceed to win six of the last eight regular-season games.

Desmar Jackson closing on 1,600 points
G Desmar Jackson (6-5, 180, Sr.) has 1,560 career points (804 at Wyoming, 756 at Southern Illinois) and has scored more points in his college career than any active player in the league. A member of the seven-man MVC Preseason Team, he is the league's second-leading scorer and ranks 23rd in the nation (20.6 ppg).

Jackson in elite company
Jackson is one of only 10 players in the nation to average more than 20 points per game and shoot 49 percent or better from the field. He is a star on both ends of the court, ranking second in the MVC with 2.07 steals per game, which ranks him No. 49 nationally.

Desmar Jackson's 20+ point games
Desmar Jackson has already scored 20+ points seven times this season, matching the amount of times he did it last season. If he can reach the 20-point plateau once more, he'll be the first Saluki to do so eight times in a season since Kent Williams had 11 20-point games in the 2001-02 campaign.

Sean O'Brien coming off career high
F Sean O'Brien (6-6, 205, Fr.) scored a career-high 19 points on Thursday against Wichita State, besting his previous high of 11 points against San Diego. He averaged 9.3 points in Florida at the Gulf Coast Showcase, and was rewarded with a starting spot the last six games. O'Brien ranks 12th in the MVC in rebounding (4.9) this season.

Odds and Ends
The last Saluki team to start the season 4-10 was Rich Herrin's 1985-86 squad that got off to a 4-12 start...The Salukis are coming off their best 3-point shooting game of the season, having made 7-of-13 against the Shockers...SIU announced its 25-man, 4-coach All-Century team on the website SIUSalukis.com...In SIU's five road games (all losses) the team has shot .443 from the field and .288 from 3-point, whiile scoring 68.6 points per game. Conversely, at home SIU shoots .518 from the field, .338 from 3-point and scores 71.7 points per game...Hinson is 9-11 all-time against Illinois State, including 0-2 with the Salukis.