SIU starts second half of league play at Drake

DES MOINES, Iowa - The SIU men's basketball team takes a four-game winning streak into Drake for a 5 p.m. game on Saturday. SIU has the longest active winning streak in the MVC, and the Bulldogs have won 15-straight home games, one of the 10 longest home court winning streaks in the nation.

SIU (12-10, 6-3 MVC) at Drake (15-7, 5-4 MVC)

Date and Time » 5 p.m. CT on Saturday, February 1 // Des Moines, Iowa
Watch » ESPN3 with Larry Morgan and Adam Emmenecker
Listen » Saluki Sports Network with Mike Reis and Mike Trude
Live Stats » Sidearm Stats
Social Media » @SIU_Basketball
Game Notes » SIU (PDF) | Drake

OPENING TIP

The SIU men's basketball team takes a four-game winning streak to Drake, where the Bulldogs have won 15-straight home games. Tipoff is at 5 p.m. on Saturday, February 1.
SIU has won four-straight MVC games, the longest active winning streak in the MVC. The streak started with a 66-49 win over Drake on January 19 at Banterra Center. During SIU's four-game winning streak, the Salukis have beaten three teams in the top half of the league standings after the first half of MVC play: UNI (7-2), Loyola (6-3), and Drake (5-4).
Drake's 15-game home court winning streak is tied for the 10th-longest active home court winning streak in the nation. Drake's last loss at home was January 30, 2019.
In the last three years, Drake is 35-5 at home. SIU actually owns one of those wins, a 78-67 win in Des Moines on Jan. 30, 2018.
SIU is 10-1 at home this season but just 1-7 on the road. SIU's lone true road win came at Illinois State (Jan. 25).
SIU ranks 11th nationally (of 353) in scoring defense, allowing just 60.3 points per game. SIU also ranks top-50 nationally in fewest fouls per game (14th) and 3-point field goal percentage defense (38th). KenPom ranks SIU No. 2 in the MVC in adjusted defensive efficiency, behind Loyola.
Eric McGill scored a career-high 27 points on 9-of-11 shooting in SIU's 68-63 win over Loyola on Wednesday, marking the highest point total for an SIU player this season.
McGill's last five games averages: 16.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.2 steals, 53% FG and 41% 3FG. Loyola coach Porter Moser: "He looks All-League."
Marcus Domask is one of only six freshmen in the nation averaging 13 points, 5 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. He is the only freshman in the nation meeting those numbers and also shooting 50% or better from the field.
Domask leads all MVC freshmen in scoring and assists. He ranks second in rebounding, third in steals, and fifth in blocks.