Preview | Salukis Open MVC Slate Tuesday at Indiana State - Southern Illinois University Athletics

CARBONDALE, Ill. - Southern Illinois is set to open Missouri Valley Conference action Tuesday night on the road at Indiana State. Tip is set for 6 p.m. CT at Hulman Center on ESPN Plus.

WHERE TO WATCH AND LISTEN
• The game will be available nationally on ESPN Plus with Tom Ackerman (play-by-play) and Dan Muller (analyst) calling the action.
• The radio broadcast can be heard on the Saluki Radio Network, SIUSalukis.com/Listen, the Saluki Mobile App, and the Varsity Network App with Luke Martin (play-by-play) and Rodney Watson (analyst) on the call.

QUICK HITS
• Xavier Johnson has scored 18 or more in all five games this season. He is one double-digit scoring effort away from tying his longest stretch of six consecutive games scoring in double figures at George Mason in February of 2022.
• Five turnovers against New Mexico State were the lowest for the Saluki program since only having four turnovers on the road against Murray State last season in a 63-57 win for the Dawgs.
• SIU has been strong defensively allowing just 60 points per game, ranking second in the MVC.
• SIU assisted on 22 of 24 of its made field goals against New Mexico State. SIU already has two games with 22+ assists this year, which equals their total all of last season.

LAST TIME OUT
• SIU improved to 4-1 after a trip to Cancun, falling to #22 JMU and defeating New Mexico State.
• Four Salukis scored in double-digits against the Aggies led by Johnson with 18 points.
• Kennard Davis hit a career-high four 3-pointers in the win over NMSU.
• SIU hit the third-most threes in program history with 16 against New Mexico State, one shy of second place which happened last season at home against UNI.

THE MATCHUP
• Indiana State enters the matchup at 5-1 on the season and winners of four straight games. ISU has wins over Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, IUPUI and a sweep of Rice, Pepperdine and Toledo at the Ball Dawgs Classic in Las Vegas last week. The team is led by multiple scoring threats in transfer Isaiah Swope (18.3 ppg) and sophomore big man Robbie Avila (18.0 ppg). Ryan Conwell (15.0 ppg) and Jayson Kent (14.2 ppg) in double figures. As a team, the Sycamores are scoring at a clip of 89.2 points per game while holding opponents to 77.2 points per game.

THE SERIES
• Tuesday night's game in Terre Haute will mark the 144th meeting between the Salukis and Sycamores. Southern Illinois leads the all-time series 91-52. Over the last 10 meetings, both programs have won five matchups. The Salukis are 33-36 on the road all-time against the Trees, 3-5 on a neutral court, and 53-12 at home.

A WEEK TO REMEMBER FOR JOHNSON
• Graduate guard Xavier Johnson averaged 28 points, 5.5 rebounds, five assists and 1.5 steals per game as the Salukis went 1-1 at the Cancun Challenge. Johnson put together one of the best single-game performances in a Saluki uniform when he scored a career-high 38 points in a six-point loss to No. 22 James Madison in the opener of the Cancun Challenge. Down 16 in the first half, Johnson willed the Salukis back with 22 first-half points and eventually helped SIU to a 5-point lead. His 38 points were the most points by a Saluki player since Carlton Fay's 38 points versus Western Michigan in 2010. Johnson answered the call once again in the final game of the tournament when he scored a team-high 18 points and dished out seven assists as SIU rolled past New Mexico State to claim its fourth win of the season. Over the two games, Johnson shot 21-24 from the charity stripe.

DEFEND, DEFEND, DEFEND
• Defense is what SIU is known for and once again the Salukis have stayed true to it. Southern is holding opponents to 63.2 points per game (44th) while allowing opponents to shoot just 25.3 percent from behind the arc -- good enough for 21st-best nationally.

SHARING THE ROCK
Southern Illinois has dished out 81 assists in five games this season with three players recording 10 or more dimes. The 16.2 assists per game ranks 62nd-best nationally while SIU's 1.59 assist-to-turnover ratio is 29th-best nationally. SIU assisted on 22 of its 24 made baskets in a win over New Mexico State. Xavier Johnson leads SIU with 27 assists.

FOLLOW THE SALUKIS
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Salukis by following the team on Twitter at @SIU_Basketball, on Instagram at @SIU_Basketball, and on Facebook at Facebook.com/SalukiAthletics. Fans can also download the "Salukis" Mobile App on the App Store or Google Play Store.

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Preview | Salukis Open MVC Slate Tuesday at Indiana State

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