Preview | Southern Illinois Plays Host to Valparaiso for Saluki Jam Wednesday

CARBONDALE, Ill. - Southern Illinois basketball welcomes Valparaiso to town for Saluki Jam Wednesday night. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. from Banterra Center.

GAME PROMOTIONS

SIU is offering $5 tickets to all Kids Club members and their families as part of our Saluki Space Jam promotion. Simply enter the promo code "SPACE" to buy your tickets in advance.
In conjunction with the Dawg Pound, the game will be Space Jam themed and will feature music and videos from Space Jam throughout the night.
At all Saluki men's basketball games, kids are invited down to the court for pregame starting lineups. To participate, bring your child to the floor in front of Section 107 10 minutes before tipoff and look for Brown or Grey Dawg.

WHERE TO WATCH AND LISTEN

The game will be available nationally on ESPN Plus with Mike Trude (play-by-play) and Kelly Burke (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

Southern Illinois is ranked 104 in the NET, while Valpo ranks 278.
SIU is holding opponents to 27.9 percent from 3-point range -- 10th-best nationally.
Southern is shooting 37.4 percent from behind the arc -- ranking 36th nationally.
The Salukis rank 59th nationally in effective field goal percentage at 54.3 percent.
SIU is 27-0 under Bryan Mullins when scoring 75 points or more and 51-6 when scoring 70 or more.
In his last six games, AJ Ferguson has averaged 11.5 points, and 3.8 rebounds and has shot 57.5 percent from the floor. He missed nearly a month of action with injury before returning just after Christmas.
With a 10-point win over Belmont, SIU now has nine double-digit wins this season out of the 12 overall. The most wins in one season by 10+ points SIU has had under head coach Bryan Mullins is 10 in 2019-20, with three of them being MVC wins.

XAVIER JOHNSON...

has been named to two Mid-Season Watch List: Lute Olson (National Player of the Year) & Lue Henson (Mid-Major Player of the Year).
is third in the nation in scoring at 23.2 points per game.
is 17th nationally and leading the MVC with 6.1 assists per game.
is fourth nationally with 134 free throws made and 12th nationally in free throw attempts with 147.
is the only player in the nation averaging 20+ points, shooting better than 40 percent or better from the field, 40 percent or better from three, 85 percent or better from the free throw line, and averaging five or more assists per game.
has scored 16 or more in all 19 games this season -- the longest stretch of his career.

NUMBERS WATCH

Xavier Johnson is one of seven players in SIU history with five 30+ point games in a season. He has five of the 14 30+ point games in the MVC. His 11 20+ point games lead the MVC.
Trent Brown enters the game with 146 career 3-pointers -- tying for 13th in program history.
Clarence Rupert has three double-doubles -- exceeding the number of double-doubles SIU had last year.

THE SERIES

Southern Illinois and Valparaiso have met on the hardwood 16 times in their histories, with SIU leading the series 9-7. Southern has won five straight games in the series, including a meeting on January 10 when the Salukis won 77-68 on the road.

THE MATCHUP

Valparaiso comes to Carbondale looking for its second straight victory after rallying to knock off UIC 84-77 at home on Saturday.
The Beacons hold a 6-13 overall record and a 2-6 record in the Missouri Valley Conference. Valpo is 1-7 away from home this year.
Valpo is led by first-year head coach Roger Powell Jr. and Isaiah Stafford who leads the team with 16.7 points per game.
The Salukis knocked off Valpo on the road on January 10, 77-68.
Xavier Johnson led the Salukis with 22 points and seven assists. He scored eight of Southern's first 10 points, plus 10 of SIU's final 14.
Center Scottie Ebube gave SIU a lift off the bench with a powerful presence around the basket, scoring 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting.
The Salukis won the battle in the paint, outscoring Valpo 36-26 at the basket. The Salukis were also able to turn 12 Valpo turnovers into 18 points, many of which came in transition where the Dawgs outscored the Beacons 15-5.

LAST TIME OUT

SIU dropped its third consecutive game on the road at UNI, 61-57.
The Salukis led at the break 30-29 and built a five-point lead early in the second half before the Panthers rallied for the win.
Clarence Rupert secured his third double-double of the year with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Rupert had eight rebounds at halftime.
Xavier Johnson was held scoreless in the first half for the first time this season (his previous low was four points against Chicago State and Queens) before scoring 17 points in the final 20 minutes.

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/SIUBasketball. Fans can also download the "Salukis" Mobile App on the App Store or Google Play Store.

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