Preview | Salukis and Bruins Square Off in Nashville on Wednesday

CARBONDALE, Ill. – Southern Illinois and Belmont will meet in a pivotal game Wednesday night in Nashville. The Salukis enter the game in fourth place in the MVC standings at 8-6 while the Bruins are in a three-way tie for fifth at 7-7. The game will tip off at 6:30 p.m. at the Curb Event Center.

WHERE TO WATCH AND LISTEN

The game will be available on ESPN Plus with Steve Layman (play-by-play) and Greg Sage (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 109 in the NET, while Belmont is ranked 149.
SIU is holding its opponents to 29.3 percent from 3-point range -- 16th-best nationally.
Southern is shooting 36.1 percent from behind the arc -- ranking 69th nationally.
The Salukis rank fourth in the MVC in assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.24.
SIU's scoring defense ranks 43rd in the nation -- holding opponents to 66.4 points per game.
SIU is shooting 76.4 percent from the free throw line which is second in the MVC and 26th nationally.
The Salukis rank 60th nationally in effective field goal percentage at 54.1 percent.
SIU is 29-2 under Bryan Mullins when scoring 75 points or more and 53-8 when scoring 70 or more.
Bryan Mullins is tied for the fourth-fastest coach in program history to reach 80 wins -- 142 games.
SIU has nine double-digit wins this season out of the 16 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...

was named to two Mid-Season Watch List: Lute Olson (National Player of the Year) & Lue Henson (Mid-Major Player of the Year).
is second in the nation in scoring at 23.7 points per game and has scored 16 or more in all 25 games.
is 13th nationally and leading the MVC with 6.1 assists per game.
is fourth nationally with 180 free throws made and eighth nationally in free throw attempts with 200.
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.
shot a program record 20 free throws against UIC, surpassing Charlie Vaughn's record of 18 attempted vs Belmont in 1960. Johnson also set a school record for free throw makes with 18 of the 20. Charlie Vaughn made 16 against Villa Madonna in 1960.

NUMBERS WATCH

Xavier Johnson is one of five players in SIU history with six or more 30+ point games in a season. He has six of the 19 30+ point games in the MVC. His 15 20+ point games lead the MVC.
Xavier Johnson has dished out 153 assists (second in SIU history) this season -- 6.1 apg -- Bryan Mullins holds the season record with 154 assists during the 2007-08 season.
Xavier Johnson is two free throws shy of tying the single-season mark (182) set by Freddie McSwain in 1990.
Sharpshooter Trent Brown enters the game with 163 career 3-pointers -- 10th in program history. Brown ranks seventh in program history with 464 3-point attempts.
Forward Clarence Rupert has three double-doubles this season -- exceeding the number of double-doubles SIU had last year in total.

THE SERIES

It will mark just the fourth time that Southern Illinois and Belmont have met on the hardwood and just the third time since Belmont joined the MVC. SIU defeated the Bruins at home 73-63 earlier this season and are making their first trip to Nashville to face BU. Southern played Belmont just once a year ago in front of a national television audience, defeating the Bruins 63-45 on New Year's Day. The Salukis hosted Belmont in its regular season opener in 2001, defeating the Bruins 82-71.

THE MATCHUP

Belmont enters play at 14-11 overall and 7-7 in the MVC.
The Bruins were picked to finish fifth in the MVC Preseason Poll.
Belmont comes into the game winners of their last two games -- a win at home over Murray State and a road win at Valpo.
The Bruins average 77.5 points per game and are led by a trio of double-digit scorers in Malik Dia (17.8), Ja'Kobi Gillespie (16.7), and Cade Tyson (16.5).
Xavier Johnson led the Salukis with 18 points in a 73-63 win over Belmont on January 2. SIU's bench was able to outscore the Bruins 31-10 led by AJ Ferguson (15) and Scottie Ebube (12).

LAST TIME OUT

SIU won its 11th game inside the Banterra Center Saturday, defeating Illinois State 69-66.
Johnson led the Salukis with 17 while Ebube had 10.
SIU was able to assist on 15 of their 25 made baskets with Johnson falling an assist shy of tying his career high with nine dimes in the game to lead all players.

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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