Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Southern Illinois University
Drake
Southern Begins Iowa Road Swing at Drake Wednesday Night
02/17/2026 | 10:47:00 | Men's Basketball
The Salukis (12-15, 6-10 MVC) take on the Bulldogs (12-16, 6-11 MVC) at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 18, at the Knapp Center in Des Moines, Iowa.
Game Details
Matchup: SIU at Drake
Time: 6:30Â p.m.
Location: Knapp Center, Des Moines, Iowa
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SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
The Bulldogs are in a bit of a slump, having lost six games in a row. They lost to state rival Northern Iowa 86-62 on Sunday, Feb. 15.
The Bulldogs defeated SIU 76-73 in overtime on Jan. 14 in Carbondale.
Jalen Quinn leads Drake and the MVC, averaging 19.8 points per game. The Tuscola, Ill., native had 21 against the Salukis in the first matchup, and a career-high 34 against Murray State on Jan. 21.
Drake averages 76.8 points per game as a team, fourth in The Valley and 161st nationally.
Defensively, the Bulldogs allow 75.5 points per game, which is 10th in The Valley and 232nd in the country.
Drake ranks No. 200 in the latest NET ratings and No. 206 in KenPom.
THE DAWGS
The Salukis are led by second-year head coach Scott Nagy. Nagy brings 31 years of head coaching experience to Carbondale and had recorded 14 straight winning seasons while at the helm of both South Dakota State and Wright State before a 14-19 first season at SIU. He became the 13th active coach and the 70th all-time to reach 600 wins with a 65-50 victory over UNI on Jan. 28.
Eight Salukis average more than 18 minutes per game. Quel'Ron House leads the team with 14.8 points per game. Seven others average seven or more points, including Rolyns Aligbe (10.4), Drew Steffe (9.6), Damien Mayo Jr. (8.5), Jalen Haynes (8.3), Prince Aligbe (7.6), Isaiah Stafford (7.3) and Davion Sykes (7.0).
Southern is shooting 45.9% from the field, which is 145th in the nation. They do most of their work inside the arc, making only 4.8 three-pointers per game, which is bottom 10 in the country.
Freshman Jalen Haynes has been a bright spot off the bench this season, scoring in double figures in nine contests. He had a season-high 22 in his first start of the season on Jan. 17 against Belmont.
On the boards, the Dawgs split up the work pretty evenly, with Rolyns Aligbe leading the way with 7.3 boards per game. Aligbe has five double-doubles on the season, one coming against Northern Iowa on Jan. 28 when he had a career-high 21 points and 10 rebounds. He tallied a career-high 16 rebounds in SIU's win over Indiana State on Feb. 9, the most a Saluki has recorded since Thik Bol had 17 on Nov. 16, 2016.
Quel'Ron House was named the MVC's Newcomer of the Week on Feb. 9 after averaging 24.0 points in two games between Feb. 2-8. He had a career-high 26 on Feb. 6 against Murray State, and tied that total against
Bradley on Sunday.
Southern's Jan. 25 game at Evansville was postponed due to the winter storm. The game has been rescheduled for Sunday, Mar. 1.
SIU landed at No. 126 in the most recent NET ratings, seventh in the MVC.
LAST TIME OUT
Southern Illinois fell 70-60 to Bradley on Sunday. Quel'Ron House tied a career high with 26 points to lead the Salukis.
FOLLOW THE SALUKIS
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Salukis by visiting SIUSalukis.com as well as following the team on X at @SIU_Basketball, Instagram at @SIU_Basketball, and Facebook at Facebook.com/SIUBasketball. Fans can also download the "Salukis" mobile app from the App Store or Google Play Store.
