Nov. 3, 2007

By Tom Weber
www.SIUSalukis.com

Box Score -- Photo Gallery

CARBONDALE, Ill. - The Southern Illinois men's basketball team began the post-Jamaal Tatum/Tony Young era with a 74-38 exhibition win against NAIA King College (Tenn.) on Saturday.

The Salukis' trademark tenacious defense hasn't changed a bit coming off last year's Sweet 16 season, as SIU held the over-matched Tornados to just 25 percent shooting on the afternoon, including a chilly 1-of-16 from 3-point range.

Head coach Chris Lowery used the practice game to spread minutes around generously to 11 different players, as he seeks to find the right combinations for the regular season.

Junior guards Wesley Clemmons and Tyrone Green took the starting spots vacated by Tatum and Young, however it was sophomore Joshua Bone who stole the offensive show.

Bone played 18 minutes off the bench and tied teammate Matt Shaw for game-high honors with 13 points. He displayed a feathery touch by converting 3-of-4 shots from outside the 3-point arc. All of Bone's points came in the first half, as leg cramps limited him to three minutes of court time in the second.

"People keep saying our best players are our big guys," Lowery said. "I think we showed our dominance is still at our guard position, because they dictate everything."

The guards were particularly solid on defense, forcing 23 turnovers. Offensively, the backcourt of Clemmons (8 points), Green (7 points) and Mullins (6 points) was steady, if not spectacular.

"Wesley was good, and he's going to be better than what he showed today," Lowery said. "He was aggressive. He showed how he can handle the ball."

The Salukis got 35 points from the front court trio of Shaw (13 points), Randal Falker (11 points) and Carlton Fay (11 points). Fay, a freshman, was very active -- diving on the floor for loose balls -- much to the delight of the crowd of 5,966. He also tied Falker for the team lead in rebounds with seven.

The bench combo of Fay and Bone turned in 24 points in 38 minutes. That type of offensive production off the bench was missing last year.

"In the past, we didn't have any guys that could come off the bench and makes baskets," Lowery said. "We needed the core guys to take all the shots, and our bench guys to come in and guard. This year, it's a little bit different."

There are plenty of areas on the team that need improvement, Lowery cautioned.

For example, Lowery said Fay was often in the wrong place on defense, so much so that he might not have gone back in if it had been a real game.

"He's got to learn how to play position defense," Lowery said. "His stats were good, but he made so many mistakes defensively."

On Bone, Lowery said, "He can score, but he has to get better defensely." And Lowery said freshman guard Brandon Wood, who scored three points and committed six turnovers, has to take better care of the ball. "We wanted to make him handle the ball. He was very causal with the ball. He was going for the goal. He knows he can shoot, but he's got to be a play-maker at times too."

The Salukis have one more exhibition game next Sunday against Lincoln Memorial before the home opener on Nov. 17 against Northern Illinois.

Lowery said he will continue to fine-tune the Salukis' offensive and defensive schemes to fit the strengths of this year's personnel. One thing won't change, though, he said.

"You've got to have the same bulldog mentality."