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SEMO to test Salukis' winning streak tonight

SIU will look to shut down Indians' balanced offense

Amanda Whitlock ~ Daily Egyptian SIU junior guard Stetson Hairson floats past a Jacksonville State defender in the Nov. 26 game. SIU will attempt to tie Duke's 29-game home-cour winning streak tonight against SEMO.

Tonight, LaMar Owen will attempt do what he was brought here to do.

Despite his early season offensive success, the 6-foot-5 Owen, a junior college transfer, was recruited to the SIU men's basketball team to guard the numerous athletic power forwards of the college basketball world, the type of players that lit up the Salukis last season.

Owen will be handed the unenviable task of trying to shut down Dainmon Gonner, Southeast Missouri State's leading scorer and rebounder, tonight when the Salukis (3-0) play host to the Indians (3-1) at 7:05 tonight at the SIU Arena.

The 6-foot-6 Gonner, a transfer from Hutchinson Community College, has the body of a post player, but his offensive game isn't limited to the interior.

"He definitely gives them that combo forward and has athleticism that causes match-up troubles for a lot of different people. He is very strong," SIU head coach Matt Painter said. "What kind of separates him from other [power forwards] is the fact that he can shoot the perimeter shot and put the ball on the floor. He's got a very good intermediate game, so he's gonna be tough for us to handle."

Owen watched Gonner play when both teams were at the junior college national tournament, but tonight Owen will get a chance to get to know Gonner personally.

"He's a very good player," Owen said. "He's gonna be a person that we're going to have to look forward to stopping and defending very well because he's a player that can make plays. [Painter] brought me here to defend some of the great players, so I'm gonna get down and do my job and hopefully stop him.

"He's a great player, so I'll try to do what I can."

But to notch a win, SIU will have more than just Gonner to concern itself with. Physical SEMO senior center Brandon Griffin tallied 22 points and 11 rebounds in last season's meeting between the two teams, an 85-69 Saluki win. Griffin averaged 11.9 points and 10.5 rebounds a game last year.

Junior guards Derek Winans and Brett Hale, both of whom averaged double-figure scoring last season mainly on the strength of their outside shooting, complement SEMO's interior presence.

But with two of their three games this year having been on the road, at Wyoming and Wisconsin-Milwaukee, the Salukis aren't exactly an inexperienced bunch.

So with the return home, the Dawgs will have some extra motivation to defeat the Indians for the 10th time in the last 11 games.

With a win, SIU will extend its home-court winning streak to 29 games. Thanks to a Western Kentucky home loss last week, SIU would be tied with Duke for the longest current home-court winning streak.

The Salukis haven't lost at home since February 2001 and, with school being in session, the arena will undoubtedly be much more intimidating than it was in the home opener Nov. 26. That can only help the Salukis, who've proven they can win on any court.

"When you're away, you got all the fans rooting against you, heckling you," freshman guard Jamaal Tatum said. "When you're at home, you got a lot more support and it's a little bit easier; and plus you want to defend your house and not let anyone come in and take what's yours. So you have that pride on the line."