The Daily Egyptian is published by the students of SIU at Carbondale. Except during vacations and exam weeks, The Daily Egyptian is published Monday through Friday during the fall and spring semesters and TWThF during the summer semester."

SIU's iron women

After scoring 17 points in 30 minutes during Sunday's exhibition victory, Jamaal Tatum was tired. In fact, he was beaten up.

Shortly after tumbling to the floor on a hustle play late in the first half, which caused him to wince and coddle his wrist, Tatum took a shot to the groin area that had him cringing once again.

"I did get tired a few times," Tatum said. "In fact, I had to tell Tony [Young], 'You have to pick up the ball this time, I'm getting too tired.'"

Granted, Tatum averaged 20 minutes a game last year. And as the Salukis' full-court pressure, man-to-man defense requires, SIU's quickest player was flying around every single second.

While Tatum and the rest of the Saluki men earned the right to breath heavy with their shortened rotation, they should think of the SIU women's basketball team the next time they begin to lean down and tug at their shorts.

With just six - yes, six - available players in Sunday's exhibition, the Saluki women outscored St. Louis Goldstar 43-27 in the second half of their 77-69 victory.

Seniors Danette Jones and Daphney Desamours played all 40 minutes. Redshirt freshman Elyse Morris logged 38 in her first court action as a Saluki. Five Salukis in uniform played 30 minutes or more.

Even with just six players, each Saluki seemed to get better as the game went on. Jones' shot was right on target, as was Desamours' down the stretch. The Salukis trailed by eight at halftime and by as many as 10 points in the game, margins that last year's team would have likely wilted under.

"We had a few mental mistakes that if we were a little less sure of ourselves, that could have made for a big run," said first-year head coach Dana Eikenberg. "And I think in the past that has potentially happened."

The Salukis' six displayed a collective fight sparsely seen this decade, which in itself is more impressive than the improved play from last year's team, which needed a game-winning shot in the final seconds to oust the same Goldstar squad.

To no surprise, the SIU bench was quite a sight Sunday.

Twelve athletes stood along the sideline in either khakis or black slacks. Just one, usually on the end of the bench, was dressed in uniform ready to get back into the game.

The majority of the injured or ineligible held onto black folders throughout the contest, portraying the image of a coach. An uninformed observer could have understandably believed the Salukis have more coaches than players.

So, how did the Salukis get into this situation?

In addition to the graduation of five players - all of which started at one point or another in their careers - four Saluki freshmen from a year ago are no longer with the team. Just two incoming freshmen, India Bruster and Rachel Boldt, join four transfers from Eikenberg's former school, Missouri-Kansas City.

With the transfers ineligible to play until next season by NCAA rule, other than Boldt who won her appeal, the Salukis are left with just nine available players, making depth the popular question this preseason. The Salukis acknowledged it was, in fact, a concern - how could they not - but nobody could have known it would be this bad so soon.

Holdover Amy Hayden sat out Sunday with a strained tendon in her shin. Another holdover, Lecretia Akines, dislocated her left thumb. Boldt, who has suffered serious injuries in each of her final two prep seasons, suffered a stress fracture.

Eikenberg said that Hayden should be available for the Iowa tournament November 19th, but that Akines and Boldt could be out much longer, so it looks like quite a few games will resemble this exhibition.

If Sunday was any indication, expect Jones and Desamours to possibly lead the nation in minutes per game this season, which is fine with them.

"Obviously depth could be a concern for us down the road, but if we're in shape, it only takes five people to play," said Jones, who scorched the nets for a game-high 23 points. The impressive display of endurance won over the hearts of the fans present Sunday, who gave the Salukis a standing ovation as they exited the court as winners.

With filling the Arena high on the to-do list for Eikenberg, the Salukis will need to keep fighting to keep the fans coming, especially with such a brutal non-conference schedule that includes two Big Ten teams and just three home games.

The Saluki men will surely compile plenty of wins this season, but all the women want is respect - and they are off to a great start.