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."

Lowery offers fifth scholarship

Ryan Walker's vacated scholarship now has a suitor, should he choose to accept it.

Chris Cornelius, a forward currently at Brewster Academy prep school and a former high school star at Oak Park-River Forest, has been offered a scholarship from SIU, he told the Daily Egyptian Tuesday.

The Salukis are now one of four teams the 6-foot-7, 200-pound Cornelius is considering. He has already made a visit to Boston University, plans to visit Rhode Island on the weekend of Oct. 16 and will visit conference foe Illinois State.

Nothing has been arranged with SIU yet because, to Cornelius, the jury is still out on the Salukis. He simply does not know much about the school, it's team or even head coach Chris Lowery.

"I haven't really spoken to him that much," Cornelius said. "I heard he was interested in me, but he never really made an effort to really recruit me that hard.

"It came as a surprise to me when he offered me a scholarship."

SIU may have advantages over other schools, particularly Illinois State, in that it has been successful over the last few years - one of the few things Cornelius does know about the Salukis.

Cornelius indicated there is no front-runner at the time, but Southern Illinois may have two distinct advantages - location and connections.

The Salukis play in Cornelius' home state, and he is eager to return home after attending prep school because he thought he was under-recruited. His prep school is in New Hampshire, and he said he would stay there if need be, but his heart is still in the Midwest.

"If I like it out at Rhode Island, that wouldn't be a real problem with me, because travel isn't really a problem," Cornelius said. "But I definitely would like to get back to Illinois and the Midwest."

Also in SIU's favor is that Cornelius played AAU basketball for the Chicago Wolves, which is coached by Mike Mullins, father of current SIU recruit Bryan Mullins.

Cornelius played for the Wolves over the summer and has a terrific relationship with the younger Mullins, which could help SIU's chances. But the elder Mullins cautioned it may not be as important a factor as people think.

"We've had multiple schools recruit two or more of our kids at the same time," Mullins said. "What we tell them is that they have to choose the right place for them."

Cornelius said pretty much the same thing, but did express admiration for the younger Mullins' abilities at point guard.

"It would be great to go to school with him," Cornelius said. "He's a great person and a great point guard."

Cornelius is unlikely to decide until his visits are over, and hopes to reach a decision by mid-November in time for signing week. He said he would wait until the spring period if need be, but would prefer not to.

He would likely be a great fit for SIU because Lowery said he is looking for someone to replace LaMar Owen after this year - a small forward that plays like a shooting guard.

Cornelius was described exactly like that by Mike Mullins, and Cornelius is like Owen in that he has sprouted late in his career. He blossomed from an unheralded player to a sure-fire Division I prospect during his senior year, and based on that improvement, conventional wisdom has it he will only get better in prep school.

He is also described as a winner because of his days with the Illinois Wolves, and received a ringing endorsement from his former coach.

"Chris was a big factor in us having a nearly perfect summer," Mullins said. "We would not have been two points from being undefeated in four different tournaments in four different states without him."