Inconsistent Salukis search for steady play in MarchWilliam FordDaily Egyptian
The last time the SIU men's basketball team played in a tournament, the results weren't pretty.
At the beginning of the season, the Salukis competed in the Great Alaska Shootout in Anchorage, Alaska for three games in three days. SIU struggled to finish the tournament with a 1-2 record, dropping games against little known Monmouth N.J. and Division II Alaska-Anchorage.
Junior Saluki guard Tony Young said for the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament this weekend, the team is far better prepared.
"This is a totally different team than Alaska," Young said. "We've been through highs and lows, and we know how to fight through it. I think we'll be a lot more effective in this tournament than we were in Alaska."
SIU head coach Chris Lowery agreed.
"It was different then," Lowery said. "We weren't starting who we are starting now. People are gone from the program who were starting. You can't even use that as a gauge."
In November, the team started guard Mike Dale, who has since left the team for personal reasons. Since then, freshman guard Bryan Mullins has been a permanent installment in the starting lineup and has been effective. Mullins led the MVC in steals and was named Valley freshman of the year on Tuesday.
The team has seen a great deal of success since Mullins was inserted as a starter, but has been inconsistent during the entire month of February. Through December and January, the team carried a 14-2 record, which included an 11-game winning streak. Through February, the team went 3-5.
Lowery said part of the reason the team has struggled to be consistent is because all of the teams at the top of the conference have really come on. At the beginning of conference play, the Salukis and Northern Iowa hung at the top of the conference rankings, but several other Valley teams came into the mix during the past month including Missouri State, Creighton and league champion Wichita State.
Lowery said at this point in the season it is tough for any team in the conference to stay consistent.
"What's made it special is everybody has struggled in the league," Lowery said. "Wichita was the most consistent and they still lost four games. Two or three shots here and there and they are right in the jumbled mix and maybe six (losses) wins the league."
Entering the conference tournament, one Valley team must find a way to string together three or four consecutive victories to win. Only Bradley and Missouri State have been able to win more than three consecutive games in the final month of league play.
Lowery said this is the time of the year where teams can't worry about what they have already done, but rather the task ahead.
"Everybody is going to struggle with dealing with consistency because it's one and done and because it's been the most balanced," Lowery said. "I don't think you can focus on consistency, you have to focus on toughness down the stretch. Whoever is the toughest is going to win the league."
