Once Upon A Time In Las Vegas – Divisional Round
The Missouri Valley Conference leading Southern Illinois Salukis (15-5, 7-2 MVC) are on the road Saturday with a visit to Springfield, Missouri and Great Southern Bank Arena to play conference rival the Missouri State Bears (10-9, 6-3 MVC). Southern Illinois defeated the Evansville Purple Aces 78-70 on Tuesday for their third straight win. Marcus Domask was the leading scorer for the Salukis with 21 points. Missouri State defeated the Drake Bulldogs 65-62 on Wednesday for their second consecutive victory and sixth in the last eight. Southern Illinois and Missouri State do not have any players on their respective injury lists.
Southern Illinois is first in the Missouri Valley Conference thanks to a very strong defense that is holding opponents to an average of 60.7 (18th) points per game. The Salukis are holding opponents to a field goal shooting percentage of 41.6% (93rd) and a three-point shooting percentage of 32.0% (123rd). On offense, Southern Illinois is scoring an average of 67.4 (295th) points per game, while shooting 45.7% (121st) overall and 30.6% (320th) from three point land.
Marcus Domask is scoring an average of 17.2 points per game to lead Southern Illinois. The forward is shooting 48.6% overall and 30.7% from long range. Lance Jones is the second leading scorer with an average of 14.0 points per game, while shooting only 37.5% overall and 28.0% from 3-point territory. Domask is also the leader in assists with an average of 3.5 dishes per contest. On the boards, Southern Illinois is averaging 32.0 rebounds per game, led by Domask with an average of 6.2 boards per contest. Domask is the leader in blocked shots with an average of 0.5 swats per game, while Jones is the leader in steals with an average of 1.9 per contest.