Two undefeated teams will do battle on Thursday night in Stillwater, OK as the Southern Illinois Salukis (1-0) head into town to take on the host Oklahoma State Cowboys (1-0). Southern Illinois, 16-15 overall and 9-9 in the MVC last season, defeated Little Rock 94-63 in their home opener. The Cowboys, 15-15 and 8-12 in the Big 12 last season, opened their season with a 77-66 win over UT Arlington. The opening tap for Thursday's game is scheduled for 8:00pm EST.
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After battling to a 16-15 record last season, head coach Bryan Mullins knows he may have the team to compete for the MVC crown this season. With Loyola Chicago now having moved on from the MVC, there is room at the top and the Salukis are certainly one of the team's that has a shot this year. The team returns their top-two scorers from last season in 6-6 senior Marcus Domask and 6-1 senior Lance Jones. He added some key pieces in the transfer portal as well and has a team capable of knocking down shots and playing the kind of position-less basketball that a majority of the top tier teams have transitioned into.
“We have the right pieces to have that team he’s been trying to create here,” Jones told . “I feel everybody is buying in here.”
#Salukis Set for Oklahoma State Thursday Night in Stillwater
Preview | https://t.co/OeKbsLKn2B pic.twitter.com/7dRiFyoNfJ
— Saluki Basketball (@SIU_Basketball) November 9, 2022
In the opener, everything went according to form for the Salukis. They led from beginning to end and had 11 different players register a point in the 94-63 win. Jones and junior Dalton Banks led the way with 14 points each. The team shot a scintillating 58% from the field overall and 43% from long range. They also out-rebounded Little Rock, 48-25. If there was a concern in the game, it was in the turnover department. The Salukis committed 19 turnovers while forcing just seven in the game.
“It was an electric atmosphere. The (team) fed off that energy and our guys never let up – and the Dawg Pound was awesome” Mullins noted after the game. “Overall, I thought we got off to a great start and I thought our effort was consistent for 40 minutes.”