SIU looks for ticket to the big dance

Southern Illinois believes it's already made its case for an NCAA berth.

But the Salukis, the No. 1 seed in the Missouri Valley Conference tournament that begins today, don't want to leave anything to chance. Coach Bruce Weber doesn't want to be watching anxiously on selection Sunday, hoping his school will appear on the bracket.

"If you want to make sure, you've got to win the tournament," Weber said. "Our goal is to get to 27 wins, and that's the only way you'll know for sure. Otherwise, you'll be sitting there wondering."

Southern Illinois (24-6, 14-4 Valley) has tried to prove it belongs in the dance all season, beginning with a 10-2 pre-conference schedule that included a victory over Indiana and a tight game with Illinois on a neutral court. The Salukis proved themselves again in the conference season, and they got a big break on the final day of the regular season when Creighton was upset at home by Drake.

That loss knocked Creighton (19-8) into a tie with Southern Illinois, which beat Bradley in its finale, for the regular-season championship. Southern Illinois gets the top seed in the tournament because it beat Creighton twice in the regular season.

"We were obviously pleasantly surprised," Weber said. "We had a little bit of a celebration, but we weren't ready to celebrate.

"We'll go into the tournament with a good mindset, that all the games are going to be hard-fought."

--AP