Southern Illinois 69, Creighton 63
It took me a few hours after the most recent loss to Southern Illinois to figure out what I was going to write about. Sure, I could sit and spin the same woeful tale about rebounding problems and faulty free throw shooting. The thing is, Creighton beat SIU on the boards in the first half and only had a rebound margin of -4 in the game. And while not one of the Jays will soon be confused with Oklahoma's Drew Lavender or Duke's J.J. Redick (96 and 93% free-throw shooters, respectively), there is a more underlining issue rearing its head after losing to the Salukis for the third straight time.
I started thinking about why Southern Illinois bothers me the most of the rest of the Missouri Valley Conference schools. I never used to dislike them more than any of the other teams in the league. My feelings started to change during the 2001-2002 season, when whinin' Bruce Weber's squad swept the regular season series in a great game played on Super Bowl Sunday in Omaha (a.k.a. The Sanzere Game) and an ugly battle in Carbondale in the final month of the Valley schedule. It was such sweet revenge to win the Valley tournament title against SIU, and listen to Weber hoarsely complain in the press room after the game. And then came the 2002-2003 season, featuring Kyle Korver's dominating second-half performance in a win in Omaha and a physical loss to the Salukis on the road. The exclamation mark, however, came in the form of the Valley tournament championship game -- the greatest 40 minutes of Creighton basketball I've ever witnessed. Last year's loss at home hurt because it was the first loss at the Qwest Center and because the Jays could have won the game, and the last game in Carbondale was a forgettable moment in a forgettable second half of the season.
And then it dawned on me -- I dislike Southern Illinois basketball because it is the team I secretly wish we had at CU. And I don't mean the harsh brownish-maroon jerseys or the idiotic mascot that looks like a huge rat with braids -- I want the hyper-physical defense and never-say-die attitude. I tried to rack my brain for possible metaphors to compare my odd fascination with SIU to, and the only one that seemed to work was grade school romance.
When I was at St. Pius X/St. Leo school, I probably asked out a different girl every couple of weeks. That was just what we did, in place of four-square or dodgeball at recess. And it is not like any of the objects of my affection ever said yes. But I would be friends with a girl, enjoy talking to them, and then say to myself, "hey, she likes me. I should ask her out." But then, I would want nothing to do with her. "I don't like her," I'd tell my friends, or her friends, or anyone that would ask. I would go on the defensive, acting like there was NO WAY I would be interested in her.
For some reason, I was jealous. I don't know why, and I can't explain it (like much of the female race, which I don't have answers for). And I can't explain why I want what SIU has, other than to admit that I'm jealous of their ability lurk around in ballgames and then hit some big shots, or that I want the Jays to display the same ferocious defensive intensity that Weber, Matt Painter, and now Chris Lowery get from their SIU teams.
Don't get me wrong -- I don't like Southern Illinois. If they were playing the Purple Cobras in dodgeball, I'd root for White Goodman each and every time. I might even cheer for the Huskers if Nebraska and SIU ever locked horns. In fact, realizing that I am jealous of SIU's style of play doesn't mean that I will stop heckling Graduate Assistant Brad Korn on the bench or absolutely embarrass SIU fans in St. Louis by listing off the reasons why I corroborate that Carbondale is one of the worst college sports towns in America. I'm simply saying that I would love to have a team that defends well, shoots well, and plays with fire and a sense of urgency.
That being said, Creighton could have won. In fact, both teams looked almost identical through 30 minutes of action -- hard-working, well-coached squads hitting some open shots and coming up with steals on defense. But then the Jays regressed while SIU made the big plays down the stretch. It comes down to senior leadership, and Stetson Hairston and Darren Brooks provided SIU with more than Tyler McKinney and Kellen Miliner did. Chalk it up to the ever-important "intangibles" category. You always here television commentators and radio broadcasters list them as keys to every game, but they usually are the difference between walking out of the arena with your head held high or hung down low.
This Jays team is capable of playing the way SIU has played during the past couple of seasons, and it is crucial now more than ever that they pick up the intensity as conference play continues to heat up. Don't be surprised if these two teams play each other twice more this season, and don't be surprised if the Jays start a winning streak of their own -- they have it in them.
I started thinking about why Southern Illinois bothers me the most of the rest of the Missouri Valley Conference schools. I never used to dislike them more than any of the other teams in the league. My feelings started to change during the 2001-2002 season, when whinin' Bruce Weber's squad swept the regular season series in a great game played on Super Bowl Sunday in Omaha (a.k.a. The Sanzere Game) and an ugly battle in Carbondale in the final month of the Valley schedule. It was such sweet revenge to win the Valley tournament title against SIU, and listen to Weber hoarsely complain in the press room after the game. And then came the 2002-2003 season, featuring Kyle Korver's dominating second-half performance in a win in Omaha and a physical loss to the Salukis on the road. The exclamation mark, however, came in the form of the Valley tournament championship game -- the greatest 40 minutes of Creighton basketball I've ever witnessed. Last year's loss at home hurt because it was the first loss at the Qwest Center and because the Jays could have won the game, and the last game in Carbondale was a forgettable moment in a forgettable second half of the season.
And then it dawned on me -- I dislike Southern Illinois basketball because it is the team I secretly wish we had at CU. And I don't mean the harsh brownish-maroon jerseys or the idiotic mascot that looks like a huge rat with braids -- I want the hyper-physical defense and never-say-die attitude. I tried to rack my brain for possible metaphors to compare my odd fascination with SIU to, and the only one that seemed to work was grade school romance.
When I was at St. Pius X/St. Leo school, I probably asked out a different girl every couple of weeks. That was just what we did, in place of four-square or dodgeball at recess. And it is not like any of the objects of my affection ever said yes. But I would be friends with a girl, enjoy talking to them, and then say to myself, "hey, she likes me. I should ask her out." But then, I would want nothing to do with her. "I don't like her," I'd tell my friends, or her friends, or anyone that would ask. I would go on the defensive, acting like there was NO WAY I would be interested in her.
For some reason, I was jealous. I don't know why, and I can't explain it (like much of the female race, which I don't have answers for). And I can't explain why I want what SIU has, other than to admit that I'm jealous of their ability lurk around in ballgames and then hit some big shots, or that I want the Jays to display the same ferocious defensive intensity that Weber, Matt Painter, and now Chris Lowery get from their SIU teams.
Don't get me wrong -- I don't like Southern Illinois. If they were playing the Purple Cobras in dodgeball, I'd root for White Goodman each and every time. I might even cheer for the Huskers if Nebraska and SIU ever locked horns. In fact, realizing that I am jealous of SIU's style of play doesn't mean that I will stop heckling Graduate Assistant Brad Korn on the bench or absolutely embarrass SIU fans in St. Louis by listing off the reasons why I corroborate that Carbondale is one of the worst college sports towns in America. I'm simply saying that I would love to have a team that defends well, shoots well, and plays with fire and a sense of urgency.
That being said, Creighton could have won. In fact, both teams looked almost identical through 30 minutes of action -- hard-working, well-coached squads hitting some open shots and coming up with steals on defense. But then the Jays regressed while SIU made the big plays down the stretch. It comes down to senior leadership, and Stetson Hairston and Darren Brooks provided SIU with more than Tyler McKinney and Kellen Miliner did. Chalk it up to the ever-important "intangibles" category. You always here television commentators and radio broadcasters list them as keys to every game, but they usually are the difference between walking out of the arena with your head held high or hung down low.
This Jays team is capable of playing the way SIU has played during the past couple of seasons, and it is crucial now more than ever that they pick up the intensity as conference play continues to heat up. Don't be surprised if these two teams play each other twice more this season, and don't be surprised if the Jays start a winning streak of their own -- they have it in them.
posted by Creighton Otter at 5:03 PM
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