Salukis

Southern Illinois Salukis
General Information
NCAA Division: Division I
Conference: Missouri Valley (1974-present)
Past Conferences: Independent
City: Carbondale, Ill.
Arena: Banterra Center
NCAA Tournaments: 10 (1977, 1993, 1994, 1995, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007)
Championships:
National Championships: None
Conference Tournament Titles: 5 (1997, 1993, 1994, 1995, 2006)
Conference Regular Season Titles: 8 (1977, 1990, 1992, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007)
Team History
The Southern Illinois Salukis are a Division I school based in Carbondale, Ill. Southern Illinois currently competes in the Missouri Valley Conference and is coached by alum Bryan Mullins.
Before transitioning to Division I, Southern Illinois captured an NAIA national championship in 1946 and made four trips to the Division II Final Four, including back-to-back appearances in 1962 and 1963.
In 1967, Southern Illinois, led by future NBA Hall of Famer Walt Frazier and Dick Garrett, won the National Invitational Tournament. As the story goes, the Salukis could’ve competed in the College Division tournament (now Division II,) but opted instead for the more prestigious NIT. The Salukis had already beaten defending Division I champion Texas Western and No. 2 Louisville during the regular season, and wanted the bigger draw.
In 1977, the Salukis appeared in the Division I tournament for the first time and advanced to the Sweet 16 behind future NBA guard Mike Glenn. They returned in 1993 for the first of three straight tournament trips.
Southern Illinois also went six consecutive times from 2002-07, including twice to the Sweet 16. The 2002 squad, coached by Bruce Weber, went 28-8, captured the MVC regular season title, and beat the odds with wins over sixth-seeded Texas Tech and third-seeded Georgia in the NCAA tournament.
After working under Weber for five seasons at Southern Illinois, Matt Painter was promoted to head coach when Weber left for Illinois in 2003. Painter returned the Salukis to the tournament in his lone season, before following his protégé in the Big 10 to coach at Purdue.
In 2007, with Chris Lowery at the helm, the Salukis made another run deep into March. As a No. 4 seed, they knocked off 13th-seeded Holy Cross and fifth-seeded Virginia Tech en route to their third Sweet 16. The program made the NIT the following season but has yet to return to the Big Dance.
Mullins, the former two-time MVC Defensive Player of the Year (2008, 2009,) took over as head coach in 2019, replacing Barry Hinson. Mullins played on the Salukis’ 2007 Sweet 16 team.
Other notable NBA alums include guard Chris Carr, a second-round draft pick (56th overall) by the Phoenix Suns in 1995. Carr averaged 6.7 points over seasons, and notably was the runner-up to Kobe Bryant at the 1997 dunk contest.
All-Time Records
Points Scored
- Kent Williams: 2012
- Anthony Beane: 1917
- Mike Glenn: 1878
Rebounds
- Ashraf Amaya: 1,137
- Joe Merriweather: 1,005
- Marcus Timmons: 999
Assists
- Bryan Mullins: 509
- Wayne Abrams: 465
- Shane Hawkins: 435