Cougars still have a chance

Rick Crossin
Assistant Sports Editor

The SIUE men's basketball team has one goal this weekend - win.

The Cougars (5-13) sit in 10th place in the Great Lakes Valley Conference standings and are in danger of missing the post-season tournament.

Only the top eight teams are invited to the tournament, and SIUE will have to win both games this weekend, with help from other teams in the conference, to qualify.

In order for SIUE to make the playoffs, one of three teams - the University of Missouri-St. Louis, Bellarmine College or Indiana University-Purdue University at Fort Wayne - must lose both of its games this weekend.

Also, Quincy University, which occupies the No. 9 seed in the conference, must lose at least one of its games as well.

If all of these scenarios come to pass, there will be five teams fighting for three playoff spots. In this case, the GLVC rules state that ties are to be broken by using head-to-head comparisons during the regular season. And that gets very confusing.

SIUE has split its games with Bellarmine and has lost both games against IUPU-Ft. Wayne. The Cougars defeated Quincy and lost to UMSL in their only meeting this season. Confused? To put it another way, the Cougars still have a heartbeat.

"I don't think about things we can't control," head coach Jack Margenthaler said.

Winning may prove to be a difficult task, though. SIUE will first face second-place Northern Kentucky University Thursday night at the Vadalabene Center.

NKU (15-3) has won four games in a row and is poised to be the No. 2 seed in the GLVC tournament.

The Norse don't have a player in the top 15 in scoring in the GLVC, but they do have three players who average in double digits. Craig Sanders leads NKU with 12.7 points per game, which is 18th in the GLVC.

Balance is the key word for NKU, as eight players average more than six points per game.

"There won't be one person to key on," Margenthaler said.

NKU also has the No. 1 defense in the GLVC, giving up just more than 67 points per game.

"They push you out of your system," Margenthaler said. "They can get you totally out of sync."

In the last meeting between these two teams, the Cougars lost 88-71. In that game, the Cougars played without sophomore guard Ty Moss, who was out with an ankle injury.

"He gives us the ability to bring the ball up the floor under pressure," Margenthaler said.

SIUE committed 12 turnovers in the contest, its lowest total of the season. Unfortunately, NKU committed only nine en route to the 17-point victory.

"I think we have to limit our turnovers," Margenthaler said.

Thursday is also "Pack the Gym" night at the Vadalabene Center. There will be free hot dogs and soda served in the Student Fitness Center from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. There will also be other activities at halftime.

Saturday night's contest will not be any easier, as the fifth-place University of Indianapolis comes to SIUE.

Indianapolis is 12-6 in the GLVC and has won two games in a row, including a 98-85 win over IUPU-Ft. Wayne Saturday.

"They have played really well in the last two weeks," Margenthaler said.

The Greyhounds boast the GLVC's fourth-leading scorer, Andy Foster, and the GLVC's top assist man, Rob Kent.

Foster averages 17 points per game for Indianapolis and first in the GLVC in three-pointers per game with three.

"He's capable of putting up 30 points a game," Margenthaler said.

In the Jan. 27 meeting between SIUE and Indianapolis, the Cougars lost 72-65. SIUE committed 21 turnovers, a statistic that Margenthaler would like to be lower.

"We have had a rash of turnovers all season," Margenthaler said.

Both games start at 7:30 p.m. in the Vadalabene Center.