Men's Basketball Faces Indy, SJC
         As Southern Illinois University Edwardsville men's basketball team begins its final road trip of the season, the Cougars know one thing for sure. The Cougars will receive their highest seed ever in the season-ending Great Lakes Valley Conference tournament.
         The 25th-ranked Cougars, 21-6 overall and 14-4 in the league, will at least be the No. 3 seed in the tournament.
         SIUE will travel to Indianapolis to face the Greyhounds and GLVC leading scorer David Logan on Thursday night.
         "We haven't been very successful against Indianapolis," said SIUE men's basketball coach Marty Simmons. "David Logan might be the best player in the country. It is that time of the season where there is a lot at stake."
         After visiting Indianapolis, the Cougars finish out the regular season against St. Joseph's on Saturday afternoon.
         SIUE is riding a three-game winning streak after defeating Bellarmine 83-53 on Senior Day.
         "We took good shots. We handled the ball well. We attacked the zone very agressively," said Simmons. "Defensively, our guys made it difficult for them to score against us."
         Kris Crosby (Belleville) netted a career-high 15 points in the game on 7 of 10 shooting.
         "I thought Kris came in and gave us a huge lift off the bench. He gave us a lot of energy inside. He seemed to pick up our level of play when he came in the game."
         Also chipping in off the bench is junior Justin Ward (Moline) who is averaging 12.3 points per game during the last three games.
         "The depth is becoming a big strength of ours," Simmons. "We will need that as we approach the end of the season."
         Tim Bauersachs (Pinckneyville) and Dan Heimos (Waterloo) rank second and third in the GLVC in field goal percentage at 64.8 (127-196) and 64.6 (102-158).
         SIUE leads the league in points per game allowed (60.3) and are fourth in the nation in that category.
         The Cougars take on the Greyhounds at 7:30 on Thursday. SIUE battles the Pumas at 3 p.m. on Saturday.
                  -siue cougars-