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Probable Wright State starters
Mark Alstork 6-5; Jr.; G; 12.4*
Justin Mitchell 6-4; Jr.; G; 3.2
Grant Benzinger 6-3; Jr.; G; 7.6
Mike La Tulip 6-1; Sr.; G; DNP
Steven Davis 6-8; Sr.; F; DNP
Probable Southern Illinois starters
Leo Vincent 6-1; Sr.; G; 8.1*
Sean O’Brien 6-7; Sr.; F; 12.1
Armen Fletcher 6-4; So.; G; 5.1
Aaron Cook 6-1; Fr.; G; DNP
Thik Bol 6-8; Jr.; F; DNP
*2015-16 averages
Series history: Southern Illinois leads 3-0
Coaches: Scott Nagy is in his first year at Wright State after spending 21 at South Dakota State. He had a 410-240 record there and led the program's transition from Division II to D-I. He was 175-119 in nine seasons while the team was in the Summit League and reached the postseason the last five years, including three trips to the NCAA tourney.
Barry Hinson is in his fifth year at Southern Illinois and his 16th overall, spending two years at Oral Roberts and nine at Missouri State. He’s 267-208 with four NIT appearances.
About Wright State: The Raiders were picked fifth in the preseason Horizon League poll, while Alstork was named all-league second team. Alstork scored a team-high 434 points last season and was second in average at 12.4 (the graduated J.T. Yoho was first at 12.6). Benzinger is the only other returning player to average four points or more.
About Southern Illinois: The Salukis were picked fifth out of 10 teams in the preseason Missouri Valley Conference poll. Wichita State, a perennial NCAA tourney team, was tabbed as the favorite. SIU lost leading scorer Anthony Beane (19.3 per game) but return three starters from a team that finished 22-10 last year, its first winning season since 2007-08 and the most wins for the program since 2006-07.
The Salukis finished fourth at 11-7 in the Missouri Valley Conference. O’Brien was named preseason second-team all-league. They struggled to beat Division-II Missouri-St. Louis in an exhibition last week, scoring the game’s last seven points to prevail, 72-67. But Mike Rodriguez, the team’s third-leading scorer and assist leader last season, didn’t play.
Coming up: The Raiders will play six straight games in the Nutter Center beginning with Miami at 7 p.m. Tuesday, followed by Toledo, Ohio Dominican, CSU Bakersfield, North Dakota and North Florida. The last three are part of the Men Against Breast Cancer Classic presented by Premier Health, the team's first holiday tourney at home since the 1990s.
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