Nevada in BracketBuster

BY DARRELL MOODY

Appeal Sports Writer

Nevada puts its undefeated BracketBuster record on the line today when it faces Southern Illinois of the Missouri Valley Conference.

Tip-off is set for 1:30 p.m. (ESPNU/630 AM) at SIU Arena in Carbondale, Ill.

Nevada is 4-0 in previous BracketBuster appearances, posting wins over Vermont, Toledo, Akron and Northern Iowa. Southern Illinois is 4-1 in its BracketBuster games.

This is the second straight season that Nevada has played a team from the MVC, having dispatched of Northern Iowa last season at Lawlor Events Center.

The Salukis come into the game with a 15-12 record after its 67-47 win over Northern Iowa on Wednesday night at home. Nevada barely scraped past Northern Iowa, 55-52, back on Dec. 22.

SIU is 90-5 at home since the start of the 2001-02 season, and have reached the NCAA Tournament in all three of Chris Lowery's seasons as head coach, including a Sweet 16 appearance last year when they went 29-7.

The Salukis are led by 6-7 fifth-year senior Randal Falker, who averages 12.4 points and 7.1 rebounds a contest. His partner up front, Matt Shaw, averages 12.1 points and 6.7 rebounds. Point guard Bryan Mullins averages 11 points and 5.1 assists per contest.

"Falker inside is a terrific player," Nevada coach Mark Fox said. "He is so quick."

In his last five games, Falker has three double-doubles, giving him 17 in his career, In his last 11 games, he is shooting 62 percent from the floor.

Shaw, meanwhile is one of five active players with at least 1,200 career points, 600 rebounds and 100 3-pointers. He is coming off a 23-point effort in the win over Northern Iowa. Mullins has also come on strong of late on the offensive end, hitting 17 of 25 3-point attempts in the last five games, including 50.8 percent from beyond the arc in conference games.

The Salukis won't push the ball like many teams Nevada has faced, but they will take the smart, sound shot.

Defense is where the Salukis shine. They allow only 60 points a contest, and Fox is impressed with their man-to-man defense.

"They are a great defensive team," Fox said. "They are probably a better offensive team than people think.

"Falker is so quick he can guard several different positions. Mullins is strong (and big) enough that he can guard people up front, too."

Nevada is starting to get its legs under it after going 4-1 during a 10-day, 5-game stretch. Fox gave the players a couple of days off, and as of Tuesday, he said they had a little more bounce in their collective step.

Fox expects the Pack to be fully healthy, save for sophomore Matt LaGrone, who injured his lower back when he took a hard spill at the Boise State game on Feb. 14. He had a CAT scan earlier this week, but Fox didn't have the results at the time of his press conference.

"He hasn't been cleared yet," Fox said. "He could be cleared as late as Saturday (this morning)."

Notes: Nevada has won 23 of its last 38 games away from Lawlor, including 21 true road games and four neutral-site games. The Pack is 6-7 away from home this season ... Nevada assistant coach Doug Novsek lettered at SIU from 1983-87 and served as team captain for two years. He scored 814 points in 87 career games for the Salukis ... Nevada has been taking good care of the ball, averaging just 6.7 miscues in its last three contests.