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Sou Illinois brings nine-game winning streak to Indiana St

Feb 21, 2007 - 3:28 PM No. 14 Sou Illinois (23-5) at Indiana St (12-15) 7:05 pm EST

TERRE HAUTE, Indiana (Ticker) -- Southern Illinois has climbed to No. 14 in the nation on the strength of a nine-game winning streak.

The Salukis (23-5, 13-3 MVC) will try to extend their streak Wednesday night when they visit Indiana State in a Missouri Valley Conference game.

Southern Illinois is coming off a non-conference win over No. 15 Butler behind 20 points from Jamaal Tatum and a defense that held Butler's leading scorer A.J. Graves to just five points on 1-of-8 shooting.

The Sycamores (12-15, 5-11) have lost four in a row and 11 of their last 12 to drop to last place in the conference.

Randal Falker scored 19 points and added 14 rebounds to lead the Salukis to a 61-48 victory over Indiana State when the teams met on January 31.

Team defense has been the key to victory for Southern Illinois all season. The Salukis lead the MVC, giving up just 56.9 points per game, almost four better than second-place Creighton.

A win over the Sycamores would clinch at least a share of the regular season conference title for Southern Illinois.