2020–21 SIU Edwardsville Cougars men's basketball team

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2020–21 SIU Edwardsville Cougars men's basketball
ConferenceOhio Valley Conference
Record9–17 (7–12 OVC)
Head coach
Assistant coachCharles "Bubba" Wells
Mike Waldo
Troy Pierce
Colin Schneider (director of basketball operations)
Detae McMurray (graduate assistant for player development)
Home arenaFirst Community Arena at Vadalabene Center
Seasons
2020–21 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Belmont 18 – 2   .900 26 – 4   .867
Morehead State † 17 – 3   .850 23 – 8   .742
Eastern Kentucky 15 – 5   .750 22 – 7   .759
Jacksonville State 13 – 6   .684 18 – 9   .667
Austin Peay 10 – 10   .500 14 – 13   .519
Murray State 10 – 10   .500 13 – 13   .500
Southeast Missouri State 9 – 11   .450 11 – 16   .407
SIU Edwardsville 7 – 12   .368 9 – 17   .346
Eastern Illinois 6 – 14   .300 9 – 18   .333
UT Martin 6 – 14   .300 8 – 16   .333
Tennessee Tech 5 – 15   .250 5 – 22   .185
Tennessee State 3 – 17   .150 4 – 19   .174
† 2021 OVC tournament winner

The 2020–21 SIU Edwardsville Cougars men's basketball team represented Southern Illinois University Edwardsville during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Cougars, led by second-year head coach Brian Barone, played their home games in the First Community Arena at Vadalabene Center in Edwardsville, Illinois as members of the Ohio Valley Conference.[1]

Previous season[edit]

The Cougars finished the 2019–20 season 8–23, 5–13 in OVC play to finish in a tie for tenth place. The Cougars failed to qualify for the OVC Tournament.

Preseason[edit]

Five players who saw major playing time and a third-year former walk-on return from the 8–23 team of 2019–20. They are joined by one junior who saw considerable action in the 2018-19 season but sat out last season as a medical "redshirt", three freshmen, three junior college transfers, and one transfer from another Division I program. Coach Barone, his assistants, and the Cougars recruited probably the strongest incoming group in the program's history. The recruits included SIUE's first legitimate "blue chip" recruit, Ray'Sean Taylor from nearby Collinsville, who suffered an ACL injury that ended his first Cougars season before it began. A second :"blue chipper" came on board with Sidney Wilson's late transfer from Cinnecticut. Three scholarship players with eligibility remaining did not return; two transferred to other Division I programs,[2][3] and Zeke Moore is playing professionally in Spain.

In a vote of conference coaches and sports information directors, SIUE was picked to finish in 11th place in the OVC.[4]

Regular season[edit]

After leading the team with career-highs of 18 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists in the Cougars' win at Morehead State, Sidney Wilson was named the OVC Newcomer of the Week on December 21.[5]

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic necessitated revision after revision to the Cougars' schedule. The game at Northwestern was cancelled, and nine (9) OVC games were postponed, including a postponement of a rescheduled game.

After averaging 18.0 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.3 blocks/game while hitting 50 percent (20-of-40) from the field and 73.3 percent (11-of-15) from the free throw line in three road games, Sydney Wilson was again named the OVC Newcomer of the Week on February 1.[6]

The Cougars went 33 days without a game in the span between December 18 and January 21, To make up for the nine game postponements, SIUE was scheduled to play four games per week. Then the OVC ruled that no more than three games were to be played per week; this change brought about a tenth postponement and the cancelation of a game versus Jacksonville State.

COVID-19, injuries, and the wear and tear of too many games in too few days to make up for all of the postponements resulted in less success than hoped for. However, the Cougars qualified for th Ohio Valley Conference Tournament, after missing it last season. This was helped by the Cougars' six road wins, the most in the Division I era.[7]

Postseason[edit]

The Cougars, the 8th seed in the OVC Tournament, Lost to the top-seeded Belmont Bruins for a third time, but by a much closer margin.[8]

Roster[edit]

Source = [9]

2020–21 SIU Edwardsville Cougars men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
F 0 Sidney Wilson 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So UConn/Brewster Academy The Bronx, NY
G 1 Mike Adewunmi 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Sr McLennan CC/Lake Ridge HS Dallas, TX
G 2 Desmond Polk 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Fr Link Year Prep/New Berlin West Milwaukee, WI
G 3 Ray'Sean Taylor Injured 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Fr Collinsville HS Collinsville, IL.
G 5 Carlos Curtis # Injured 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Jr Triton College/Riverside University HS Milwaukee, WI
G 11 Courtney Carter 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr South Suburban College/East HS Memphis, TN
F/C 15 Philip Pepple, Jr 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Jr Casper College/Shorecrest HS Shoreline, WA
G 21 Zane Butler † 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Fr Link Year Prep/Greene County Tech Paragould, AR
F 22 Michael Matas 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr London Basketball Academy Oakville, ONT, Canada
C 23 Elochukwu Eze 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) So Asheville Christian Academy Enugu, Nigeria
F 24 Cameron Williams # Injured 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Jr Hazelwood Central HS St. Louis, MO
G 31 Jackson Best (xW) 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Sr Edwardsville HS Edwardsville, IL
F 42 Shamar Wright 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 185 lb (84 kg) So Link Year Prep/Murrieta Mesa HS Murrieta, CA
G 52 Iziah James 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Sr Indian Hills CC/Cape Henry Collegiate School Chesapeake, VA
F 55 Lamar Wright 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 185 lb (84 kg) So Link Year Prep/Murrieta Mesa HS Murrieta, CA
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: 21 October 2020

  • † = Joined the team at the semester break.
  • # = Mid-season injury.

Schedule and results[edit]

Date
time, TV 		Opponent Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 25, 2020*
6:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Saint Louis
Billiken Classic 		L 52–89 [10]  0–1
  14 – Wilson   7 – Wilson   3 – Williams  Chaifetz Arena (0)
St. Louis, MO
November 26, 2020*
6:00 pm, ESPN+ 		vs. LSU
Billiken Classic 		L 81–94[11]  0–2
  23 – Adewunmi   10 – Pepple   5 – Carter  Chaifetz Arena (0)
St. Louis, MO
November 28, 2020*
7:30 pm, ESPN+ 		vs. St. Louis Pharmacy
Billiken Classic 		W 80–45 [12]  1–2
  15 – Wilson   7 – Adewunmi, James & Pepple   7 – Carter  Chaifetz Arena (0)
St. Louis, MO
December 2, 2020*
6:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Northern Illinois W 73–53 [13]  2–2
  22 – Wilson   12 – Adewunmi   7 – Carter  Convocation Center (0)
DeKalb, IL
December 5, 2020*
2:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Omaha L 65–67 [14]  2–3
  13 – Adewunmi   10 – Adewunmi   3 – Carter  First Community Arena (0)
Edwardsville, IL
December 9, 2020*
6:00 pm, ESPN3 		at Valparaiso L 58–80 [15]  2–4
  16 – Wilson   7 – Team   4 – S. Wright  The ARC (60)
Valparaiso, IN
December 13, 2020*
3:00 pm, ESPNU 		at Northwestern Canceled[16] Welsh–Ryan Arena 
Evanston, IL
Ohio Valley Conference regular season
December 18, 2020
5:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Morehead State W 69–65 [17]  3–4
(1–0) 		 18 – Wilson   9 – Wilson   5 – Wilson  Ellis Johnson Arena (375)
Morehead, KY
January 21, 2021
8:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Tennessee State W 67–65 [18]  4–4
(2–0) 		 18 – Adewunmi   9 – S.Wright   3 – Curtis & James  Gentry Complex (202)
Nashville, TN
January 23, 2021
4:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Belmont L 62–114 [19]  4–5
(2–1) 		 12 – James   5 – Curtis & S.Wright   3 – Carter  Curb Event Center (—)
Nashville, TN
January 26, 2021
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Eastern Illinois
Postponed from 1/5/21 		W 87–74 [20]  5–5
(3–1) 		 18 – Curtis   12 – Adewunmi   4 – Curtis  Lantz Arena (—)
Charleston, IL
January 28, 2021
8:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Southeast Missouri State L 62–64 [21]  5–6
(3–2) 		 23 – Wilson   8 – Adewunmi & Curtis   6 – Carter  Show Me Center (723)
Cape Girardeau, MO
January 30, 2021
4:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at UT Martin W 76–60 [22]  6–6
(4–2) 		 20 – Adewunmi   9 – S. Wright   5 – Carter & James  Skyhawk Arena (234)
Martin, TN
February 1, 2021
2:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Austin Peay
Postponed from 1/7/21 		L 59–76 [23]  6–7
(4–3) 		 16 – Adewunmi   9 – Adewunmi   3 – Carter  First Community Arena (0)
Edwardsville, IL
February 2, 2021
4:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Eastern Illinois
Postponed from 12/21/20 & 1/12/21 		L 61–70 [24]  6–8
(4–4) 		 13 – S. Wright   7 – Curtis   5 – James  First Community Arena (0)
Edwardsville, IL
February 4, 2021
1:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Tennessee State W 68–60 [25]  7–8
(5–4) 		 16 – Curtis   11 – S. Wright   5 – Curtis  First Community Arena (0)
Edwardsville, IL
February 6, 2021
12:30 pm, ESPN+ 		Belmont L 62–94 [26]  7–9
(5–5) 		 20 – Curtis   7 – Curtis   5 – Carter  First Community Arena (59)
Edwardsville, IL
February 8, 2021
2:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Eastern Kentucky
Postponed from 1/14/21 		L 74–78 [27]  7–10
(5–6) 		 23 – Adewunmi   7 – S. Wright   9 – Curtis  First Community Arena (50)
Edwardsville, IL
February 11, 2021
8:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Tennessee Tech W 81–63 [28]  8–10
(6–6) 		 18 – Carter   7 – Curtis   9 – Curtis  Eblen Center (534)
Cookeville, TN
February 13, 2021
4:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Jacksonville State L 60–80 [29]  8–11
(6–7) 		 17 – Wilson   8 – Adewunmi   4 – Carter  Pete Mathews Coliseum (513)
Jacksonville, AL
February 15, 2021
4:00 pm, ESPN+h 		Murray State
Postponed from 1/9/21 & 2/9/21 		L 57–86 [30]  8–12
(6–8) 		 17 – Adewunmi   7 – Adewunmi   4 – Carter  First Community Arena (17)
Edwardsville, IL
February 15, 2021
6:00 pm, ESPN+ 		at Jacksonville State †
Postponed from 1/2/21; 		Canceled Pete Mathews Coliseum 
Jacksonville, AL
February 18, 2021
7:30 pm, ESPN+ 		at Austin Peay L 57–79 [31]  8–13
(6–9) 		 17 – Adewunmi   5 – Butler   4 – Carter  Dunn Center (108)
Clarksville, TN
February 20, 2021
7:30 pm, ESPN+ 		at Murray State L 62–89 [32]  8–14
(6–10) 		 10 – Carter, James & S. Wright   5 – Adewunmi & S. Wright   2 – Carter & James  CFSB Center (1,290)
Murray, KY
February 22, 2021
5:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Morehead State
Postponed from 1/16/21 		L 48–56 [33]  8–15
(6–11) 		 12 – S. Wright   8 – James   3 – Carter & James  First Community Arena (50)
Edwardsville, IL
February 25, 2021
5:00 pm, ESPN+ 		UT Martin W 66–53[34]  9–15
(7–11) 		 17 – S. Wright   10 – L. Wright   6 – S. Wright  First Community Arena (50)
Edwardsville, IL
February 27, 2021
5:00 pm, ESPN+ 		Southeast Missouri State L 63–69 [35]  9–16
(7–12) 		 16 – Carter   6 – Carter, Matas, Team   5 – Carter  First Community Arena (50)
Edwardsville, IL
Ohio Valley Conference Tournament
March 3, 2021
7:00 pm, ESPN+ 		vs. (1) Belmont
Quarterfinals 		L 61–78 [8]  9–17
  18 – James   6 – Adewunmi   4 – Carter  Ford Center (266)
Evansville, IN
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central Time
Source[36].

† = Due to the many schedule changes, it was necessary to move SIUE's home game with Jacksonville State to Jacksonville, AL, but the game was later cancelled, when the OVC limited teams to three games per week.

References[edit]

  1. ^ "OVC Member Institutions". Ohio Valley Conference. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  2. ^ "2020-21 Men's Basketball Roster 25 Treavon Martin". University of Illinois at Chicago Athletics. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
  3. ^ "2020-21 Men's Basketball Roster 21 Kenyon Duling". North Carolina A&T State University. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
  4. ^ "Media Poll Tabs Austin Peay and Murray State Men, UT Martin Women as 2020-21 OVC Basketball Preseason Favorites". Ohio Valley Conference. November 17, 2020. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
  5. ^ "OVC Men's Basketball Report - December 21". Ohio Valley Conference. December 21, 2020. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
  6. ^ "OVC Men's Basketball Report - - February 1". Ohio Valley Conference. February 1, 2020. Archived from the original on February 1, 2021. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
  7. ^ "Men's Basketball Finds A Way to Return to Postseason". Southern Illinois University Edewardsville. February 25, 2020. Retrieved February 26, 2021.[permanent dead link]
  8. ^ a b "Cougar close gap, but fall to Belmont in OVC Tourney". Alton Telegraph. March 3, 2021. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  9. ^ "2020-21 SIUE Men's Basketball Roster". Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Archived from the original on February 3, 2021. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
  10. ^ "SLU gets fast start with opening win over SIUE". St.Louis Post-Dispatch. November 25, 2020. Retrieved November 28, 2020.
  11. ^ "LSU Basketball Starts 2020 Season With 94-81 Win Over SIUE on Turkey Day". FanNation/LSU Country. November 26, 2020. Retrieved November 28, 2020.
  12. ^ "MEN'S BASKETBALL: Cougars rout Health Services and Pharmacy". Edwardsville Intelligencer. November 29, 2020. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
  13. ^ "Wilson leads SIU Edwardsville past N. Illinois 73-53". wgnradio.com. December 2, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  14. ^ "Pile's Game-Winning Dunk Lifts Omaha at SIUE, 65-63". University of Nebraska Omaha. December 5, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  15. ^ "SIUE Men's Basketball Team Falls To Valpariso 80-58". riverbender.com/Intellisoft Development Corporation. December 10, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  16. ^ "SIUE Men Resume Regular Schedule After Cancellation Of Game At Northwestern On Sunday". riverbender.com/Intellisoft Development Corporation. December 13, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  17. ^ "Wilson leads SIU-Edwardsville past Morehead St. 69-65". The Telegraph. December 18, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020.[permanent dead link]
  18. ^ "SIU Edwardsville beats Tennessee State 67-65". Bleacher Report, Inc. January 21, 2021. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  19. ^ "Belmont gets Nashville-hot, torches Cougars 114-62". The Telegraph. January 23, 2021. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  20. ^ "Cougars rebound for win over EIU". The Intelligender. January 27, 2021. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  21. ^ "Cougars falter late, fall to SEMO 64-62". January 29, 2021. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  22. ^ "Adewunmi lifts SIU-Edwardsville over UT Martin 76-60". Yahoo Sports. January 30, 2021. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  23. ^ "Austin Peay beats SIU Edwardsville 74-59 e". Bleacher Report. February 1, 2021. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  24. ^ "Johnson carries Eastern Illinois over SIU-Edwardsville 70-61". CBS Sports. February 2, 2021. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  25. ^ "Wright leads SIU-Edwardsville over Tennessee State 68-60". USA Today. February 4, 2021. Retrieved February 11, 2021.
  26. ^ "Muszynski carries Belmont past SIU-Edwardsville 94-62". St.Louis Post-Dispatch. February 6, 2021. Retrieved February 11, 2021.[permanent dead link]
  27. ^ "Green carries Eastern Kentucky past SIU-Edwardsville 78-74". St.Louis Post-Dispatch. February 8, 2021. Retrieved February 11, 2021.[permanent dead link]
  28. ^ "SIUE routs Tech men". The Herald Citizen. February 12, 2021. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
  29. ^ "Ngumezi leads Jax State to 80-60 win over SIUE Saturday". Jacksonville State University Athletics. February 13, 2021. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  30. ^ "Williams carries Murray State over SIU-Edwardsville 86-57". St.Louis Post-Dispatch. February 15, 2021. Retrieved February 20, 2021.[permanent dead link]
  31. ^ "Taylor leads Austin Peay over SIU-Edwardsville 79-577". The Alton Telegraph. February 18, 2021. Retrieved February 20, 2021.[permanent dead link]
  32. ^ "Brown lifts Murray St. over SIU-Edwardsville 89-62". TAP News. February 20, 2021. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  33. ^ "Broome leads Morehead St. over SIU-Edwardsville 56-48". CBS Sports. February 22, 2021. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  34. ^ "BWright lifts SIU-Edwardsville over UT Martin 66-53". ABC News. February 3, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  35. ^ "Akenten lifts SE Missouri State over SIU-Edwardsville 69-63". CBS Sports. February 27, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  36. ^ "2020-21 SIUE Men's Basketball Schedule". Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Archived from the original on November 5, 2020. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
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