Stirtz and Drake host Southern Illinois

Drake Bulldogs (19-2, 9-2 MVC) at Southern Illinois Salukis (10-12, 5-6 MVC)

Carbondale, Illinois; Saturday, 2 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Drake visits Southern Illinois after Bennett Stirtz scored 20 points in Drake's 66-52 victory against the Northern Iowa Panthers.

The Salukis are 5-4 in home games. Southern Illinois leads the MVC averaging 38.9 points in the paint. Ali Abdou Dibba leads the Salukis scoring 10.0.

The Bulldogs are 9-2 in MVC play. Drake is 16-1 when it has fewer turnovers than its opponents and averages 9.9 turnovers per game.

Southern Illinois averages 73.5 points, 15.8 more per game than the 57.7 Drake allows. Drake averages 71.1 points per game, 3.1 fewer than the 74.2 Southern Illinois gives up to opponents.

The Salukis and Bulldogs meet Saturday for the first time in conference play this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Sheridan Sharp is averaging 5.8 points for the Salukis. Dibba is averaging 16.5 points and 1.5 steals over the last 10 games.

Cam Manyawu is averaging eight points and six rebounds for the Bulldogs. Stirtz is averaging 18.1 points over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Salukis: 5-5, averaging 72.6 points, 30.4 rebounds, 14.5 assists, 7.0 steals and 3.0 blocks per game while shooting 46.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 73.3 points per game.

Bulldogs: 8-2, averaging 67.4 points, 27.2 rebounds, 12.0 assists, 9.9 steals and 2.6 blocks per game while shooting 47.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 58.3 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.