Southern Illinois Basketball: 2021-22 season preview for the Salukis
No. 2 – SIU’s Deep Backcourt
During Domask’s absence, Lance Jones was forced into ‘leading man’ status, and he responded. The 6’1 junior was named to the Valley’s third-team, all-conference squad after averaging 13.4 points and three assists per game. The athletic Jones is devastating on the fast break and buried a league-leading .426 percent of his three-point shots.
While Jones is clearly an efficient long-range bomber, he drives relentlessly to the basket. Opposing defenses must defend every aspect of Jones’ game.
He is a rising Valley star.
Jones is not the Lone Ranger in the SIU backcourt. Junior Ben Harvey averaged 9.7 points while making 38 percent of his long-distance shots. Harvey is an emotional leader and a fearless shooter. Trent Brown is a lockdown defender that averaged 6.9 points and connecting 44 times from deep. Steven Verplancken and Dalton Banks both averaged over six points per game.
Ben Coupet is arguably Southern’s top recruit. A three-star recruit out of Chicago’s Simeon Career Academy, Coupet is a transfer from Little Rock. The 6’7 senior averaged 10.8 points per game for the Trojans last season after helping them to a conference championship the previous year. Coupet was one of four Trojans that averaged double figures in scoring, was second in minutes played, and converted over 37% of his long-distance efforts.
He gives the Salukis a ‘big guard’ option.