Centralia’s Shaw still strongly considering attending SIU

After spending much of his recruiting time on the road tracking down players, SIU men’s basketball head coach Matt Painter has watched as several of his recruiting targets came to him this past weekend during the SIU Summer Super-Sectional.

Multiple players being recruited by the first-year Saluki coach were on hand, including Centralia’s Matt Shaw. Shaw, a 6-foot-6 forward who was falsely reported to have given SIU a verbal commitment last spring, said SIU is still on his list.

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Shaw, who visited SIU with his parents and met with Painter earlier this summer, said he is being recruited by many Missouri Valley Conference schools and several Big 12 schools.

“It was pretty positive,” the soft-spoken Shaw said of his visit. “I’m really considering down here.”

Shaw played sparingly in his team’s opening game against Columbia Saturday afternoon at the SIU Arena, but displayed flashes of brilliance when he converted three-point plays on consecutive Centralia possessions, the second of which was a dunk. The next trip down the floor, Shaw knocked down a three-pointer, then narrowly missed finishing an alley-oop dunk on Centralia’s next possession. He finished the game by blocking a Columbia shot at the buzzer.

The versatile, well-built big man said there are no frontrunners in the race for his services and that he hopes to make a decision during the fall signing period, which begins in November.

Another player on Painter’s wish list, 6-foot-1 Carbondale Community High School point guard Justin Dentmon, didn’t have to make an official visit to SIU to get acquainted. He already plays pick-up games with SIU players and has known Painter for several years.

Dentmon, who can shoot from outside as well as penetrate with his superb quickness, is being recruited heavily by Painter, Carbondale assistant head coach Michael Butler said, adding that Dentmon’s recent exposure may hurt SIU’s chances.

Dentmon, rated the eighth best prospect in the class of 2004 in Illinois by ChicagoHoops.com, has been getting notice of late from Xavier, Dayton and Marquette.

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“Justin loves Coach Painter,” Butler said. “He knows the young guys who Coach Painter’s brought in on the staff. I think it’s a great fit for him. It’s just going to amount to what kind of exposure Justin gets, and who comes aboard.”

Massac County’s Gerren Rogers, a lanky 6-foot-8 center with an abundance of raw talent, was also present at the camp. Painter looked on as Rogers scored two late baskets while being fouled late in his team’s close loss to Effingham at the Recreation Center.

Rogers, who averaged 13 points, eight rebounds and four blocks per game last season, said that in addition to SIU, Illinois, Wyoming and SIU-Edwardsville are also recruiting him.

Another deep Southern Illinois high school player being recruited by Illinois and rumored to be on SIU’s radar, Josh Tabb of Century High School in Ullin, did not participate in the event.

Tabb is a 6-foot-4 shooting guard who is ranked the No. 2 prospect in the Illinois class of 2005 by ChicagoHoops.com.

Teams from more than 30 high schools attended, most from the Southern Illinois and St. Louis areas, and the only college coaches permitted to attend were those from SIU.

Reporter Ethan Erickson can be reached at [email protected]