SYRACUSE, N.Y. The Salukis have become the poster child for mid-major programs this March, so they figure they might as well use the bully pulpit while they have it.

SIU and Kent State are the only two teams not belonging to one of the blockbuster conferences to advance to the Sweet Sixteen, and SIU head coach Bruce Weber used his media forum Thursday to make a case for more mid-majors to be invited to the NCAA tournament on an annual basis.

Using SIU’s league as an example four MVC schools have made it to the Sweet Sixteen since 1994 he argued that when given a chance, mid-major teams typically rise to the occasion against their more ballyhooed brethren.

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When you watched the highlights before Selection Sunday, [CBS] didn’t show the championship game, Weber said. They showed Hampton beating Iowa State [last year]. They showed all of the great stories, and that’s what this tournament is about. Right now, we’re a great story. I hope that we’re a great story Friday night also.

Turnover talk:Both Weber and Connecticut head coach Jim Calhoun spent time Thursday emphasizing the importance of limiting turnovers. Weber said the Huskies will be unstoppable if SIU allows them transition opportunities off turnovers, while Calhoun is displeased with what he considers sloppy play by the Huskies so far in the NCAA tournament.

Calhoun wants his skillful point guard Taliek Brown to have a more stabilizing influence on his team, beginning tonight.

He becomes a real focal point, especially against a team like Southern Illinois that plays very good defense, Calhoun said.

Stop the music:With an enormous national media presence comes an enormous opportunity to stick your foot in your mouth. SIU center Rolan Roberts found that out the hard way Thursday following practice at the Carrier Dome.

Asked to offer an amusing anecdote from the past week related to the Saluki fever sweeping over Carbondale, Roberts offered a seemingly innocent example.

I went to the CD store and got a few free CDs, Roberts said.

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A ripple of nervous laughter followed from the media contingent, as well as from the Saluki delegation sitting at the podium. The NCAA has stringent rules prohibiting student-athletes from receiving perks, and while a few free CDs may seem trivial, it doesn’t take much to get a school in trouble.

Roberts later attempted to amend his statement, claiming he was not given free music.

A Saluki by any other name:Weber has been asked about SIU’s unique nickname on just about every interview he’s done all week.

Besides being a Cinderella, I think the Saluki has also been the thing that’s attracted everybody to us, Weber said. We are the only ones in the country that are the Salukis … I think it’s fun, and it’s given us national exposure. I think people, especially in the sporting world, now will know what a Saluki is.

Familiar turf:While this is just SIU’s second ever Sweet Sixteen appearance and the only one since the field expanded to 64, UConn is a regular here. The Huskies have made 11 trips to the Sweet Sixteen, eight under Calhoun, including their 1999 national championship season. SIU and Connecticut have never met previously.

No place like dome:SIU is 0-1 in domes this season, having lost at Northern Iowa’s UNI-Dome. But the UNI-Dome probably isn’t adequate preparation for playing in the Carrier Dome, where a crowd of about 30,000 is expected to take in the game and the shooting background can be tricky.

The Carrier Dome is home to Syracuse University, a fellow member of the Big East Conference with UConn. Though the Huskies are accustomed to playing in the Carrier Dome, Roberts said Thursday’s brief practice session helped acclimate the Salukis.

We got a lot of shots in [Thursday], so I think we’ll be ready, he said.

Reporter Jay Schwab can be reached at [email protected]