The Saluki men’s basketball team has to be kicking itself after watching the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament this weekend.

Three of the Salukis’ regular-season opponents made the field of 64 Miami, St. Louis and Illinois State and all three failed to reach the Sweet 16. But all three made a name for themselves.

The 11th-seed Hurricanes pushed No. 6 UCLA in the Midwest Region to the edge before running out of gas Friday. No. 10 SLU put away a good Massachusetts squad in the first round of the Southeast Region Friday before falling big time to No. 2 Kentucky Sunday. The ninth-seed Redbirds pulled out an overtime win over No. 8 Tennessee in the West Region before No. 1 Arizona stomped them in the second round.

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The most frustrating aspect of the tournament was not the fact that these teams played well but lost. The fact is the Salukis could have beaten each of these teams this season and put themselves in a position to take one of their spots.

SIUC gave each of the three teams a battle at SIU Arena this season. The Salukis led Miami in the second half only to fall 73-61 in the season-opener Nov. 14. SIUC should have beat SLU, but a heroic 35-point performance by super-frosh Larry Hughes carried the Billikens to an 85-76 win Nov. 29. Illinois State shook off a pesky Saluki squad in the second half of a 79-67 win Jan. 28.

All the elements were there this season. Shane Hawkins and Rashad Tucker gave the Salukis two standout senior leaders. Derrick Tilmon and Chris Thunell blossomed in stellar sophomore debuts. Junior Monte Jenkins showed he could hit the jumper almost as well as he could dunk.

But the Achilles’ heel for this team was physical strength. Each of the three NCAA Tournament teams on their schedule had it the Salukis did not.

Miami used its big bodies and its knack for the Big East style of physical play to dominate the inside game. St. Louis used a height advantage at center to set screens for Hughes. Illinois State’s duo of senior LeRoy Watkins and junior Rico Hill just overpowered the Salukis’ inside defenders.

Back in the early 1990s and in the midst of three NCAA Tournament appearances, SIUC could get away with not having big bodies in the Missouri Valley Conference. Marcus Timmons, Chris Carr and Tyrone Bell could get the rebounds over the top of bigger, slower players and drive around them at will.

But when the Salukis got to the Big Dance, things turned ugly. SIUC gave Duke, Minnesota and Syracuse a battle each year, but the size just wore them down.

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Now, the Valley has big players that are just as quick as Tucker and Jenkins. And the Salukis would be wise to follow the lead that Illinois State set this year.

Illinois State went to the NCAA Tournament last season but ran into a physical Iowa State team and lost in the first round. Instead of going home with their heads down, the Redbirds decided to hit the weight room. And the results were impressive.

Each player added needed strength, from Hill and Watkins to guards Jamar Smiley and Steve Hansell. Each time they played SIUC the Redbirds were able to score in the paint. That trend continued against Tennessee before Arizona put to sleep any dreams of a Sweet 16 bid.

There’s no reason why SIUC cannot compete for the top spot of the Valley next season. Illinois State loses several key seniors, while SIUC loses only Hawkins and Tucker. But all the summer practice in the world will be in vain if SIUC does not get stronger.