TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (Ticker) -- After entering the polls for

the first time this season at No. 25, Southern Illinois went out

and picked up a matching 25th win.

Darren Brooks scored 22 points and Southern Illinois capped its

regular season with a hard-fought, 60-52, victory over Missouri

Valley Conference foe Indiana State.

The Salukis entered the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Poll earlier

Monday and had already wrapped up their fourth consecutive MVC

regular-season crown with Saturday's win over Wichita State.

"We were coming off a great win the other night and we just

wanted to continue to play well," Brooks said. "Now we just have

to get ready for the MVC tournament."

The reigning MVC Player of the Year, Brooks hit 8-of-10 from the

field, including 3-of-5 from the arc, and added five rebounds

and three assists. He scored 11 points in each half for the

Salukis, who set a new school record for wins during the regular

season and enter this weekend's MVC conference tournament as

the No. 1 seed.

"He's the best player in the league, hands down," Salukis coach

Chris Lowery said. "Now, he's making outside shots, which makes

him even more dangerous."

Brooks has made 21 of his last 39 attempts from the arc.

Indiana State made Southern Illinois (25-6, 15-3 MVC) work for

this one and pulled within 51-50 with 2:24 to play on two free

throws by Jerod Adler. Adler had a chance to give the Sycamores

the lead 64 seconds later but missed the front end of a 1-and-1

opportunity.

The Salukis immediately responded as Tony Young drained a

3-pointer on the next possession and Jamaal Tatum made four

consecutive free throws to make it 58-50 with 27 seconds left.

"We won a game where we didn't play well," Lowery said. "When

you can do that late in the season, you feel like you can win a

grind-out game if you need to."

The Salukis, who appear to be a lock for the NCAA Tournament

regardless of how they fare in the conference tournament this

weekend, have won eight in a row.

"They came in with nothing to play for and were able to win the

game," Indiana State coach Royce Waltman said. "That's a credit

to them."

Amani Daanish scored 16 points and Eric Gray added 13 for

Indiana State (10-19, 5-13). The Sycamores' top scorer, David

Moss, came into the game averaging 15.4 points but was limited

to five and shot 2-of-12 from the floor.

"We knew he was their best all-around player," Tatum said. "We

wanted to give him a hard time."