NEW YORK - While Southern Illinois University's strength largely looms at the guard spot, tonight's matchup with No. 8 Duke might be determined between the two teams' star forwards.

Saluki sophomore Carlton Fay, the team's leading scorer at 16.5 points per game, and Duke's 6-foot-8 Kyle Singler will both line up at the 3-point line tonight at Madison Square Garden. They'll both try to grab every rebound available in the semifinals of the 2K Sports Classic Benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer, and if their team is going to win, they will have to be on the floor.

Fay hit 7 of 10 against Massachusetts last week to help SIU advance to tonight's 6 p.m. tip on ESPN2. Only one of them was from behind the 3-point line, but after hitting 2 of 3 in his first career start against California (Pa.), Fay established himself as an inside-outside threat that deserves some respect.

"He only hit one 3, but he makes you guard him, and, sometimes, when we have two guys that are just post players in there, it really affects what we can do, because now people don't have to guard him," SIU coach Chris Lowery said. "They can sag, they can take our penetration away, and with guys that can dribble like we have, we want to be able to use the bounce, and Carlton really enables us to do that."

Fay, a 6-8 sophomore like Singler, battled foul trouble against the Minutemen at SIU Arena. One of his first three fouls came near the 3-point circle, which Fay admitted wasn't the smartest place to take a chance. He's proven too valuable to the offense, as the Hennepin native has shown the ability to post up, hit the pull-up jumper, and fire away from the 20 foot, 9-inch perimeter otherwise known as the new 3-point line.

"I gotta try, definitely, not to pick up those cheap fouls, the ones that can go either way, and I just need to get better on defense," Fay said. "It's more so knowing when to use your fouls, and playing smart in the post."

Singler, an All-American candidate, has started in 37 straight games and shown a lot of similarities with his small-town counterpart. Through three games, Singler is shooting 46 percent from behind the arc and is averaging six rebounds a game to go with his 13.8 points. Fay hit 3 of 6 from behind the arc in his two games, and averages 7.5 rebounds per game.

"He's really versatile, so, we can always stretch out the defense and get some buckets down low," SIU point guard Bryan Mullins said. "He's big for us. We need him to be on the floor. When we bring a big guy all the way out, it takes a big guy out of the middle of the lane. It makes them guard every player on the floor."

Luckily, fellow posts Anthony Booker, Tony Boyle, Nick Evans and Christian Cornelius have picked up the slack when Fay has battled foul trouble. All but Cornelius are averaging more than 10 minutes a game, and in the battle of the two deepest teams in the field, could make a big difference for the Salukis tonight. SIU and Duke are the only two teams in the four-team field that used 11 players in their first few games.

Fourth-ranked UCLA and Michigan both used 10.

SIU is 1-2 against Duke but 4-1 lifetime at Madison Square Garden. If the Salukis' newcomers follow Fay and Mullins, they could shock one of the nation's most heralded programs on national television and move into Friday's championship at 6:30 p.m. Should SIU lose, it will play the loser of tonight's 8:02 p.m. battle between the Wolverines and Bruins.

"(Fay) brings the element of playing inside and out, and he takes a lot of charges," Lowery said. "What he does for us on the defensive side is sometimes more important than what he can do, offensively, because he understands what we're doing, and we need our young kids to watch him."

todd.hefferman@thesouthern.com / 351-5087

What: Salukis vs. Duke.

Where: Madison Square Garden (19,763).

When: 6 p.m. tonight.

Coaches: Mike Krzyzewski (732-208 at Duke, 805-267 overall); Chris Lowery (98-41 at SIU, 98-41 overall).

Series: Duke leads 2-1.

TV: ESPN2, Don Shulman, Bob Knight.

Radio: Saluki Radio Network (WVZA 92.7 FM, WRXX 95.3 FM, WEBQ 102.3 FM, WRUL 97.3 FM, KYRX 97.3 FM, WMOK 920 AM, WHCO 1230 AM, KSLG 1380 AM, WFMB 1450 AM, WFFX 1490 AM (Mike Reis, Greg Starrick).

Audio Webcast: www.siusalukis.com.

Duke Blue Devils (2-0)

Projected Starters ppg rpg mpg

12 F Kyle Singler (6-8, 235, So.) 19.0 9.0 24.0

15 F Gerald Henderson (6-4, 215, Jr.) 9.0 5.0 21.0

55 C Brian Zoubek (7-1, 280, Jr.) 4.0 3.0 10.5

2 G Nolan Smith (6-2, 185, So.) 14.0 2.0 19.5

30 G Jon Scheyer (6-5, 185, Jr.) 10.0 3.5 24.0

Top Reserves

3 G Greg Paulus (6-1, 185, Sr.) 8.0 2.0 21.5

5 G Martynas Pocius (6-3, 190, Jr.) 4.5 0.5 12.5

14 F David McClure (6-6, 215, Sr.) 3.0 4.0 13.0

20 G Eliot Williams (6-4, 180, Fr.) 3.0 6.0 15.5

21 F Miles Plumlee (6-10, 230, Fr.) 2.5 3.5 13.5

42 F Lance Thomas (6-8, 220, Jr.) 8.5 4.5 15.5

SIU Salukis (2-0)

Projected Starters ppg rpg mpg

35 F Tony Boyle (6-8, 235, Sr.) 7.0 3.0 20.5

45 F Carlton Fay (6-8, 225, So.) 16.5 7.5 22.0

10 G Bryan Mullins (6-1, 185, Sr.) 11.5 1.0 34.0

24 G Wesley Clemmons (6-3, 195, Sr.) 9.5 1.5 24.0

31 G Torres Roundtree (6-4, 185, Fr.) 1.0 0.5 9.0

Top Reserves

21 F Christian Cornelius (6-7, 215, Jr.) 2.0 2.5 7.0

1 G Kevin Dillard (6-0, 160, Fr.) 11.5 2.0 28.5

22 F Anthony Booker (6-8, 230, Fr.) 3.5 5.5 14.0

23 G Justin Bocot (6-4, 175, So.) 2.5 2.5 13.5

25 G Ryan Hare (6-4, 200, Fr.) 2.0 1.5 12.0

55 C Nick Evans (6-11, 245, Fr.) 6.0 4.0 15.5