He’s started 72 games in his four-year career with the Billikens (26-7) and is an MBA Candidate.

Playing in the Atlantic 10, arguably the strongest mid-major conference in the country — almost to the point some have stopped using mid-major as a way to describe it — Conklin has paid attention to all the upsets in the NCAA Tournament throughout the years.

And he thinks the word has run its course.

“Upsets nowadays can be such a loose term because there’s so many good mid-majors out there,” Conklin said. “Players are realizing they can go to schools and compete with the big schools. … I loved watching Butler and VCU over the years, and having played VCU my sophomore year and see what they did last year, that was really special. That was fun to watch.”

VCU is the team that shocked the nation last season, making it out of the First Four all the way to the Final Four. That team’s run last season is part of the inspiration Conklin and his teammates will use when they take on No. 1-seed MSU after beating No. 8-seed Memphis 61-54 Friday night.

The win marked St. Louis’ first in the NCAA Tournament since 1998. And with another one Sunday, the Billikens would match the school record for wins in a season (27).

To do so, St. Louis will have to get past an MSU team Conklin described as Xavier — the A-10’s perennial power team — “on steroids.” And unlike MSU’s Second Round opponent, LIU Brooklyn, Saint Louis will look to slow the game down and force the Spartans into halfcourt battle.

“They’re a great team,” Conklin said of MSU. “But we know we have a great team in that locker room, too. We’re going to muck up the game like we did (Friday) and play dirty basketball. But it’s going to be fun, and we’re excited.”

By dirty basketball, Conklin said he doesn’t mean playing cheap, rather scrapping for loose balls and keeping the Spartans off the glass.

Billikens head coach Rick Majerus said it’s tough to prepare for a team such as the Spartans in only one day because of the various things they do offensively. But more importantly than learning what MSU does, Majerus said he needs to make sure his team isn’t satisfied.

“It’s only 32 teams left after today, and we have to guard again against the happy-to-be-here syndrome,” Majerus said. “But I feel they can compete with Michigan State, and I’m excited for the game tomorrow.”

Guard Kwamain Mitchell, who tied a school NCAA Tournament record with 22 points in Friday’s win, said there was a sense of satisfaction after Friday night’s win, but it passed quickly.

“After the game, the players were happy, clapping and stuff like that,” Mitchell said. “But this morning … we put that DVD in, (and) it’s a whole different world now because they’re a great team.”

Ultimately, the Billikens want to do Sunday exactly what they did Friday, playing slow and frustrating the Spartans like they did the Tigers. And if they’re successful in doing so, they hope it means picking up another one of those so-called upsets.

“(Friday) was an upset, supposedly,” Conklin said. “Everyone said we weren’t going to win that game. We’ve already one done, so why not a second one?”