earlonbasketball

D-Lee gets praise from the Prez

2010-01-24T08:11:00.000-08:00

St. Louisan David Lee seems to be picking up new fans all the time as he continues his All-Star season with the New York Knicks.
Last Friday night, D-Lee had 31 points and 17 rebounds against the world champion Los Angeles Lakers in Madison Square Garden. He scored 16 of those 31 points in the first half.
As Lee headed to the locker room for halftime, he heard a voice in the crowd yell to him "Hey, you played well in the first half."
Lee turned around to see who gave him the compliment and too his amazement, it was former President Bill Clinton, a NYC resident who was taking in the game.
Said a stunned Lee to a local media outlet, "You should have seen my amazement. I had no idea he was supposed to be here because we weren't told. It was pretty special."
It was D-Lee's 24th double-double of the season, which currently leads the NBA.
I will be shocked if David Lee is not in the NBA All-Star game this year. Also, our sympathies to D-Lee and his family on the passing of his grandfather, Desmond Lee last week. Desi Lee was quite a basketball player at University City High during the 1930's before going to become a very successful businessman and philanthropist.

Way to go Mustafa

2010-01-22T11:33:00.000-08:00

Former MICDS standout Mustafa Abdul-Hamid lived out the dream of every young basketball player last night.
A redshirt junior at UCLA, Mustafa hit a game-winning jumper at the buzzer to give the Bruins a 62-61 victory over Washington in historic Pauley Pavilion.
After U-Dub took the lead with its own last second shot, Mustafa took the inbounds pass, dribbled to the head of the key, gave a pump fake (a la Kobe Bryant) and sank the game-winner as time expired.
Mustafa's heroics earned him the No. 1 Play of the Night on ESPN's Sportscenter.
It could not have happened to a nicer young man. Not only is Mustafa a fine basketball player, but he is a tremendous young person as well. I was so happy to see him have that moment, I almost cried. It was wonderful to see. He has worked so hard on and off the court and in the community. It is great to see him get this kind of national attention.
After a stellar career at MICDS, Mustafa had a lot of scholarship offers. He could have even gone on to Harvard. Instead, he decided to walk on at UCLA, where he got to experience a couple of trips to the Final Four.
Although his playing time was limited, coach Ben Howland respected his efforts enough to reward Mustafa with a scholarship last year. However, a wrist injury cut his season short after two games and he took a medical redshirt.
Even when he is one the sidelines, Mustafa always manages to keep himself ready just in case he is called to duty. He hit a game-winning shot at the buzzer in the Bruins' one-point victory over Concordia.
Here's a salute to you, Mustafa. Congratulations of your game-winning shot.
Now, everyone else will be able to see how much of a fine young man you are.
Excellent.

Bills post impressive win

2010-01-21T09:58:00.000-08:00

After three close encounters to open A-10 Conference play, it was nice to see the Billikids break out and enjoy a lopsided victory for a change.
The kids came out focused and with a lot of energy against Fordham, resulting in a 75-48 victory.
I think the sting of the OT loss in Charlotte was still on everyone's mind and the kids had to take it out on someone. It turned out to be Fordham.
Once again, it was a solid all-around team effort where everyone got a chance to share in the big victory. Key players were not pressed to play heavy minutes and hard-working, walk-on Darren Young was rewarded with some playing time for the final four minutes of the game.
Usually, in my game recaps, I like to add the picture of a player who really stood out in the game. Well, because so many players stood out on Wednesday night, I just could not single one out. That's why you see the Billiken mascot's photo.
For the first time, Coach Majuerus unveiled his new starting lineup of Willie Reed, Cody Ellis and Jon Smith up front with Kwamain Mitchell and Kyle Cassity in the backcourt.
That lineup really got a lot of things done during our two-game road swing at Duquesne and Charlotte. They really jumped on Fordham from the start as they raced to an 11-2 lead.
Things really clicked with this group. Willie was back to his bouncy, energetic self on both ends of the floor. Jon has continued his stellar play since the calendar turned to 2010. Cody stroked some long 3-pointers and moved down the lane for an emphatic two-handled slam dunk. Kwamain penetrated and scored and Kyle facilitated and defended well.
What pleased me was when Rick went to the bench, the guys kept up the intensity and production without much slippage. Brian Conklin ended up being the top scorer on the night with 15 points. He was active and physical all evening.
Fordham is really struggling right now at 2-15 and winless in the league, but they had been competitive in all of their conference games. However, seized control of the game early and never gave them a chance to build any confidence.
It was a fun evening with a lot of crowd-pleasing plays. As I mentioned, Jon and Willie were dunking all over the place and the crowd loved it.
Cody continues to get better with each game. He looked like Linas Klieza last night with his long-distance shooting range and a big-time move to the bucket which resulted in a dunk off an inbounds play. He is still trying to play himself into game shape, thus he played a team-high 29 minutes.
Jon Smith continues to emerge as a force. He finished with a near double-double with eight points and eight rebounds. The beauty about Jon is that you never have to run a play for him and he will still get those numbers because he is so active.
Jon is a great example of recruiting an extraordinary athlete with a lot of length and a big upside. A raw talent like that in the right hands (such as Rick's) makes for a very dangerous player when developed the right way. We saw it last year with Willie and now history is repeating itself. It's nice to have two athletic jumping jacks on the front line creating all kinds of havoc on the interior. And both are still babies in their development as college players. Just wait until they are grown men.
At 3-1 in the league, the Bills have put themselves in a pretty good position early on. The kids are playing some good ball right now, but what's most promising is that there is so much more room for growth in each and every one of them.
Even when I am at my most frustrated (which was the case in Charlotte), I still have to remind myself that this is a very young team that is prone to making lots of mistakes.
With that being said, I think we can all see the growth in this team and can be excited about how good they are going to be one month from now. Obviously, we cannot afford any more injuries because we've had our share this year, starting with Paul, then Jeff, Kwamain, and now Femi.
It was a nice turnout last night considering it was mid-week and we were playing a team at the bottom of the league. If the youngsters continue to play well and compete in the A-10, I am expecting to see some sellouts down the stretch.
I'm not going to lie to you. I will be disappointed if we're not packing 9-10K in the Chaifetz for games with Dayton, Xavier, Temple and Rhode Island, who are still left on the home schedule.
These formidable teams are all contenders in the league and we have them all at our house in Februrary (Temple is on March 3). St. Bonnie and Duquesne come calling as well in Feb. I hope everyone is one hand to give them a nice Billikens' welcome.
The rest of the league slate will be very tough, beginning with the GW, Richmond swing next week. Oh, it would be nice to get another road win. If that happens, we could really put ourselves in position for something interesting.
I'm looking forward to seeing it all unfold.
I know you are too.
Go Bills!

Freshmen of Influence

2010-01-21T08:20:00.000-08:00

There is some pretty good young talent emerging in the St. Louis metro area.
I have been impressed with the performances of some of the freshmen, who have already started to make their mark in area basketball this season.
Here are a few of those talented freshmen:

Anthony Virdure, Jr. (Lutheran North): The son of former LN standout Anthony Virdure, young Anthony is a smooth 5'9" combo guard who can score and distribute the basketball. He has already emerged as the Crusaders' top offensive threat, averaging 13.4 points a game.

Hunter Reine (Roxana): A 6'7" post player, Reine has been impressive in averaging 14 points, 12 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game for the Shells. Reine has enjoyed some really dominating performances so far this season. With a 6'10" father, this young man could really grow into something special.

Malcolm Hill, Jr. (Belleville East): The son of former Normandy coach and ESTL Assumption standout Malcolm Hill, young Jr. is a nice 6'2" shooting guard who has made an impact on a veteran Lancers' team. With good size and a nice outside shooting stroke, Malcolm Jr. has been coming on strong as of late, averaging 10 points in his last four games.

Jordan Swopshire (Fort Zumwalt South): The fourth member of the talented Swopshire basketball clan, the 6'5" forward is one of the area's top youngsters with his versatile game. Young Jordan is averaging eight points and four rebounds for the Bulldogs.

Jordan Martin (Hazelwood Central): The 6'6" Martin is a talented young big who will be even more of an impact player in the future for the Hawks. However, to be starting for a team as talented as Hazelwood Central as a freshman speaks well of this versatile's young man's talent.

Keenan Minor (Cahokia): The 6'2" swingman has made an immediate impact with his outside shooting for the Comanches, who surprised many by winning the Centralia Tournament over the Christmas holidays. Minor had 12 points in the championship game.

Tyrin Williams (Riverview Gardens): The 5'10" point guard has been a real asset for an improving Rams' team with his speed and quickness at the point. Williams is averaging better than nine points a game.

Jim Barton and Nolan Berry (DeSmet): Barton is a 5'6" point guard and Berry is a 6'6" forward. Both are getting some varsity time for the Spartans and have showed some nice potential in limited varsity minutes. Barton is a floor general who can hit the open 3-pointer while Berry is a forward who has been handling himself well at the varsity level. Berry had a breakout game, scoring 23 points against DeSoto in the first round of the Ameritime Classic.

Many more youngsters will emerge and I'm sure I missed a few, but these are some of the talented young players that fans in the area will have a chance to watch develop over the next four years.
Enjoy.

McCluer's NBA Schedule

2010-01-21T07:57:00.000-08:00

McCluer High basketball coach Erwin Claggett must have felt like a NBA coach during the past two weeks as his Comets played a challenging six games in the past nine days.
That's a rough stretch of games for any team at any level, but the Comets came away winning five of those six games.
Last week, McCluer won the championship of the D.C. Wilcutt Tournament at CBC. McCluer defeated Fort Zumwalt East on Monday, Clayton on Wednesday and CBC for the title on Friday night.
The following night, the Comets defeated Illinois Class A power Breese Central in the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic at the Chaifetz Arena. Just two days later, they faced Normandy in the final game of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Basketball Shootout.
McCluer led for much of the game, but the Vikings came back to win 63-60, thus handing the Comets their only loss during this six-game stretch.
On Tuesday night, McCluer rebounded with a convincing victory at Parkway West.
The leader throughout the season for McCluer has been junior standout guard Shaquille Boga (pictured), who is averaging 22 points a game. He was also the Most Valuable Player of the D.C. Wilcutt Tournament.
Claggett also made liberal use of his bench, using as many as 11 players in one game. It was an impressive showing by a talented young group of players.

MLK Basketball Events on tap today

2010-01-18T06:34:00.001-08:00

Today, we celebrate the holiday of a great man in the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with all kinds of community activites to remember his birthday.
A big part of the MLK birthday celebration will be two basketball events, which are presented by the St. Louis Gateway Classic Sports Foundation and local girls basketball coach George Merritt.
The Gateway Classic is presenting the 18th annual Martin Luther King Basketball Shootout at Normandy High's historic Viking Hall. The event will feature four games involving some of the area's top programs.
The first game is a girls' contest at noon featuring defending Class 3 state champion Cardinal Ritter against Northwest Academy.
At 2 p.m., Cardinal Ritter's boys will take on McCluer North in a rematch of the Normandy Holiday Tournament semifinal thriller, won by McCluer North at the buzzer. McCluer North is currently undefeated at 11-0, but their closest call came against Cardinal Ritter.
At 4 p.m., Soldan will take on Maplewood Richmond Heights as friends and former SLU basketball players Justin Tatum of Soldan and Corey Frazier of MRH match wits on the sidelines with their talented young teams.
In the nightcap at 6 p.m., host Normandy will take on McCluer. The Comets are finishing up a challenging week of five games in seven days. They won the D.C. Wilcutt Tournament at Kirkwood last week, then came back to defeat Illinois Class A power Bresse Central on Saturday night in the Coaches vs. Cancer event at the Chaifetz Arena. Normandy won the championship of the Denver Miller Tournament at Kirkwood last week. Both McCluer and Normandy defeated the host schools in the championship game.
Tickets are on sale for $12 at the door. See you there.

On the girls side, George Merritt has put together a nice four-game MLK event at North County Tech High in Florissant.
At noon, Gateway Tech will take on Cahokia in the opening game.
The second game of the event will feature Merritt's North County Tech team against McCluer North at 2 p.m.
The highlight matchup of the event will be at 2 p.m. when nationally-ranked powers Incarnate Word Academy and Chicago Whitney Young hook up in a much-anticipated showdown.
IWA is ranked No. 1 in St. Louis while Whitney Young is ranked No. 1 in Chicago. It should be quite a game.
In the finale, McCluer South Berkeley will take on Miller Career Academy at 4 p.m.

There will be another girls showdown in town today when Chicagoland power Oak Park Fenwick visits St. Joseph's Academy at 1:30 p.m. in another Chicago vs. St. Louis showdown.

So, there are plenty of good opportunities to get your basketball groove on today. Hope you take advantage of them on this special holiday.

Earl on the air this week

2010-01-18T06:23:00.000-08:00

I will be at Normandy High School today calling games at the Dr. Martin Luther King Basketball Shootout on Prepcasts.com with Charlie Kennedy. We will be doing the McCluer North-Cardinal Ritter game at 2 p.m. and the McCluer-Normandy game at 6 p.m.

On Wednesday, SLU Hall of Fame play-by-play man Bob Ramsey and I will be calling the SLU-Fordham game from the Chaifetz Arena at 7 p.m. on 101-ESPN. The pre-game will be at 6:45 p.m.

On Friday night, I will be on the mic for the McCluer North-Belleville East game at the Belleville East Tournament.

Road win worth the long wait

2010-01-15T11:15:00.000-08:00

Watching the Billikids achieve their first road victory of the season on Wednesday night at Duquesne made the day-long ordeal to get to the game worthwhile.
As many of you now know, my broadcast partner Bob Ramsey and I were stranded in the St. Louis airport for much of Wednesday. Our flight was supposed to leave St. Louis at 10 a.m. We were actually on the runway getting ready to take off when we were forced to turn and go back to the gate when some trouble with the plane's computer system was discovered.
We were poised to take a later flight into Pittsburgh, but that also got cancelled. Meanwhile, our original plane was taken to the hangar for repairs. At that time, Rammer and I looked at the prospect of not getting to Pittsburgh at all.
Anyway, they fixed the problem with the first plane and we boarded about 3:45 p.m. However, a few other issues came up and we sat at the gate for another 30 minutes or so.
At that time, we thought there was no way we could make it to the game on time. About 4:30 p.m., we considered getting off the plane and going home. But, we decided to stick it out. We finally took off about about 4:45 STL time, which would have put us in Pittsburgh at close to 7 p.m. eastern time, which was right around tip-off time.
After we landed, Rammer and I flew through the airport, got a cab, and raced into town. We arrived at the arena during the third media time-out with about eight minutes left in the first half.
We just put on our headphones and started talking as soon as the action started again. To add to our frustration, our boys started to turn the ball over and Duquesne went on a 8-0 run to take the lead and control of the game.
However, the boys came back strong in the second half and actually led by seven minutes left with four minutes left in regulation. However, give the Dukes credit for coming back and forcing the extra sessions.
In all, it was another typical SLU-Duquesne game. Since joining the A-10, some of most hotly contested games have been against the Dukes. I think this was our third overtime game with them in the past four seasons.
Kyle Cassity (pictured) was really clutch on this night with 15 points, on 6 of 7 shooting from the field and three for four from 3-point land. Kyle really played with a lot of confidence offensively and it showed in his results. His floor game is solid, but when he puts his mind to it that he wants to get something done on offense, he can score. He just has to be of that mindset more often. Boy, if we can bottle up what KC did in Pittsburgh for the rest of the season....
Cody Ellis was good again with 14 points, 11 rebounds and four assists. What I most like about this young man is that he makes everyone around him better. He can really pass the ball, space the floor and create opportunities for others. He has so many dimensions to his game that you can now do a lot of different things.
I'm going to enjoy the high-lows to Willie for the next three seasons, incuding the rest of this one. Willie returned to the lineup with nine points and four rebounds.
When you guard Cody in the high post, it's high-low time. When you slack off to double team Willie before he catches the ball, Cody flashes to the high post for an easy 15 footer. The pick and pop for the 3-pointer is always in play, plus he can post up as well.
Kwamain was big once again when we needed it. His offense was AWOL for much of the game, but he came on strong down the stretch, finishing with 19 points. When it's time to win the game, Kwamain just kicks it into another gear.
Jon Smith turned in another solid game off the bench with eight rebounds (five offensive) and four blocks in 19 minutes. Jon is also seeing time at the "three" spot, allowing us to play three bigs at one time.
Jon is long and athletic enough to guard opposing three men on defense, while Cody plays the three on offense because of his versatile skill set. It gives the team a little more flexibility and depth as well.
For the second game, everyone did something positive to contribute to this victory. I am very impressed to see this young team start to grow up a little. They have found ways to win two consecutive conference games, which should build confidence.
The youngsters displayed a lot of mental toughness in getting this win against an athletic Dukes' team that was desparate for a league win after dropping their first two A-10 contests. Duquesne played with great urgency in getting to the free throw line 36 times and ravaging us with 23 offensive rebounds.
Even with all of that, the Billikids managed to stay together and pull off their first road victory. It was worth the day-long ordeal to get to Pittsburgh and see this happen in person.
I'm suddenly looking forward to this weekend's trip to Charlotte. Make no mistake about it, Charlotte will pose another stern test to the Billikids, but I'm look forward to seeing this group continue to grow.
We still have a challenging stretch coming up this month with three of our next four on the road, but I think we have a lot to look forward to in the coming weeks. We could be interesting.
Talk to you this weekend.
Go Bills.

Earl on the air this week

2010-01-12T13:49:00.000-08:00

On Wednesday night, Bob Ramsey and I will be calling the SLU-Duquesne game from Pittsburgh at 6 p.m. on 101-ESPN. The pre-game show will air at 5:45 p.m. (St. Louis time).

On Friday night, I will be calling the third-place and championship games of the D.C. Wilcutt Tournament at CBC at 6:30 and 8 p.m. on Prepcasts.com.
The Final Four of the tournament is CBC vs. Whitfield and McCluer vs. Clayton.

On Sunday afternoon, Rammer and I will be calling the SLU-Charlotte game from Charlotte at 3 p.m. on 101-ESPN. The pre-game show will air at 2:45 p.m.

Billiken Greats honored

2010-01-12T10:21:00.000-08:00

It was a fun night in Billikenland last Saturday.
Watching the Billikids knock off highly-regarded Richmond in the Atlantic 10 opener was exciting enough, but it was only part of the story.
It was just as thrilling to several of the former SLU greats from 1989 and 1990 return to campus to be honored for their wonderful accomplishments and contributions to the SLU program.
In past games, the SLU administration has honored the great teams from 1948 (the National Champions), 1957 and 1971. On Saturday, the '89 and '90 teams were honored as was former coach Rich Grawer, who made his first appearance at a SLU game since his departure from the program after the '91 season.
It was great to see Coach Grawer back on the scene once again. He did such a tremendous job of bringing the SLU program back when it looked like it was headed for obscurity, never to return.
His work ethic and love for his home town helped bring winning basketball back to Saint Louis U. He was greeted with a big ovation and that was nice to see. It was also well-deserved because the work he put in so many years ago has laid the foundation for what this program has a chance to become in the very, near future. I'm just glad that Rich came out to witness some of the fruits of his labor, which started nearly 30 years ago in a tiny, little office at the West Pine Gym.
Of course, Rich had a little help from guys such as Anthony Bonner (pictured, center), Monroe Douglass and Roland Gray (pictured, left). The talented trio of former Public High League All-Stars were the linchpins of some great basketball in town for a stretch of five years, which included two trips to the NIT championship game.
All three local heroes were present to be honored along with other former local stars such as Jeff Luechtefeld, Anthony and John Duff. Kevin Footes, Jorge Wallace and Don Braun and former assistant coach Jeff Schimburg also came into town to be a part of the special ceremony.
Rammer and I were giddy at the sight of these men, who did so much to make SLU basketball a viable and exciting program. They created a program, which made it possible for the great years of Spoonball we witnessed with Highmark, H, Claggs and then Larry Hughes.
Bonner, Douglass, Gray and Co. had the old Kiel Auditorium rockin' every night with some great basketball, whether it was Monroe on an alley-oop dunk, Bonner being a monster on the boards or Roland backing down a helpless defender with the old-school turnaround.
It was a fantastic time to be a Billiken fan then as it was on Saturday when all of these greats were back for one special day. It gave us all a chance to re-live some very special moments in Billiken history.
I hope you all enjoyed it as much as I did. Judging by the ovation in the Chaifetz. I think you did.

Bills beat Richmond (Welcome home, Cody)

2010-01-11T09:37:00.000-08:00

That was one helluva victory by our Billikids against the Richmond Spiders.
Richmond is very good, folks. They will contend for the league title. And to beat them without the services of Willie Reed was very big indeed. The kids battled through the rough stretches and survived being outsized and clobbered on the boards, as well as their outstanding pair of guards to bring home an important victory on Saturday.
I thought the most important part of the game came at the beginning when Brian Conklin opened up with his 10-point flurry. It was a big statement and an excellent display of leadership by BC.
Of his 10 first-half points, he got eight of them right off the bat and showed great emotion after a three-point play. It was as if he was saying, "I know we're playing a top team and we don't have our big man, but we're still here to win the game and protect our home court. Are you guys with me? There will be no Mo State repeat tonight." I loved it. I think the rest of the guys fed off of that as well.
At that point, I was convinced that we had a legitimate chance to win this game, even without Willie. I was not so sure before the game, but BC got me lathered up and ready to go in the first few minutes. It was BC's best offensive outburst since the games in Chicago over a month ago. I think it caught Richmond a little off-guard as well.
Cody was really good in his first game as a Billiken. He was really more than good when you consider he was playing with less than a week of practice after being on a plane for nearly 30 hours. To basically parachute into a heated conference battle and give us 10 points, five rebounds, three assists in 23 minutes was top-notch.
I hope fans continue to remain patient with Cody this year. There are going to be some rough patches as he tries to find his way. But as I said before, the Billikens are a much better basketball team with Cody Ellis. Not only does he have a big body and a versatile skill set, but he has the ability to make his teammates better.
I was most excited about his ability to pass. He fed Jon Smith with a nice high-low feed for a bucket. He also had a nice sit-down bounce pass through traffic off the dribble. I think we all got a little taste of what Cody will bring to this program for the future. The shots will eventually fall because he is a shooter. I wasn't expecting him to light it up because it will take time for him to get his basketball legs. He is a big piece of the puzzle for what Rick and the coaching staff wants to do.
If you recall, the pivotal play of the game with the score tied at 58-58 with 40 seconds play was run for him. He was fouled on the 3-pointer and converted two of the free throws to give us the lead to stay.
Of course, Kwamain was clutch again with 16 points, with seven of them in the second half. His step-back 15 footer on the baseline late in the game was Larry Hughes-esque. Kwamain has really put a lot of work in on his mid-range game and that is going to serve him well as teams will continue to play his penetration to the basket. He also took turns guarding Kevin Anderson and David Gonzalvez. For my money, KM is the best PG in the A-10. It's a big statement, but I'll ride or die with the little fella at the controls.
What was good about this win is that everyone gave us something over the course of the game. Femi John had an important six-point run in the second half with a 3-pointer and three free throws. Kyle hit a big 3 from the baseline in the second half and handled the ball well against their press.
Cory Remekun gave us a couple of buckets (including a 15-footer) and blocked a couple of shots. Jon Smith scored on a nice high-low feed from Cody. Justin Jordan got a big bucket and spent much of the game guarding Anderson, who is one of the best in the league. It was a huge job for Justin, who is still learning how to play consistent defense at this level. Christian gave us some big free throws to help seal the deal.
It was a fun day at the Chaifetz and an important must-win because we only have two home games in the month on January. We really needed this one and we got it.
Now, we face another big road challenge in Duquesne. The Dukes have lost two tough A-10 games to Richmond and Dayton (OT loss in Dayton), so they will be a little saltly on Wednesday night in Pittsburgh.
After preparing for Richmond's precise Princeton offense for a week, it's now time to get ready for Duquesne's pedal-to-the-metal 94 feet of pressure defense.
Talk to you soon.
Go Bills!

Earl on the Air this week

2010-01-05T06:53:00.000-08:00

On Friday night, I will be on the call for the Suburban East Conference clash between Clayton and Jennings on Prepcasts.com with play-by-play man Charlie Kennedy.

On Saturday, myself and Bob Ramsey will be on the call as Saint Louis U. opens Atlantic 10 Conference play at home against the Richmond Spiders. Tip-off is at 4 p.m. with the pre-game at 3:45 p.m. on 101-ESPN.

After calling the SLU-Richmond game on Saturday afternoon, I will head over to CBC that evening to provide the color analyst for the St. Joseph's-Webb City girls game on Prepcasts.com. It is the final game of the Prepcasts.com Elite Girls Shootout.

Tough Night in Ohio

2010-01-03T00:36:00.000-08:00

It was a tough night at the office for the Billikids, who dropped to 9-5 after their 59-50 loss at Bowling Green on Saturday night.
The Falcons jumped out to a 9-0 lead and were basically threatened for the rest of the night. Outside of an inspired 12 points, four-block effort by freshman Jon Smith in front of his friends and family from Ohio, there really weren't any bright spots to last night's performance.
In the first half, our entire starting five was held scoreless as we could only muster 15 points.
As expected, Bowling Green came out in an aggressive 2-3 zone defense and we struggled to shoot from the perimeter. We shot 37 percent from the field and six of 19 from 3-point range.
The Falcons did a nice job of trapping out of their zone defense and it caused us some big problems. We committed 12 turnovers in the first half with many of them coming when we still had a chance to be competitive.
We could never get any closer than seven or nine points. When we had the opportunity, we would turn the ball over and BG would push the lead back out to double-digits.
BG's bigs really set the tone early. They went inside to their post players early and often and established dominance in the paint. Otis Polk, their 6'9" 280-pound bruising senior, had 13 points and 9 rebounds. His 6'9" back-up, Marc Larson, had eight points and eight rebounds. And 6'7" 220-pound Erik Marschall had 11 points and seven rebounds.
By contrast, Willie Reed was held to four points and no rebounds while Brian Conklin was held scoreless.
Kwamain Mitchell led the Bills with 13 points, but he struggled from the field as well as BG's zone took away his penetration for much of the night. Smith had a breakout game with 11 points on five for five shooting, four rebounds and four blocks in a season-high 26 minutes.
The Bills will have one week to prepare for next week's A-10 opener against Richmond at home. It will be a tough game. As you know, the Spiders have put together a nice resume for the NCAA selection committee in March.
We should expect to see 6'8" freshman Cody Ellis make his Billiken debut next Saturday as well. He could still opt to redshirt, but I imagine he's chomping at the bit to get into action.
I'll have a preview on the Spiders next week.
Until then, Go Bills!

Heading to BG Arena

2010-01-02T13:26:00.000-08:00

I'm in Ohio getting ready to go to the arena for tonight's game between Bowling Green and the Billikids.
Just checking in with the SLU fans. I'll have a report when I get back to the hotel tonight.
Meanwhile, Cody Ellis arrived in St. Louis safe and sound after a journey which took about a entire day. Looking forward to meeting him when we get back, as will the Billiken faithful.
You can hear tonight's game on 101-ESPN with a 5:45 p.m. pregame followed by tip-off at 6 p.m. with yours truly and Rammer on the call.
Go Bills.

David Lee for NBA All-Star Team

2009-12-31T15:42:00.000-08:00

It is time to get the ball rolling to get St. Louisan David Lee into this year's NBA All-Star Game.
The former Chaminade College Prep star is having a tremendous season with the New York Knicks. It's a season that's worth serious consideration for this year's All-Star Game.
David has been a double-double machine ever since he entered the league four years ago. Now, with increased minutes, he's on the cusp of being a consistent 20-point, 10-rebound a night player. That's rolling in high cotton in the NBA.
D-Lee's numbers have been fantastic. He is averaging 18.9 points, 11 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. He is shooting 58 percent from the field and 77 percent from the free throw line.
Lee is currently seventh in the league in rebounding, fifth in field goal percentage. He is also eighth in the league with 17 double-doubles.
In his last three games, Lee had 28 points and 10 rebounds against San Antonio, 30 points, 12 rebounds and five assists at Detroit and 26 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists against New Jersey. After his performance against San Antonio, future Hall of Fame performer Tim Duncan reportedly told D-Lee that he deserved to be an All-Star. I'm in total agreement with the Big Fundamental on this one.
In recent years, as international players have become stars in the NBA, people have been wondering if there will be any more white American-born NBA stars on the horizon.
Well, we have one in David Lee. Born right here in St. Louis and doing his thing every night in the Big Apple.
He deserves to be displaying his game on All-Star night in Dallas.

Holiday Tournament Recap

2009-12-31T06:49:00.000-08:00

Wow, what a whirlwind it was during the last few days of following these holiday tournaments.
Over the past four days, I zig-zagged around the metro area and saw six different tournaments while keeping a close eye on all of the other action going on in the two-state area.
Here is a recap of the holiday tournaments, which produced some exciting basketball.

Meramec:
Webster Groves defeated Hazelwood Central for the championship 62-56 in a battle of unbeatens.
It was a fun game as both teams took turns making big runs at each other. One team looked as if they had control only to see the other team respond with a big surge of its own.
HC led 54-52 only to see WG take control of the game down the stretch with a 10-0 run. The Statesmen got great games from its three perimeter players. Senior Cortez Conners scored a game-high 19 points. Senior Derrick Dilworth added 16, including 10 in the fourth quarter, while smooth 6'3" sophomore Rayshawn Simmons had 14 points.
These three players make WG very hard to beat. All have good size, quickness and they can create their own shot and hit the 3-pointer. They are fun to watch. Junior post player Jason Meehan was an unsung hero during the game for the Statesmen. His physical work inside was a big key against Central's young big men in 6'5" sophomore B.J. McFarland and 6'6" freshman Jordan Martin.
Those two young bigs are going to be outstanding players for the Hawks, but Meehan's experience and muscle played a big role in WG "toughing" out this championship. There were several times where the Statesmen outfought the Hawks for loose balls and offensive rebounds during key stretches of the game.
Central was led by senior forward Chris Babbitt's 15 points and nine rebounds. It is good to see Babbitt back in action after missing all of last season with a knee injury. He is so active and always around the ball, creating steals and crashing the offensive boards.
The Hawks were hurt by the early foul trouble of leading scorer Jordan Wilson. He picked up his second foul midway through the first quarter and hit to sit the rest of the first half with no points. Wilson responded with 12 second-half points to help put his team in a position to win.
It was a hell of game to watch with two teams that have the talent to make very deep tournament runs in March.
WG has the look at a Final Four team. Their success is even more impressive when you look at the fact that most of these young men were key players on their state-championship football team. Coach Jay Blossom done of great job to get them so basketball-ready in a month. They are only going to get better.
The same goes for Hazelwood Central. They are still a very young team, and they are going to get better as well. The Hawks are still re-adjusting to playing without top scorer B.J. Young, who was removed from the team for disciplinary reasons. Young was averaging 17 points a game and could really create shots with ease.
McCluer defeated CBC for third place as junior Shaquille Boga scored 24 points while sophomore Demetrius Floyd added 20.
It was a good bounce-back game for the Comets, who lost a 72-70 heartbreaker to Webster Groves in the semifinals. WG's Conners hit a dramatic 3-pointer in the closing seconds of regulation to force overtime.
Troy defeated DeSmet for fourth place while Marquette defeated Rockwood district rival Lafayette for the consolation title.

Collinsville:
Lincoln High defeated the host Kahoks 64-56 for the championship. The Railsplitters (love those Illinois nicknames) finished second last year to Belleville Althoff.
I attended the semifinal games. Lincoln defeated Althoff 71-61 in a great game. Lincoln put on a wonderful shooting display, hitting a tournament-record 14 3-pointers. They couldn't miss. Every time Althoff made a push, Lincoln would respond with a 3-pointer.
Junior guard Jordan Nelson was incredible for Lincoln. He had 31 points against Althoff in the semis, then followed up with 29 points in the finals against Collinsville. The 6' Nelson could stroke the long-range jumper, take defenders off the dribble for mid-range jumpers while still running the show and getting the ball to Bucknell-bound teammate Ben Brackney, who can also shoot it from deep.
A tip of the cap also has to go to new Collinsville head coach Darrin Lee on making the Kahoks competitive again. After a 6-22 season in '09, Lee has come in and instilled some discipline and the Kahoks have responded. It should be no surprise. Lee was one of the state's top coaches during his very successful run at Nashville.
Oakville won three games in the tournament, thanks to the play of 6'5" senior Garrett Reeg, who scored 99 points in four games. I watched Reeg dominate Belleville East in the consolation semis with 34 points. If you are a college coach in need of a young man with a textbook low-post game, Garrett Reeg is the man for you. Oakville also got some good news with the return of 6'4" junior guard Javier Duren to the lineup. Duren saw his first action of the season after missing several games with an injury sustained during football season. With Duren, Reeg and a excellent supporting cast, the Tigers have a chance to make a lot of noise down the road. They snuck up on a lot of people last year in advancing to the Final Four for the first time in the school's history. Don't sleep on the Tigers!

Centralia:
There is no program in the area that sneaks up on people like the Cahokia Comanches. Coach Darris Nash has perfected the art of laying in the weeds, then springing up and pulling stunning upsets and winning championships. His Comanches have won a couple of regional championships in such a manner. Cahokia pulled off another stunner when they knocked off undefeated O'Fallon 62-60 to win the Centralia Tournament. Senior forward Jarrion Norris scored 13 points to lead a very balanced Cahokia attack as they won their first Centralia title. Cahokia defeated the host Centralia Orphans earlier in the day to advance to the championship game.

Other Tourney Action:
Chaminade defeated Parkway Central 65-57 to win the championship of its won tournament. All-American guard Bradley Beal scored 29 points to lead the Red Devils. On another positive note, CCP head coach Kelvin Lee is back at home and resting after being rushed to the hospital with chest pains a few days ago before his team was to play in the first round against Bayless.
Breese Central defeated Nashville 40-36 to win the Mater Dei Tournament. Sophomore forward Brandon Book scored 18 points to lead the Eagles.
Murphysboro defeated Triad 69-62 in the championship game of the Columbia/Freeburg Tournament in a battle of unbeaten teams.
Edwardsville defeated Effingham 52-51 in the championship game of the Charleston Tournament as 6'6" senior William Triggs scored 25 ponts.
Fort Zumwalt South rallied to defeat Holt 67-62 in the championship of the St. Dominic Tournament. South trailed by nine points at halftime, but rallied behind their young kids. Sophomore guard George Cater had 17 points and eight assists while freshman Jordan Swopshire had 15 points and eight rebounds.
Seckman won its won tournament with a 57-51 victory over Rockwood Summit. Senior Travis Leslie scored 29 points to lead Seckman. He averaged 30 points a game for the tournament. Summit's Kevin Dwyer had a game-high 31 points in the final.
In girls action, Mater Dei won the Mascoutah Tournament with a trilling 54-51 overtime victory over Belleville Althoff. It was the second time that these two teams have met in a tournament final with Mater Dei winning both games. MD defeated Althoff to win the Alton Tip-Off Classic in November. It also marked the 400th victory in the coaching career of Mater Dei coach Dave Kohnen. Congratulations, Coach. Mater Dei is now 15-0 on the season.

Wow, that was a lot of basketball and I had the chance to sample a little bit of everything. It should set up a nice conference season as we get ready for the postseason rush.

Normandy Tournament Recap

2009-12-30T19:53:00.000-08:00

The McCluer North Stars made their debut in the Normandy Holiday Tournament a memorable one with a championship performance.
The Stars defeated Raytown South 55-50 in the championship game to remain undefeated at 9-0. The Stars employed a good defensive effort and a methodical power game to stop the high-flying athletes from Raytown South.
Senior forward Denzel Reed had 21 points and 10 rebounds to lead North while beefy 6'5" senior Ryun Davis added 16 points. The senior trio of Reed, Davis and point guard Ollie Roundtree led the Stars to yet another tournament title.
It was McCluer North's second tournament win of the season. The Stars won the Troy Tournament earlier this month, defeating highly-regarded Columbia Rock Bridge in the finals.
In the past five years,McCluer North has won tournament titles at Normandy, Chaminade (three times), Carbondale (twice) and Troy (four times). That does not include the three Final Four banners and state championship in 2007.
McCluer North got another bit of good news this week when it was learned that junior power forward Brandon Hannah was going to enroll in school on Monday at the beginning of the second semester. The 6'3" Hannah was a major force in helping lead Chaminade to the Class state title last year. Hannah was at Hazelwood West, but was rumored to be returning to Chaminade. Who knows? If he does turn up at North, it will bolster the Stars even more in 2011. Hannah has missed the entire year of sports with a knee injury.
Chicago Orr defeated Cardinal Ritter 86-79 in a very entertaining third-place game. Orr's Michael Henry turned in a magnificent performance with 46 points. The 6'6" was the best player in a tournament full of top-flight talent.
Congratulations to Normandy High Athletic Director Malcolm Hill on putting together an excellent tournament full of talented teams and players. The Normandy Tournament is definitely on its way back. Anybody who didn't come over to Viking Hall because they thought the Normandy Tournament was lacking talent and pizazz really missed out on some dynamic players. Malcolm has really done a nice job of reaching out to some top teams for the tournament in and out of St. Louis. He has a nice waiting list of teams wanting to get in future tournaments.
Orr's Mike Henry is one of the top players in Chicago and he displayed his talent all week long at Viking Hall. He could hit the 3-pointer easily, slash to the basket and dunk with authority. He had one highlight reel play in the semifinals when he dunked over Raytown South's 6'11" senior Joe Cooper.
Raytown South was led by senior point guard Corey Hilliard, who is being recruited by several NCAA mid-major programs. The Cardinals also boasted one of the nation's top freshmen in 6'6" swingman Ishmail Wainright, who is already on the radar of many of the nation's top programs.
Wellston's outstanding junior forward-guard Ben McLemore was also excellent in leading the Trojans to the consolation title. The 6'5" McLemore averaged nearly 30 points a game and wowed the crowds with 3-point shooting and big-time dunks. He had one breathtaking run of 14 consectuive points which turned around the game in Wellston's victory over Hazelwood East in the consy finals.
Fourth-place Ritter really kept things exciting with close games against Normandy, McCluer North and Chicago Orr. Senior guard Mylin Jordan was whirling dervish all week long with his daring drives to the hoop. A young man to watch in the future is 6'5" small forward Cameron Biedschied, who has a tremendous upside. He scored 25 in the third-place game. By the time he's done, Biedschied could end up being the top college prospect in Marvin Neals' very successful tenure at Cardinal Ritter. The kid has a lot of talent.
Soldan won the fourth-place trophy by defeating Normandy. Coach Justin Tatum has a nice young team that has a chance to make a little noise in Class 4 this year and in the future. Senior guard Brier West and sophomore standouts Partice Sanders, Paul McRoberts and Randy Holmes give the Tigers plenty of young firepower.
Once again, congratulations to the good folks at Normandy for putting on a good tournament.
I'll have more tourney recaps and my thoughts coming up.

Earl on the air this week

2009-12-29T10:45:00.000-08:00

Tuesday, December 29: Hall of Fame play-by-play man Bob Ramsey and I will be calling the Saint Louis U.-Eastern Illinois game on 101-ESPN at 8 p.m. (7:45 pre-game)

Wednesday, December 30: Earl and Charlie Kennedy will be calling the championship game of the Meramec Holiday Tournament on Prepcasts.com at 7 p.m.

Saturday, January 2: Earl and Bob Ramsey will be calling the SLU at Bowling Green game on 101-ESPN at 6 p.m. (5:45 pre-game).

Holiday Tournament Action

2009-12-29T10:28:00.001-08:00

Some championship hardware will be handed out in the next two nights as the holiday tournaments come to an exciting conclusion.
At the Normandy Holiday Tournament, No. 1 seed McCluer North will take on No. 2 seed Raytown South in the championship game at 5:45 p.m. Both teams won their semifinal games with buzzer-beaters.
McCluer North outlasted Cardinal Ritter 69-67 when senior Ryun Davis picked up a loose ball and scored on a layup at the buzzer. In the other semifinal game, Raytown South's Earl Peterson drilled a pull-up 3-pointer with one second remaining to give the Cardinals a thrilling 61-60 victory over Chicago Orr.
Cardinal Ritter and Chicago Orr will meet for third place at 4 p.m. Soldan will play Normandy for fifth place at 2:30 p.m. Hazelwood East will play Wellston for the consolation title at 1 p.m.
The best player at the tournament is Chicago Orr's Micheal Henry, an athletic 6'6" shooting guard, who can score, handle, dunk and get his own shot. He is a terrific player.
Raytown South has a 6'6" freshman wing player named Ishmail Wainright, who is one of the top freshmen in the country. Unfortunately for local fans, Wainright was injured in the Cardinals' semifinal victory over Soldan and had to sit out the rest of the tournament.
Another player big swingman on display at Normandy is 6'5" junior Ben McLemore of Wellston. He scored 34 points in a victory over Sumner earlier this week. The multitalented McLemore is enjoying an excellent tournament.

SLUH will play Jennings for the championship of the MICDS Tournament. SLUH knocked off Whitfield 75-65 in one semifinal contest while Jennings took care of Miller Career Academy to punch their ticket to the championship game. Jennings won the tournament last year. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
The Junior Billikens had to withstand a 39-point performance from Whitfield's Julian Johnson to take the victory. The 6'3" 220-pound Johnson got to the basket at will against SLUH with powerful bull-moose drives to the basket. However, the Junior Bills were able to prevail with a balanced attack.
The loss for Whitfield was much more than the game. Alex Rudd, their 6'6" senior standout, left the game in the third quarter with a knee injury when he collided with SLUH's Mike Butler while going for a loose ball. Rudd is one of the top perimeter shooters in the area. He missed the entire 2009 season with a knee injury. Hopefully, his injury will not be serious and he can get back into the lineup.
Whitfield will play Miller for third place at 6 p.m. Trinity and Parkway South will play for fifth place at 4:30 p.m. while host MICDS will take on Ladue at 3 p.m. in the consolation final.
The moment of the tournament came in the quarterfinal game between Clayton and Miller Career Academy when senior guard Sumner Ahearn of Clayton threw in an improbable 3-pointer at the end of regulation to force overtime. It was an great moment and equally emotional moment for the Ahearn family. Sumner's father, John Ahearn, died in September after a long illness. His uncle Danny, was a former star player at Clayton, while his cousin Blake, was a former DeSmet and Missouri State standout who spent some time with the Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs.
The Ahearn family went wild after Sumner's dramatic shot, including Blake, who ended up on the floor. Big John had to be smiling down on his son on this day.

The top four seeds advanced to the semifinals of tonight's Meramec Holiday Tournament. No. 1 Hazelwood Central will face No. 4 CBC at 7 p.m., followed by No. 2 Webster Groves and No. 3 McCluer at 8:30 p.m.
It should be an exciting night of hoops at Meremac as the winners will advance to Wednesday night's championship game.
CBC got quite a scare on Sunday night when senior guard Cory McArthy went down awkwardly with a knee injury in the Cadets' first-round victory over Eureka. It looked bad at first, but McArthy was able to return to the lineup for CBC's 69-38 victory over Parkway West in the quarterfinals. McArthy had 10 points and three assists in the game.

Congratulations to Breese Central coach Stan Eggelson on reaching the 500-victory plateau for his coaching career. Eggleson reached the magic mark when his Central team won its first two games in the Mater Dei Tournament. Breese Central has one of the top small-school teams in the state of Illinois this year.

On the girls side, nationally-ranked Incarnate Word Academy defeated rival St. Joseph's 57-51 to win the championship of the Visitation Holiday Tournament. Senior forward Jazmin Hitchens scored a game-high 25 points to lead the Red Knights, who are ranked No. 14 in the country. The 5'11" Hitchens was voted the tournament's Most Valuable Player for the second year in succession.
Fort Zumwalt West defeated Hazelwood Central for third place.
I was on hard for Saturday night's semifinal games between Hazelwood Central/St. Joseph's and IWA/Fort Zumwalt West.
I was really impressed with 6'2" sophomore center Taylor Manuel of Hazelwood Central. The young lady has an excellent shooting touch and some nice moves in the low post. She can also pass the ball and find the open teammate. Whoever has worked with this girl was really on their job. It was nice to see Taylor and St. Joe's 6'2" freshman phenom Sidney Stipanovich match up in the low post.
I was also impressed with 5'8" junior guard Kelsey Jones. She scored 24 points against Incarnate Word in the semifinals. She has a lot of offensive skills and a little old-school flavor to her game.

On a final note, I want to extend my best wishes to Chaminade head coach Kelvin Lee, who was hospitalized on Monday night when he complained of chest pains before his team was to play Bayless in the first round of the Chaminade Tournament. Kelvin is resting comfortably at St. John's Mercy Hospital where he is undergoing futher tests to see what happened to him.
Hang in there, Kelvin. We're all thinking of you.

Bills vs. Panthers

2009-12-29T09:50:00.000-08:00

The Billikids conclude the home portion of their nonconference schedule with a game against the Eastern Illinois Panthers tonight at 8 p.m.
Eastern Illinois comes into tonight's contest with a 7-4 record. What is most unique about the Panthers' record is that five of their victories have come on the road.
One of those road victories was a 63-60 win at Belmont, which gave the Bills all they could handle a couple of weeks ago. Belmont actually beat EIU by 33 points in an earlier meeting on the Panthers' home court. What a strange turnaround that was.
With that in mind, we must proceed with caution before we can automatically chalk this one up in the win column. We have to put some work in to get the job done. I think we learned our lesson last week against UMKC when we trailed in the second half, only to see Kwamain Mitchell go on his 33-point rift to pull us through.
By the way, congrats to Kwamain for being tabbed the Atlantic 10 Player of the Week for his heroic effort last week against UMKC.
As for Eastern Illinois, the Panthers should be bolstered by the return of their top player Romain Martin to the lineup. He has been their leading scorer for the past three years and an All Ohio Valley Conference performer.
Martin has played in only one game this year before suffering an injury. I heard he is supposed to be in action tonight, so that would be a plus for the Panthers if he is able to go.
Their leading scorer is 6'1" senior guard Tyler Laser, who averages 15.8 points a game. The scoring is pretty spread out after Laser. Sophomore guard Jeremy Granger averages 8.5 points while frontcourt players Edin Suljic and Shaun Pratl average about seven points a game. Senior swingmen T.J. Marion and Curry McKinney, both 6'4', average about six points a game.
The big man in the middle is 6'8" 250-pound senior Ousmanne Cisse, who averages six points and leads the team in rebounding. I imagine he will try to put the arm on Willie tonight.
It will be the last home game of this home stand, then it's six of the next eight games on the road, beginning with the game at Bowling Green on Saturday. It would be great to finish this homestand on a great note with some solid defense and excellent perimeter shooting, which would provide a little extra working room for Willie Reed in the post.
Willie's touches have been limited by the sagging defenses in the past two games and it's been a little frustrating for him. Hopefully, we can knock a few shots down from the perimeter and make life a little easier for No. 33.
It would also be good if we could create some easy scoring opportunities off of our defense. In earlier games, we've been able to get some defensive stops and turn them into transition baskets, especially with Kwamain on the prowl. That can take some of the pressure off of our half-court offense, which gets stagnant at times.
And yes, we have to shoot our free throws better. We took a giant step backwards in our last game. Hopefully, we can do better.
I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas. Look forward to seeing you at the Chaifetz Arena tonight. If you get a chance, show up a little early and check out Shimmy Gray-Miller's women in action tonight. They have some nice players as well such as Amanda Kemezys, Lauren Woods and Katie Paganelli.
If you can't make it, you can hear the call on 101-ESPN with myself and my SLU Hall of Fame play-by-play partner Bob Ramsey on the call.
Go Bills!

Cody Ellis

2009-12-23T07:30:00.001-08:00

Tuesday was a good day for the SLU program with the news that power forward Cody Ellis had finally been cleared to play for the Billikens by the NCAA Clearinghouse.
What an ordeal that must have been, but I give credit to the young man for his persistence in making this day happen. At last night's game, I also made it a point to give SLU academic coordinator Janet Oberle a big hug for the work she put into Cody's situation.
Cody is expected to be here pretty soon and suit up for the Billikids.
It was a good day.
As for Cody's impact on the team, I have two thoughts.

Thought #1: (The excited SLU fan)

Cody Ellis is a potential game-changer for the SLU program, especially in the future. Cody is a big body at 6'8" and 240 pounds and he can really shoot the basketball. He has a nice skill set for a big man, which comes in handy with opposing teams now holding team meetings around Willie Reed in the low post area. Cody has the ability to stretch defenses with his shooting, thus opening things up for Willie down low or Kwamain Mitchell's penetrating drives to the basket. He is a very talented young man with a lot of international experience. For a program like ours to get quality size is truly critical for any future success we may enjoy. He is a great fit for Rick's offensive schemes.

Thought #2: (The more realistic basketball lifer)

As excited as I am to have Cody Ellis in a Billikens' uniform, my enthusiasm is also tempered with a dose of reality. I am not going to put great expectations on Cody right away because he has missed so much. If it happens, I will be overjoyed, but to ask him to step in and be an immediate force would be unfair to the young man. I hope Bills fans everywhere will take the same realistic approach.
Just imagine a player who is a rookie in the National Football League. He misses the mini-camps, the OTAs, training camp, the preseason games and nearly half of the regular season. Now, he's finally able to play. And by the way, he has to fly halfway across the globe to get to his team. Even if he's the second coming of Jim Brown, missing all of that time is going to affect what he can do for that team right away. And we all know Rick is pretty detailed in everything he does, so he will have a lot ot take in in a short amount of time. Plus, he's trying to get into basketball game-shape as well.
That is what Cody is looking at as he makes his Billikens debut.
I'm taking the attitude that I don't expect great things right away, but hope to be pleasantly surprised at what he might accomplish after missing so much.
So, keep all of this in mind if Cody misses all of his shots and struggles early. Be very excited that he's here, but also be patient at the same time.
Also, keep it in mind if he scores 12 points, makes five of seven shots and drills a couple of 3's in his debut. Don't get too overjoyed if that happens either and let your expectations really run wild.
With that being said, he does have a chance to contribute to this team because he brings many things that this team doesn't have in great supply. His size and shooting ability can potentially make a difference. It is always nice to have another big in the rotation.
It is the beginning of a long process which will turn out to be fruitful for Ellis and the SLU program. Cody Ellis is another big and important piece to the puzzle of this growing program.
There is also the possibility of Cody taking a redshirt, thus having four full years of eligibility, not to mention a full off-season workout regimen and pre-season with his teammates before he starts his SLU career.
One thing is certain. The Billikens will become a better basketball team the minute Cody Ellis puts on a uniform.
Needless to say, I am quite excited.
Welcome to St. Louis, Cody. Look forward to seeing you soon.
Go Bills!

Cody Ellis photo courtesy of: basketball.net.au

Mitchell's 33 leads Bills past Roos

2009-12-23T06:58:00.000-08:00

How do you win a basketball game when you make only two of your 12 3-point attempts, miss 16 of your 37 free throws while your top big man is held to only three points and two field goal attempts.
You turn the ball over to your leader Kwamain Mitchell and let him do the rest.
That is exactly what happened last night at the Chaifetz Arena as Kwamain exploded for a career-high 33 points to lead the Billikids past UMKC 61-54.
After sitting out SLU's loss to Missouri State, Kwamain came back with a vengence on Tuesday night. With the Bills trailing 41-35 in the second half, Kwamain was determined not to let his team lose another game to an in-state opponent.
The little guy keyed a 12-0 run with one daring drive to the hoop after another to wake up an otherwise lethargic basketball team that was being out-played and out-worked by an inspired UMKC squad up to that point.
That is what great players do. They sense the moment when their team is in trouble and they step up their level of play to a place where the other nine players cannot reach. Kwamain is one competitive little dude. I haven't seen that kind of take-it-to-the-basket backcourt dominance since the days of Marque Perry. Boy, I loved me some Marque Perry.
It was a fantastic effort by Kwamain. Had he made a few more free throws (he was three of nine from the stripe), he would have reached the level of some of the truly great SLU individual performances such as Larry Hughes' 40-point masterpiece at Marquette or Anthony Bonner's 45-point game during his senior year.
Other than Mitchell's performance, we really had trouble with the Roos. They started three athletic 6'5" to 6'6" wing players on the front line and we had trouble matching up with them. They were either too big for our smaller players or too quick for our bigs. Plus, they ran some nice backdoor motion and scored several easy layups. We usually have trouble with one of those mid-sized athletes, but here come the Roos' with a whole slew of those interchangable 6'5" parts. They were giving me a headache with their slashing moves to the hoop.
Defensively, they put a crowd around Willie Reed and limited him to only two shots. Willie has finally earned his college bonafides. After several big performances, Willie is now seeing defenses determined to stop him down low.
It is something that he is going to have to get used to, especially when we struggle to hit shots from the perimeter. Opposing teams are also backing off our four man (Brian Conklin, Corey Remekun or Jon Smith) when he has the ball and staying in front of Willie. When Cody Ellis arrives, he can potentially solve that problem with his ability to shoot. (I'll have more thoughts on Cody in my next blog report).
You can tell that Willie was frustrated at being bottled up offensively, but he has to play through that and not let other parts of his game slip. He has to continue to rebound, block shots and run the court with great energy and intensity. His offensive touches will come around soon enough.
As many basketball coaches will tell you; you only have the ball in your hands a few minutes out of the 40 that you play, especially if you are a big man. What you do the other 30+ minutes when you don't have the ball can determine your performance. Big Willie just has to keep pushing.
Sometimes, Willie could just turn and shoot the short turnaround jumper or jump hook. With his size and elevation, Willie can just shoot over most defenders. No double-teams can combat that. Just keep it nice and simple. He does not always have to use his up-and-under or baby Dream Shake moves (his new toys). Just a nice turnaround jumper will do.
Freshman Corey Remekun was fun to watch with his effort plays last night. Corey got the start and he grabbed six rebounds and block a shot. He was all over the place, crashing the boards and getting on the floor for loose balls. He gets a little excited on offense (5 turnovers last night), but that's not his game at this point. I enjoy his effort and enthusiasm. He could turn out to be a bigger version of Jeff Harris before he's done.
After an excellent performance at the free throw line againt Mo. State, we took a step backwards by shooting 21 of 37 last night. At one point, we were below 30 percent. I thought my broadcast partner Bob Ramsey was going to have a heart attack because he has always been a huge stickler for free throw shooting. Plain and simple, we have to improve.
That's about it for the UMKC game. It wasn't pretty, but it's nice to get back on the winning track. The kids now get a chance to enjoy the Christmas holiday for a few days, then it's back to work to get ready for Eastern Illinois next Tuesday night.
I'll have a preview then.
Until then, Go Bills.

Bills vs. Roos

2009-12-21T21:16:00.000-08:00

The Billikens welcome their second consecutive in-state opponent to town on Tuesday night when the UMKC Kangaroos visit the Chaifetz Arena.
The Billikens had some pretty good games with UMKC during the mid-1990's during Charlie Spoonhour's tenure at SLU. The Roos even came in to St. Louis and took a game by twenty points during the '96-'97 season. Future NBA player Tony Dumas really put it on us that night.
UMKC is a member of the Summit Conference. They are not blessed with a lot of size, but they have some pretty good players. The top scorer is 6'6" junior Jay Cousinard, who is averaging 14.6 points, three rebounds and two assists a game. His brother is former Wichita State standout P.J. Cousinard.
Sophomores Latreze Mushett (6'5") and Trey McKinney-Jones (6'4") are the Kangaroos' other double-figures scorers. Mushett averages 11.9 points and a team-high 6.1 rebounds a game. The aptly named Trey McKinney-Jones shoots 42 percent from 3-point range while averaging 10 points a game.
Junior Spencer Johnson, a 6'6" forward, averages 9.7 points while 6'1" junior Bakari Lewis averages 9.2 points.
Freshman guard Alex Bazzell, from St. Charles West High, is doing a nice job in 22 minutes a game. He is averaging 4.6 points and 2.8 assists per game. His assist to turnover ratio is 3.5 to 1, which is very good, especially for a freshman. Alex and Kramer Soderberg formed quite a backcourt combination at SCW for coach Terry Hollander.
Adding a little more size is 6'7" freshman Kirk Korver (Yes, of the Pella, Iowa Korvers) and 6'9" freshman Fred Chatman.
We are hopeful to have Kwamain Mitchell back in the lineup after missing the Missouri State game. Kwamain returned to practice on Monday, so we'll see what happens.
If Kwamain can go, it will be great. It goes without saying what Kwamain means to the team when he is in the lineup. If he is held out, it is another opportunity for others to step up and perform. It will be nice to see Willie Reed establish his inside presence early. He has posted nice numbers in the past two games, but we have had trouble getting the ball inside to him early in the game. Willie's first attempts in the last two games have been 17 foot jumpers. Usually, when the bigs start to float outside, that means he's not touching it in the post and he is itching for a shot, which usually results in a forced jumper.
Willie has a decent touch from the mid-range area, but we need to get him the ball early if the opportunity is there. If he faces double teams, like he did for much of the Mo. State game, he must do a better job of passing out of it to open teammates and trust that they can make open shots. Willie turned the ball over four times last Saturday and most of those TO's came against those hard double teams when he tried to force the issue.
Brian Conklin continues to battle, but from watching him, he still looks a little banged up to me. He is leaving some of his shots short, which means he's not getting the lift on his shots that I saw in Chicago when he scored against the bigger post players of Iowa State and Notre Dame. When BC is in the 10-12 point range and gets six to seven rebounds, it means so much.
I'd love to see Corey Remekun have another active performance like the one he had against Belmont. I would not be surprised to see increased minutes for the 6'7" freshman.
If we can hit some perimeter shots and be a little more stout defensively, we should be in a good position. We have to regain that defensive presence that we've displayed for much of our home schedule, but disappeared for large parts of the Mo. State game when they held us off. Once again, a little success from the perimeter early in the game would mean so much to the confidence of our young wing players.
It will be an interesting bounce-back game for the kids, but it's good to get right back out there to re-establish our home court advantage.
On a side note, I'm hearing that we could hear something about Cody Ellis this week, maybe as soon as Tuesday. We shall see. Every Bills fan I see asks me about Cody's situation with the NCAA Clearinghouse, but I'm in the same boat as everyone else. I know very little. I'm just waiting and hoping for the best. Or at least some closure one way or the other for the young man.
Naturally, I hope we have some good news on the young Aussie. We can use some after all the injuries that have beset the Billikens this season. I can't even imagine what this young man has gone through in his efforts to get over here to be a student-athlete. Hopefully, he will be rewarded for his persistence.
The action gets underway at 7 p.m. Hope to see you all there. If not, you can listen on 101-ESPN with yours truly and my Hall of Fame play-by-play partner Bob Ramsey on the call.
Welcome home Alex Bazzell and Go Bills!

On the SLU women's front, congratulations to senior center Amanda Kemezys on being named the Atlantic 10 Player of the Week. Amanda averaged 20 points a game in two games, posted two double-doubles and reached the 1,000-point plateau for her career last week. AK-55 is putting together quite a senior season.
You go girl.

Mules ranked No. 1 in Division II

2009-12-21T19:06:00.001-08:00

The Central Missouri State University Mules are currently the No. 1 team in NCAA Division II basketball.
The Mules(10-0)have the top spot in the most recent NABC Division II rankings, thanks to the efforts of a pair of former area standouts. The Mules are led by former St. Louis Post-Dispatch Co-Players of the Year Sanijay Watts (Jennings) and Alex Moosman (St. Francis Borgia). The former prep rivals have now joined together in Warrensburg to make Central Missouri State one of the nation's top Division II programs under the direction of former Mizzou assistant coach Kim Anderson.
Watts (pictured left), a 6'4" senior forward, has been dominant for the Mules this season. He is averaging 20 points and nine rebounds a game. He also leads the team in field goal percentage.
Watts had 33 points and 10 rebounds in the Mules most recent victory over LIU-C.W. Post in Las Vegas over the weekend.
Moosman (pictured, right) is the team leader in the Mules' backcourt, averaging 16 points a game while leading the team in 3-point shooting.
Central Missouri State is seeking a return to the Final Four of the NCAA Division II Tournament. The Mules finished 30-5 last season and lost a heartbreaker in the national semifinals.
It's great to see the local kids doing their thing at the next level and making us in "The Lou" very proud.

Watts and Moosman photos courtesy of umcoathletics.com

SLU-MSU post-game thoughts

2009-12-20T15:55:00.001-08:00

Hello Bills fans. I just got back from a full day of watching my nephews play in a youth basketball tournament.
Now, I have a chance to share some of my thoughts from last night's loss to the Bears.
First, the impact of Kwamain's absence in the lineup speaks for itself, so I won't spend a lot of time dwelling on that. If you're a SLU fan, you know how much #3 means to the team in all aspects of the game. It cannot be measured by only his numbers.
Also, it would take credit from what I think is a fine MSU team. Cuonzo has put together a well-balanced team that might make a little noise in the Valley this year. They really took some lumps last year in league play, but he added a nice guard in Adam Leonard and some athleticism in Jermaine Mallet, Keith Pickens and the rest of the crew is a year older and more experienced.
His best player, Kyle Weems, was saddled with foul trouble and Leonard was held under control until the late stages of the game when he broke loose. Still, the Bears found a lot of different answers because they had depth. They got 22 points from their bench, including nine from Howell Central's Justin Fuehrmeyer.
We really had trouble defending Mallett, a 6'4" juco transfer with great hops. Matching up with the athletic swing player has been a problem for SLU teams for many years.
It will be interesting to see if they can keep it going once league play starts. I think they are better equipped this year to tackle the MVC slate.
As for us, we were held to 39 percent shooting from the field. We shot only five for 18 from 3-point range. We missed something like our first eight treys, which hurt us because the Bears threw a double-team at Willie most of the night. If we could have hit some of those open looks in the first half, it might have helped our chances. We had three consecutive possessions in the first half when Christian Salecich, Justin Jordan and Kyle Cassity had wide open looks, but could not connect. If we had hit a few of those, it would have been big.
I think the most positive thing I saw last night was our free throw shooting, which has been a sore spot for the team this season. Last night, we made 18 of 23 shots for a robust 78 percent. That's pretty good for a team that has been struggling. Unfortunately, the Bears made 17 of 19 for 86 percent. Blake Ahearn would have been proud of his alma mater's performance at the charity stripe.
I was pleased with how Justin Jordan stepped up last night on the offensive end. He scored a season-high 15 points, including 8 of 10 from the free throw line. He also had five assists and one turnover as he did a nice job of creating some nice plays for his teammates. Defensively, it was a bit of a struggle for J.J., especially when it came to keeping Fuehrmeyer in front of him. That is definitely something that J.J. will have to improve on as the season goes on if he wants to stay in Rick's good graces.
Christian Salecich added a season-high 15 points. He still struggled a little bit with the handles with four turnovers, but he did hit a couple of 3-pointers in the second half when we were trying to come back.
Willie was Willie. He had 19 points, eight rebounds, two assists, two blocks and two steals. He made the most dazzling play of the night when he came from nowhere to block a wide-open driving layup by Fuehrmeyer in the first half. He came from nowhere to block it and it got the crowd really juiced.
Kyle Cassity got the start at the point in Kwamain's absence. It was tough spot for Kyle to be in. Cuonzo took his best athlete, Keith Pickens, and put him on Kyle and he really made it tough for him to get the ball upcourt and get into our offense. I was suprised when I looked at the final stat sheet and realized that he only took one shot in 34 minutes. He did have three assists and two steals, but he is still reluctant to shoot the ball.
We had some success with a box-and-one defense for part of the first half. I thought we might see some kind of combination defense and it helped us stay close in the first half.
It is always tough to lose at home. It does not happen too often. It was probably hard to see the Bears' fans pretty much take over the Chaifetz Arena as well.
There's not much time to dwell on the loss because UMKC will be paying us a visit in a couple of days. Haven't heard about Kwamain's availability for that game. Either way, we have to be ready to play and avoid another homecourt loss.
See you on Tuesday night. I'll have a preview on Tuesday.
Go Bills!

Bears best Bills

2009-12-20T06:45:00.000-08:00

The Billikids went down to defeat for the first time at home this season. Missouri State took a 73-63 victory over SLU to remain undefeated at 10-0. The Billikens dropped to 7-4 on the season.
I'll have my thoughts on the game later today. I had Mrs. Austin at the game with me and we went out for the evening after the game. I'll be watching a lot of youth basketball action today, so I'll have a chance to give you most post-game take sometime this afternoon or early evening.
In short, a good effort, but not enough gas in the tank. The Bears are good, solid team with a lot of depth and we struggled to match up with them defensively. It goes without saying what #3 means to the Billikens, but credit Cuonzo Martin and MSU as well. They are good.
Talk to you later. Go Bills.

Bills vs. Bears

2009-12-19T05:14:00.001-08:00

The undefeated Missouri State Bears pay a call to the Chaifetz Arena for a 7 p.m. regional showdown with the Billikids.
Second-year coach Cuonzo Martin, a former star player at East St. Louis Lincoln, has the Bears off and running with a 9-0 record this season.
The Bears are hoping to make some noise in the Missouri Valley Conference this season after sinking into the second division in 2009. They have good size up front, some very athletic players on the wing and a more experienced backcourt.
MSU's backcourt has been bolstered by the play of 6'1" junior Adam Leonard, a transfer from Eastern Kentucky. Leonard is a tough kid, who can make 3-point shots and give you a basket when your team needs it. He led EKU to the NCAA Tournament as a freshman, so the kid can play. He's averaging 13 points a game while shooting 49 percent from the 3-point line.
Mo. State's top player is 6'6" sophomore Kyle Weems, an All-Valley Freshman team member in 2009. He has stepped up his play even more as a sophomore, averaging a team-high 14.8 points and 5.7 rebounds a game. He shoots 51 percent from the field and 44 percent from long distance. At 230 pounds, he will pose a matchup problem for whoever is guarding him.
The Bears have some other impressive athletes on the wing, especially 6'4" freshman swingman Jermaine Mallett, who averages 7.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and a few highlight-reel dunks along the way. Show-Me State products Keith Pickens, 6'4" (Oakville) a prodigious leaper and 6'5" Michael Porter (Sikeston), bring activity to the swing positions up front. Pickens has been a starter in most of the games.
Helping Leonard in the backcourt at 6'1" junior Nafis Ricks and 6'0" Cardell Patterson and senior guard Justin Fuehrmeyer, a graduate of Francis Howell Central.
The Bears also have a little size up front as well with 6'11" sophomore Caleb Patterson, who averages 7.4 points and a modest two rebounds a game. Junior Will Creekmore, a 260-pounder checks in at about six points a game. Another local player in the mix is 6'6" freshman Jerome Jones, who played a Miller Career Academy.
The Bears have good balance and will play solid defense, which is the personality of Martin, who was one of the high school and college game's great competitors during his days at Lincoln High and Purdue, where he became quite familiar with winning championships. He led Lincoln to state titles in '88 and '89 and was a key player in three Big Ten Conference titles during his career.
It will be a big challenge for the Billikens, which got even bigger with the news that sophomore guard Kwamain Mitchell will sit out the game with the eye injury suffered near the end of last Wednesday night's victory over Belmot.
Without Mitchell, the Billikens will be without their lead dog, their floor general, who can also create offense with things break down.
Sophomore Kyle Cassity will return to the starting lineup in Kwamain's place. Kwamain's absence will definitely hurt us, but at the same time, it is a great opportunity for one of our young perimeter players to earn is college bonafides tonight.
Either Cassity, Christian Salecich, Femi John or Justin Jordan will have to give us a big individual performance. Or even better, all four of them step up their level of play. Don't try to do too much because Kwamain's not there, but do your job and be a little more aggressive offensively, especially Kyle, who started looking to shoot more against Belmont.
Although MSU will provide a stiff challenge to our young wings, being a home and not having suffered a loss in the comfy confines of Chaifetz will hopefully provide a source of comfort and confidence for these young men to rise up and give us a solid performance in the absence of their leader.
Getting into our offense will also be a big key as well. Last year, when Kwamain missed the Richmond game, we had a devil of a time getting some offensive flow and we lost a key conference home game. And that was with Tommie and Kevin.
At least the guys have had some experience playing without Kwamain for long stretches. He missed all but two minutes of the first half against Iowa State in Chicago and we trailed by only three at halftime.
It goes without saying that we need Willie Reed and Brian Conklin to give us similar performances like they did Wednesday night when they combined for 29 points and 18 rebounds. Another solid effort by Corey Remekun off the bench will also help.
With only eight healthy scholarship players, foul trouble must be avoided as well. Another foul-fest like we had on Wednesday night against Belmont and we may end up having to suit up former Billiken greats Harry Rogers and Jimmy "Bowhead" Irving, who are being honored at halftime with the rest of the 1971 Billikens team that won the MVC. Could we see a little zone or combo defense tonight? Who knows. I doubt it, but I would not be surprised.
We really have to be very resourceful to pull this one out tonight. I think the home crowd must bring their A-Game tonight as well. If you are coming to the game tonight, be prepared to have no voice left when you leave the arena. Tonight is not the night to just sit on your hands and observe the game as if you are in the movie theatre. I'd love to hear constant noise from start to finish.
This is going to be a struggle. Your Billikids are facing a little adversity tonight with an undefeated regional rival in your house and your team leader not in the lineup tonight. You can help make up some of the difference with your "presence." Yes, you can have a big impact on tonight's game from start to finish. For all of my friends on the Billiken Board who read this blog regularly. It's time to really, really bring it tonight. If you're bringing a friend to the game, tell them it's time to bring it as well. You don't have to wait for Willie's first dunk to bring the noise. Make it happen before the opening tip.
The Chaifetz Arena is your home court as well and you have to fight like hell to protect it tonight as much as the eight young men who will be wearing the white uniforms tonight.
It will be another fun atmosphere tonight as the Bears are another nice regional rivalry to have on the schedule, much like Southern Illinois.
There will be a lot of Bears fans in the house, either local alums or folks from the East Side in support of Cuonzo, which should add to the festivities.
Look forward to seeing you all there. And if not, you can always catch the action on 101-ESPN with yours truly and SLU Hall of Fame play-by-play man Bob Ramsey on the call.
Go Bills!

Viz Girls Tournament Kicks off holiday season

2009-12-18T07:23:00.000-08:00

The Holiday basketball tournament season officially gets underway this weekend when the Visitation Girls Holiday Tournament begins with first-round games tonight and Saturday.
The nationally-ranked Incarnate Word Red Knights received the No. 1 seed. IWA is undefeated and coming off the championship of the prestigious Fort Smith Tournament in Arkansas last week.
Incarnate Word is led by the excellent trio of 5'11" senior Jazmin Hitchens, 5'7" senior guard Chloe Nelson and 6'1" junior center Brianna Puni.
The No. 2 seed belongs to IWA's big rival, St. Joseph's. The Angels are also undefeated and playing excellent basketball behind of the play of 6'1" sophomore twins Maddie and Morgan Stock, 6'3" freshman Sydney Stipanovich and 5'9" senior Katye Nash.
Other teams to watch in the field are Class 5 Final Four participants Hazelwood Central and Nerinx Hall, tourney newcomer Fort Zumwalt West, Parkway South, Kirkwood, Lafayette, host Visitation and Francis Howell Central.
First-round games will be held tonight at 4, 5:30, 7 and 8:30 p.m and Saturday at 3, 4:30, 6 and 7:30 p.m.
The quarterfinals will be held on Sunday afternoon with the semifinals set for Saturday, Dec. 26 at 6:30 and 8 p.m.
The championship game is set for Sunday, December 27 at 7:30 p.m.

Local women's semi-pro team to hold tryouts

2009-12-18T07:03:00.000-08:00

The St. Louis Surge is a new women's semi-pro basketball team in the emerging Women's Blue Chip Semi-Pro Basketball League.
The Surge will be holding tryouts on January 2 for any women who are interesting in playing. The tryouts will be held at Trinity Church (3515 Shackleford) in Hazelwood, Mo. from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The coach is the team is Mesho Morrow, a native of East St. Louis and current assistant coach at Florissant Valley Community College.
There are more than 50 teams in the WBCBL from all over the country.
For more information on the tryouts, you can contact team owner Randy Steinbaker at (314) 968-8070 or go to the team website at www.stlsurgebasketball.com.

AK-55 scores 1,000

2009-12-18T06:19:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to Saint Louis University women's basketball standout Amanda Kemezys on scoring the 1,000th point of her career last night.
The Belleville East product scored a game-high 17 points in SLU's 68-62 road victory at Oakland U. on Thursday night. Kemezys now has 1,009 points for her career. She joins senior teammate Katie Paganelli in SLU's 1,000-point club. Paganelli scored her 1,000th point on Dec. 9.
The 6'4" Kemezys is enjoying an outstanding senior season for the Billikens. She is currently averaging 15 points and 10 rebounds a game to lead the team. She also leads the team in offensive rebounds, field goal shooting and blocked shots. Kemezys has been a model of consistency in the low post with her scoring and rebounding.
I'm very proud to see Amanda develop into such as quality basketball player at the collegiate level. I can remember back several years ago when I talked to then-SLU coach Jill Pizzotti about Amanda when she was still at Belleville East. She was a good player, but not receiving a lot of recruiting attention. I can remember telling Jill to give this girl a look and see what she thought.
Amanda signed with SLU and has battled injury problems throughout her career, but she has stayed the course to become on the program's best players in this decade. Her hard work and persistence has really paid off in some great results. She earned some Atlantic 10 Conference postseason recognition for her efforts last year and she is well on her way to doing the same this year.
A special tip of the cap to Amanada Kemezys. Job well done, young lady.

photo courtesy of slubillikens.com

SLU outlasts Belmont

2009-12-17T07:11:00.000-08:00

The Billikids had to punch the clock on Wednesday night to take a hard-fought 75-67 victory over Belmont at the Chaifetz Arena.
It was a tough, physical game where both teams defended each other pretty well. It reminded me of a conference game instead of a game where two programs were meeting for the first time.
There were bodies flying everywhere, people diving on the floor and plenty of charges taken on the night. There were a total of 51 fouls called and both teams combined to shoot 63 free throws. Neither team shot well from 3-point range, but both teams found some success pounding the ball inside to their big men. My kind of game. Inside-out.
As I expected, Belmont provided the Bills with a pretty good test with their overall size up front and quickness in the backcourt. Overall, I thought the keys to the victory were our defense on the perimeter and offensive rebounding.
For much of the game, we really did a nice job of defending their perimeter players and we forced 19 turnovers. To do that against a disciplined team like Belmont was very encouraging to see.
We finished the game with 18 offensive rebounds, which helped a great deal since we shot only 41 percent from the field. Brian Conklin had a game-high six offensive boards while Corey Remekun came off the bench to grab three offensive rebounds.
Belmont did a nice job of getting the ball inside to their bigs and they caused us some problems, especially their 6'9" sophomore Adam Hedgepeth, who scored most of his 13 points in the first half. Luckily, he found himself in foul trouble and was forced to sit much of the second half.
For the first time this season, we had to play a big stretch of the game without Willie Reed, who picked up his second foul early in the game and sat out the last 15 minutes of the first half. We've seen the kids play large stretches without Kwamain Mitchell and Conklin this year, so I was interested in seeing how we would respond to not having Willie out there.
Willie's absence forced Remekun into more duty last night and the kid was tremendous with four rebounds, one steal and a season-high six blocked shots. Corey played a season-high 21 minutes and played all of them hard. Corey averages 12 minutes a game, so he was extended quite a bit.
He played himself into exhaustion a couple of times, which is understandable for someone who is not used to logging big minutes, especially against a team with excellent size. Corey played solid post defense and grabbed some key offensive rebounds to extend some possessions at key times of the game.
Corey was supposed to redshirt this year, but he has been pressed into duty as a young freshman and he has really improved since the beginning of practice. He is going to be a solid frontcourt contributor for this team because he doesn't mind doing the hard work, playing post defense and rebounding.
Before the game, I singled out Brian Conklin as someone who needed to come up big and he did an excellent job with 13 points and nine rebounds, which tied for the team lead. Brian was tough all night as he was at home with the physical nature of the game.
He got a little too physical near the end of the game when he picked up a technical foul for popping a pesky Belmont defender with an elbow after the player had fouled Brian upside the head and poked him in the eye at the same time.
It was good to see him get involved in the action offensively again after a few quiet games. He would have had an even bigger game, but he shot 7 of 14 from the free throw line. He has been very good despite still playing on that bad ankle.
The top scorers of the night were Kwamain and Willie. Kwamain finished with a game high 20 points on seven of 12 shooting from the field. With Willie out of the game with fouls, Kwamain felt the urgency of the moment and started to look for his shot aggressively, which I like. He got to the basket and hit some nice mid-range jumpers off the screen, plus he hit two of his three attempts from 3-point range.
Kwamain missed the last three minutes of the game when he was poked in the eye and had to be taken to the hospital as a precaution. Everything seems to be allright, but I still get a little nervous when I see our point guard being taken from the game after getting knocked around.
Justin Jordan did a nice job of holding things down when Kwamain left the game as Belmont made one final push at the end. J.J. hit four of his six free throws down the stretch and finished with eight points.
Willie finished the game with 16 points, nine rebounds and three blocks in only 20 minutes of action. After sitting out most of the first half, the Bills went inside to Willie early and often in the second half and he responded quickly with a couple of quick baskets.
Femi John finished the game with five points and five rebounds, but was also saddled with foul trouble much of the night. Christian Salecich struggled with 1 of 6 shooting, but he made some key free throws down the stretch. Kyle Cassity was 1 of 7 from the field, but I think everyone was pleased to see Kyle look to take open shots, instead of looking to pass the ball. They just have to relax and play with confidence and the shots will start to fall again.
Overall, it was a nice win against a well-coached team that wins a lot and is accustomed to post-season play. Belmont is well on their way to 20 victories again and they will battle for the Atlantic Sun title. and just about everyone on their team will be back next year, so look out.
It was also good preparation for Saturday night's foe, Missouri State, which will be another tough game.
I'll have a preview on Saturday.
Until then, Go Bills!

Bills host Belmont

2009-12-16T06:18:00.002-08:00

The Billikids return to action tonight with a home game against Belmont University of the Atlantic Sun Conference. It is the first meeting between the two programs.
The Bruins are currently 7-2 and riding a six-game winning streak, which includes three consecutive road wins.
Under the direction of veteran coach Rick Byrd, Belmont has been one of the most well-respected mid-major programs in the country. Once a NAIA powerhouse, Belmont made the successful transition to Division I several years ago with Byrd orchestrating the entire process.
They average well over 20 victories a season during the past six years, which included three consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament. Everyone remembers the near-stunner they pulled off against Duke a couple a years back, losing 71-70 in the last second. For those who follow the game, this is also the same Belmont program that went into Columbia and beat a very talented Mizzou team not too many years ago.
As a side note, Belmont U. (located in Nashville) was also the site for one of the Presidential debates with Barack Obama and John McCain.
The Bruins graduated several key players from their successful run of post-season berths, but they have found several new players to step right in and keep the winning going. That's the sign of a good program.
This year, the Bruins are putting up some pretty impressive numbers. They averaged close to 80 points a game and shoot a robust 49 percent from the field. The Bruins are disciplined and they practice good shot selection. When you shoot that high a percentage from the field, that means that you are executing your offense in a near-flawless manner.
Belmont is big this year, which is different from it's guard-oriented teams of the recent past. Their top scorer is 6'9" senior forward Keaton Belcher, who averages 13.4 points and four rebounds a game. Belcher shoots 49 percent from the field, but he also shoots 40 percent from 3-point range. He leads the team in 3-point attempts and makes.
Mick Hedgepeth is a 6'9" 230-pound sophomore who averages 13.3 points and 5.4 rebounds. He does most of his damage in the paint, where he shoots 67 percent from the field. Another big who averages in double figures is 6'10" 250-pound Scott Saunders, who averages 10 points. That's a nice big-man rotation to have at the four and five spots.
Belmont's top wing threat is 6'3" freshman Ian Clark, who averages 12.9 points while shooting 44 percent from the field. Juniors Jon House (6'6") and Jordan Campbell (6'5") give the Bruins some size and experience on the perimeter.
Sharing the point guard duties are 6'1" freshman Kerron Johnson and 5'11" sophomore Drew Hanlen, a young man we all know so well from his stellar days at Webster Groves High. His little sister Ashley, plays for Shimmy Gray-Miller's women's team at SLU.
There will be a lot of St. Louis folks in the house tonight to see Drew, not only from Webster Groves, but from the STL basketball community, because Drew has really found a niche as a basketball skills development trainer extraordinaire. He has already written a book on basketball skills training and does training all over the country for kids of all ages as part of the Nike family. He is dynaminte in that arena as well as being a fine collegiate player.
Drew is doing an excellent job of getting the ball into the hands of the offensive weapons. In about 21 minutes a game, Drew is averaging four points a game, but he is also averaging a team-high 4.8 assists per game. His assists to turnover ration is nearly three to one, which is tremendous. Johnson provides a little more offensive pop at 7.8 points. He also leads the team in steals.
The Bruins should provide an excellent challenge to the Billikens because of their ability to execute their offense and put the ball in the basket from several different spots on the floor.
Of course, the key to success begins with our ability to defend and disrupt their offensive rhythm. We've done a nice job at home at taking away the major stregths of opposing team's offenses and limiting their shooting percentages to below 40 percent.
I suspect Brian Conklin will get the assignment of guarding Belcher, their top scorer. Brian has done a much better job of guarding bigs that like to roam the perimeter and shoot the 3-pointer. I was very pleased with the job he did on Southern Illinois' top scorer Carlton Fay, who is a big man who can really stroke it from downtown. Belcher will provide a similar challenge as 55 of his 85 field goal attempts are from downtown.
I would also love to see Brian get more involved on the offensive end, like he did in Chicago, when he had two excellent games against Iowa State and Notre Dame. When he and Willie Reed are going well together, it really opens things up for the perimeter guys.
Of course, Willie must continue his excellent play and productivity, plus we must get some positive minutes from freshman Corey Remekun and Jon Smith. If we can play solid defense, it should also create some transition opportunities for the kids, especially for Kwamain Mitchell in the open court and some spot-up 3-pointers.
This should be a very interesting two-game stretch for the kids. I know a lot of people are looking forward to Saturday night's big game against an undefeated Missouri State team, but do not sleep on this Belmont team.
Although it falls in the category of "guarantee" or "buy" game, there will be nothing easy about it. All you have to do is go back to previous "buy" games against Louisiana Tech, Arkansas-Little Rock (coached by current SLU Associate head coach Porter Moser), Oral Roberts and Sam Houston State. All of those unheralded teams left town with a victory over the Billikens. They weren't big-name schools, but they were excellent, well-coached teams that know what they were doing.
I suspect we will see the same type of team in Belmont tonight, but I know our guys will be fully prepared for the Bruins and you should see a much, more focused SLU team tonight than the one we saw last weekend against Rockhoust.
I'm looking forward to tonight. It should be fun.
The fun begins at 7 p.m. Hope to see you all there. If not, you can catch it on the radio with yours truly and my SLU Hall of Fame play-by-play partner Bob Ramsey on the call on 101-ESPN.
Welcome home Drew Hanlen and of course, Go Bills!

Borgia Clips Chaminade

2009-12-15T11:14:00.000-08:00

In a battle of state-championship teams St. Francis Borgia defeated Chaminade 81-75 in a very entertaining game at Borgia on Monday night.
All-American guard Bradley Beal scored a game-high 33 points to lead the Red Devils, but the one-two senior punch of Tyler Ressel and Nathan Scheer overcame Beal's excellence on this night.
The 6'1" Ressel scored 29 points to lead Borgia while Scheer added 26 points.
The teams were running and gunning from the start and the scoreboard was lighting up like a Christmas tree from the opening tip.
Chaminade led 41-39 at halftime and scored the first four points of the second half to take its biggest lead of the game at 45-39.
That was when Borgia sophomore Bryce Dolan changed the game with two consecutive 3-pointers to tie the game at 45-45. Dolan's two bombs keyed a 12-2 Borgia run that forged the Knights into the lead, which they would never relinquish. The hot-shooting Knights ended up making 12 3-pointers on the evening.
The 5'10" Dolan has really stepped into a nice role as Borgia's point guard to support to two prime-time seniors. The young man has been waiting for his moment his entire life. From the time he was a toddler, I have been watching him dribble a basketball around Borgia games. The big stage has not been too big for him.
The victory was Borgia's 23rd in a row. Their last loss came at Chaminade in January of last season. They have not lost since. They are also in the midst of an impressive stretch of victories, having defeated Whitfield, Jefferson City Helias and Chaminade in succession. Next for the Knights is a visit to a very talented CBC team on Friday, then it's St. Charles West next week.
Overall, it was a great high school game to watch with two of the premiere teams in the area. Both teams took turns making big runs at each other and each team responded in kind.
It was also a nice atmosphere at the game as well. Adding to the atmosphere was the Borgia student section, which all showed up dressed in tropical, summer clothes to poke a little Beal, who has committed to the University of Florida.
The Borgia students all looked like they were dressed for the beach in their flip-flops, Hawaiian shirts, goggles, while doing the Gator chop for Beal's benefit. They also had signs that said "Welcome to the Swamp," while one student had a stuffed aligator strapped to his back. The kids were a hoot. They were fun, creative without being abusive.
After the game, a couple of the students presented Beal with the "Swamp" sign and gave his mother the stuffed aligator.
It was a fun evening of entertaining basketball.
The last two high school games I've seen have been great. The McCluer North-Columbia Rock Bridge game and the Borgia-Chaminade games have been excellent. I'm a little spoiled right now because it's so early in the season.
Hopefully, we'll see a little more quality play like this as we approach the holiday season.

Earl on the air this week

2009-12-14T08:21:00.001-08:00

Wednesday Night, Dec. 16: I will be on the call for the Saint Louis University-Belmont game at 7 p.m. (6:45 p.m. pregame) on 101-ESPN with SLU Hall of Fame play-by-play man Bob Ramsey.

Friday Night, Dec. 18: Yours truly and B.J. Schulte will be calling the Metro Catholic Conference game between Chaminade and host DeSmet at 7 p.m. on Prepcasts.com

Saturday night, Dec. 19: Bob Ramsey and myself will be on the call for the Saint Louis U.-Missouri State game at the Chaifetz Arena at 7 p.m (6:45 pre-game on 101-ESPN.

Showdown at Borgia Tonight

2009-12-14T07:57:00.000-08:00

Class 5 state champion Chaminade will travel to Class 4 state champion St. Francis Borgia tonight in a big showdown in Washington, Mo.
Both teams are currently undefeated and looking very impressive this year, coming off of state-championship seasons. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
Chaminade is 5-0, which includes the championship of the Pattonville Tournament and Metro Catholic Conference wins over DeSmet and Vianney. Borgia is 6-0 after winning its own Thanksgiving Tournament as well as big victories over Whitfield and Jefferson City Helias last week.
Both teams have big guns who are leading the way early in the season. Chaminade is led by 6'4" junior All-American guard Bradley Beal (pictured, left), who is averaging 26 points a game. Beal, who has already committed to Florida, is also averaging 3.6 assists and 2.4 steals a game while playing a lot of point guard for the Red Devils.
The Knights will counter with their own All-Star player in 6'5" senior Nathan Scheer (pictured, right), who's headed to Missouri State. Scheer is averaging 24 points a game, including a sizzling 21 for 36 from beyond the 3-point line. Scheer dropped a season-high 36 points in Borgia's thrilling 78-76 victory over Whitfield last Wednesday night.
The supporting casts for both teams are very solid. Beal gets major support from his fellow junior class members, who were all part of last year's championship run as sophomores.
Junior forward Brendan Kelly is averaging 11 points and 10 rebounds a game while 6'2" junior guard Luke Bumgarner is averaging 10 points. Other juniors in the mix are 6'1" guard Tevin Evans (5.6 pts.), 6'3" Aaron Lombardo (4.6 ppg.) and 6'2" Giovanni Ferrara. Sophomore point guard Matt Greer also sees time in the rotation.
The Knights also feature 6'1" senior guard Tyler Ressel, who is averaging 15.8 points and shooting 39 percent from 3-point range. Ben Ruether, a 6'6" junior averages 8.7 points while leading the Knights in rebounding. Sophomore guard Bryce Dolan is playing well in his first varsity season, averaging 9.7 points and shooting 39 percent from long distance. Senior Sam Tochtrop is also contributing six points a game.
Borgia will be looking to snap a three-game losing streak against Chaminade. The Red Devils won last year's meeting 76-67 at Chaminade. Beal scored a game-high 30 points to lead CCP while Ressel scored 18 and Scheer added 16 for Borgia. In 2008, Scheer scored a game-high 28 points, but it wasn't enough as Chaminade escaped with a 62-61 road victory at Borgia.
It might be a good idea to get there early tonight, folks. It should be a good one.

Bradley Beal photo courtesy of Wiley Price: St. Louis American
Nathan Scheer photo courtesy of Saintlouis.scout.com

Bills hold off Rockhurst

2009-12-13T08:42:00.000-08:00

The Bills raised their record to 6-3 with a 66-53 victory over Rockhurst in a game that was probably more interesting than it needed to be.
SLU led from start to finish, but the Hawks put up a game effort and did not go away. With just under five minutes to play, Rockhurst was only five points down and very much in the game.
Despite the fact that their top player, Aaron Hill, was held to seven points on 3 of 13 shooting, Rockhurst hustled and worked and gave themselves a legitimate opportunity to pull off the big upset, which is all you can ask for as a Division II school playing on the road against a Division I team.
With the Billikens clinging to that 55-50 lead, they went inside to Willie Reed twice and he delivered two big baskets to help the Billikens hold off Rockhurst down the stretch.
I know many people were expecting a big blowout victory over a Division II school, but I knew better.
As I wrote in my preview, this would be a test of our focus. Especially, coming off a very hard four-game stretch (Iowa State, Notre Dame, Georgia, Southern Illinois), followed up by a week of final exams.
Toss in the fact that it is still a young team that has to face a motivated Division II team that has nothing to lose. Shake well and voila, you have yourself a two possession game with five minutes left.
Anyway, it's still better to learn those valuable lessons after a victory than in a humbling loss.
Kwamain Mitchell led the way with 17 points while Willie put up another double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds. Christian Salecich contributed 11 points and helped do a nice defensive job of Rockhurst's Hill, who is averaging 20 points a game. Brian Conklin had six points and seven rebounds. He got a few more touches inside and delivered a couple of big hoops in the second half. I hope Brian gets the ball a little more inside. He was tremendous in Chicago on offense and we'll need his interior play as the season goes along.
Willie grabbed 13 rebounds, but he got some nice help on the boards, especially from guards Femi John and Justin Jordan. Femi grabbed a season-high eight rebounds while the 5'9" Jordan grabbed six rebounds. Brian Conklin grabbed seven rebounds while Jon Smith came off the bench to grab five boards. SLU enjoyed a healthy 48-33 edge on the board.
Once again, our free throw shooting was a sore spot. We shot 11 for 25 for a paltry 44 percent. OMG! At one point in the second half, we were under 40 percent for the game.
We also had 12 turnovers and only seven assists, plus we had a long, dry spell in the second half. Kwamain opened the second half with two consecutive 3-pointers, then we proceeded to miss our next 10 shots.
As a said before, I could see this game coming. Our concentration level wasn't the best, but it's good to still come away with a win. There's still a valuable lesson to learn from this game, but least you didn't have to suffer a humbling loss to learn it.
The home-stand continues on Wednesday night with a visit from Belmont. Don't get too alarmed Bills fans. We will be better.
I'll have a preview on Wednesday. Talk to you then.
Go Bills!

Friday night hoops

2009-12-12T07:00:00.000-08:00

The McCluer North Stars defeated Columbia Rock Bridge 79-67 to win the championship game of the Troy/Peoples Bank Tournament on Friday night.
Rock Bridge, which finished third in the Class 5 state tournament, came in as the No. 1 seed, averaging more than 90 points a game. The Bruins had been beating opponents by more than 50 points a game.
On this night, it was McCluer North that provided a reminder that they had won the Troy Tournament for three consecutive years. Last night's big win gave them their fourth Troy Tourney title.
It was a great battle between two heavyweight teams as the lead changed hands several times in the first half, which McCluer North led 35-32 at halftime.
With the score tied at 37-37 early in the third quarter, North senior guard Ollie Roundtree hit two long 3-pointers in succession. Two run-out baskets by forward Denzel Reed completed the 10-0 run for the Stars, who held off many Rock Bridge charges for the rest of the game.
The 5'9" Roundtree was the star of the evening with 20 points, 10 assists, six rebounds and two steals. The 6'5" Reed finished with 18 points and 6'5" Ryun Davis added 14 points.
The Stars did an excellent job on the defensive end in disrupting Rock Bridge's machine-line offensive rhythm. Their defense forced many quick 3-pointers and turnovers by Rock Bridge, which resulted in easy run-out baskets.
Senior Demarcus Carey also did a nice job of guarding Rock Bridge standout Ricky Kreklow. The 6'6" All-Stater finished with a game-high 21 points, but he had to work hard to get them as the Stars defenders hounded him all night and made him have to take tough shots on a consistent basis. To Kreklow's credit, he made some very difficult shots on the night.
It was a very good championship game for two teams that have very high aspirations in the 2010 season. Rock Bridge has a very talented team that will get even better once it regains the services of standout junior guard Justin Miller, who is still out with an injury.
For North, it was a big statement win that reminds everyone that the Stars are still around and a program to be reckoned with.
It was also a very busy week for McCluer North, which won four games this week, including a Tuesday night victory against Oakville, giving the Stars two victories over Final Four teams from 2009. McCluer North plays a fifth game this week when they travel to Marion (Ill.) to play in the Marion Shootout against the host school.

The championship game of the National City/Webster Groves Classic will be a neighborhood battle between host Webster Groves and Kirkwood. Roberts Gymnasium will be rocking around 4:30 p.m. with the teams tip off.
Webster Groves raced to an early lead and cruised to a 77-50 lead over Belvidere (Ill.). Senior Cortez Conners led the potent Statesmen attack with 18 points. The Statesmen are still in the process of getting their basketball legs with several members of the team playing such vital roles in the run to the Class 5 state title in football two weeks ago. Jay Blossom's crew should be very salty after Christmas.
Meanwhile, Kirkwood battled their way to a 49-46 victory over Lee's Summit North in the other semifinal game. I was very impressed by the play of 6'3" senior Mycole Pruitt in Kirkwood's first-round victory over Maplewood. The muscular Pruitt played like a man-child in scoring 28 points that night. His strength and athleticism makes him a tough match-up for high school kids.

St. Charles West defeated Fort Zumwalt South 48-45 to repeat as champions of the SCW Warriors Classic. The two teams have met in the championship game for three consecutive years. Junior forward Christian Kirk led the winners with 21 points. Junior guard J.R. Alexander scored a game-high 27 points for the Bulldogs.

Old Jefferson County rivals Hillsboro and DeSoto will meet in the championship game of the Gene Steighorst/Hillsboro Tournament tonight. The host Hawks edged Francis Howell Central 46-45 while DeSoto slipped by JeffCo rival Festus 58-56 in two very exciting semifinal contests.

On the East Side, Edwardsville defeated Belleville West 59-53 in a battle of undefeated Southwestern Conference teams. Edwardsville had four players in double figures, led by sophomore Quincy Morgan's 13 points. The big differene in the game for E'ville was 6'4" 250-pound football standout Rodney Coe, who scored all seven of his points in the fourth quarter.
I watched Rodney play last Tuesday and he gives the Tigers a big boost inside with his size and athleticism on the front line. He is a real nimble young man. This is his first year out for basketball, so he is just going to get better as he continues to develop under the tutledge of veteran coach Mike Waldo.
The O'Fallon Panthers continue to roll with a 68-55 victory at Collinsville. O'Fallon is now 8-0. Junior Roosevelt Jones scored 26 points. The 6'4" Jones is playing at a very high level.
East St. Louis has quietly posted two big SWC wins this week. After knocking off Alton earlier this week, the Flyers defeated Belleville East last night 59-50 as football standout Keonte Minor scored a team-high 19 points.
Minor is a standout wide receiver on the Flyers high-powered football team, but he is also a known quantity in basketball, having been a starter since his freshman year.

St. Franis Borgia continued its early season roll with a 61-44 victory at Jefferson City Helias in a battle of Class 4 Final Four participants.

Prep Shootout at Lindenwood Today

2009-12-12T06:55:00.000-08:00

The Rameybasketball.com Midwest Basketball Shootout will be held today at Lindenwood University in St. Charles.
Event director Terrell Ramey has brought together 12 teams from four different states in an exciting basketball feast for local fans to enjoy.
The first game will pit Duchesne High of the Gateway Athletic Conference against Madison (Ill.) in a battle of small schools at noon.
It will be followed by Class 5 Final Four participant Oakville vs. Homewood Flossmoor (Ill.) at 2 p.m.
Game 3 features Public High League favorite Soldan vs. Memphis Wooddale at 3:30 p.m.
Fort Zumwalt South will take on Craigmont, Tenn. at 5 p.m.
Ritenour will battle East Aurora (Ill.) at 6:30 p.m.
The finale will feature Whitfield taking on Lee (Ala.) at 8 p.m. in what should be a very entertaining game.
The cost for the event is $10 at the door, which is a very good price to see six games featuring some of the best players in the region.
Enjoy.

Bills vs. Hawks

2009-12-12T06:18:00.000-08:00

The Billikens return to action tonight with a game against Division II school Rockhurst University from Kansas City.
The Hawks are members of the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC), which is annually one of the top Division II basketball conferences in the nation.
Rockhurst is currently 5-3 and riding a four-game winning streak. They started slow at 1-3, but have been on a roll ever since.
The Hawks like to shoot the 3-point shot and they have several players that can do it. In eight games, they have taken 204 3-pointers as a team, which is an average of more than 25 per game.
Their top gunner is 6'1" senior Aaron Hill, who averages 20 points a game while hitting 33 of his 71 3-point attempts. Their other top scorer is 6'5" senior Aaron Morrissey, who averages 12.6 points and 5.3 rebounds a game.
The Hawks also employ 6'5" senior Jake Meyer (9.1 ppg, 4.4 rpg.), 5'10" senior Tyler Knust (8.5 ppg., 13-33 from 3-point), 6'2" senior Jazz Neal (7.3 ppg.), 6'5" senior Jawan Davis (6.7 ppg.), 6'6" junior Blake Baird (6.4 ppg, 5.8 rpg.) and 6'5" freshman Russell Burns.
As you can see, the Hawks are dominated by upperclassmen, so I doubt that there will be any fear of intimidation factor for them coming in here to play against a Division I opponent. On the contrary, it is a great opportunity. I expect them to come in and play loose and let the 3-pointers fly.
Willie Reed has been playing with great consistency this season. He has a decided edge over the Hawks in size, so I suspect he will have a lot of company inside whenever he gets the ball, even some zone defense.
If that's the case, Willie has to show good judgement with the ball, as a passer and as an offensive player. It should open up opportunities for all of our perimeter players. Our 3-point shooting has gotten a little better in the last two games, which is a good sign. We may have to hit a few more tonight to keep the Hawks from buzzing around Willie and Brian Conklin inside.
For the Billikens, the challenge is to come into tonight's game fully focused and ready to play. The guys have just finished a tough four-game stretch which included BCS schools Iowa State, Notre Dame and Georgia, plus a big game against regional rival Southern Illinois.
After that brutal stretch, the kids had a week off with the top priority being final exams last week. Now, the task at hand is to get ready to play a Division II school from in your state that might have illusions of pulling off a LeMoyne-Syracuse type upset tonight.
The kids must come out and display that defensive intensity at home that we've seen throughout the five games at Chaifetz. At home, we're keeping teams' shooting percentages in the 30's, so that must continue. After facing power teams that like to jam the ball inside, we have to pay attention to the perimeter shot and force the shooters to either put the ball on the floor or make the extra pass.
The victory over Southern Illinois was the beginning of a six-game home stretch in December. With that victory under their belt, tonight represents the first opportunity to string some good performances at home together this month before tackling that tough A-10 slate at the beginning of 2010.
Hope to see everyone tonight at the Chaifetz. If not, you can always catch the action on 101-ESPN with yours truly and SLU Hall of Fame play-by-play man Bob Ramsey on the call. Pre-game show begins at 6:45 p.m.
See you there.
Go Bills!

Friday Night

2009-12-11T05:33:00.000-08:00

Columbia Rock Bridge will face McCluer North in the championship game of the Troy/People's Bank Classic tonight at 8:30 p.m. The Stars have won the last three Troy Tournaments, but Rock Bridge looks every bit the part of a state contender during the early season, averaging more than 90 points a game.
Hazelwood East will face Troy for third place while Riverview Gardens will play Francis Howell in the consolation final. Holt will play Timberland for seventh place.

St. Charles West will play Fort Zumwalt South in the finals of the St. Charles West Warriors Classic tonight at 8:30 p.m. West is led by 6'7" junior Christian Kirk while South is led by junior guard J.R. Alexander and freshman standout Jordan Swopshire. In the third-place game, Ritenour will take on Fort Zumwalt West.

The semifinals of the National Bank/Webster Groves Classic will be held tonight. The host Webster Groves Statesmen will take on Belvidere North (Ill.) at 7 p.m., followed by Kirkwood at Lee's Summit North at 8:30 p.m.
The winners will meet for the championship on Saturday afternoon at 4:30 p.m.

The semifinals of the Gene Steighorst/Hillsboro Tournament will be held tonight. Host Hillsboro will take on Francis Howell Central at 6 p.m. followed by DeSoto vs. Festus in a Jefferson County battle at 7:30 p.m.
The DeSoto Dragons have been bolstered by 6'8" sophomore Colin Ferguson, a transfer from Charleston, Ill. Ferguson and fellow 6'1" sophomore Jared White give coach Allen Davis one of area's top inside-outside sophomore duos.

The top individual game of the night will be St. Francis Borgia at Jefferson City Helias in a battle of Class 4 state Final Four participants from last year. Borgia won the state title while Helias finished third. Helias defeated Borgia by two points at Borgia last year, so the Knights will be looking to return the favor.

On the Illinois side, Edwardsville will host Belleville West tonight in a key Southwestern Conference battle of undefeated teams. Edwardsville has a big and talented team led by 6'6" senior forward William Triggs. Belleville West will counter with a strong defensive team led by versatile 6'5" senior Justin Clayborne.

Action Hot in Webster Groves tonight

2009-12-10T07:24:00.000-08:00

The Webster Groves area will be rocking tonight as two tournaments will be taking place right down the street from each other.
The Nerinx Hall Invitational girls tournament will conclude with its championship game while the National Bank/Webster Groves Classic will open with four boys games today.
Metro Women's Athletic Association rivals Cor Jesu and Visitation will sqare off for the Nerinx Hall crown tonight. Cor Jesu (4-0) has a tall and talented team led by 5'10" senior Kelly Gorman, who averages 11 points a game and shoots nearly 50 percent from 3-point range. CJA also boasts 6'1" junior Meg Riley (11 points, 10 rebounds a game), 5'10" senior Kelly Schuering (10 points, 7.8 reb.) and 5'9" senior Liz Sinclair (8.8 ppg.)
Visitation is off to a 3-0 start behind the play of 5'9" senior Jessica Puricelli and 5'7" junior Lydia Harlan.
In the third-place game, host Nerinx Hall will meet Oakville.

The National City/Webster Groves Classic begins today with SLUH meeting Lee's Summit North at 4 p.m., Maplewood vs. Kirkwood at 5:30 p.m., Webster Groves vs. Miller Career Academy at 7 p.m. and Marquette vs. Belvedere North (Ill.) at 8:30 p.m.
It should be an excellent tournament with the host Webster Groves Statesmen being the favorites to recapture the top prize after dropping a thrilling one-point decision to Maplewood in last year's finals.
That Statesmen feature a very athletic and aggressive team led by senior guards Derrick Dilworth and Cortez Conners. Junior Jason Meehan and sophomores Demetrius Robinson and Rayshawn Simmons are also key players.
SLUH will field one perhaps the biggest team in the tournament with 6'4" Tim Cooney and 6'5" Mike Mayberger roaming the perimenter and 6'6" leaper Michael Butler inside leading a very tall front line.
Maplewood and Kirkwood should be a most interesting first-round game. MRH is in its second tough tournament, having finished second in the Borgia Thanksgiving Tournament to the host Knight. The Blue Devils are led by senior Bryton Hobbs and junior Calvin Belts, Jr. The Pioneers are led by senior shooter Hunter Ward, junior forward Mycole Pruitt and sophomore Myles Artis.
Belvedere North comes to the tournament from the Rockford, Ill. area while Marquette has an impressive sophomore in 6'7" center Ryan Rossburg.
The semifinals will be held on Friday at 7 and 8:30 p.m. with the championship game set for Saturday at 4:30 p.m.
I will be on hand to check out some of the first-round action tonight.
See you there.

The championship game of the Troy/People's Bank Tournament. Columbia Rock Bridge will take on McCluer North in Friday's nights finals at 8:30 p.m.
Rock Bridge rolled to the finals with a 93-46 victory over Hazelwood East. The Bruins are impressive with a capital I. Senior guard Ricky Kreklow put on a stunning shooting display with 27 points, including seven long, and I mean, long 3-pointers. The 6'6" guard has a beautiful stroke from long distance.
The Bruins are probably the best team I've seen in the early part of the season, other than defending state-champion Chaminade. They already look in late-season form as they move the basketball with ease with their talented crew of shooters. They also have inside power in seniors Logan Parks and football standout Trey Millard. The Bruins have answers on offense at every position. The Bruins have a nice little freshman point guard in Travis Jorgenson. Rock Bridge will get even stronger when junior guard Justin Miller returns from an injury.
McCluer North defeated Troy 64-39 in the other semifinal game. The STars were very business-like in getting to their fourth consecutive championship game. They have won the last three Troy Tournaments. Senior point guard Ollie Roundtree has really developed into one of the top floor generals in the area. He still plays at a high rate of speed, but he is more under control and now he can hit and open 3-pointer to keep defenses honest. He does a great job of getting the ball inside to 6'5" senior Denzel Reed and Ryun Davis.
It will be a big challenge for McCluer North to see if they can slow down this juggernaunt from Rock Bridge, which is averaging more than 90 points a game. Yes, tempo will be a big key to this game.
Troy will face Hazelwood East in the third-place game while Riverview Gardens will face Francis Howell for the consolation prize.
B.J. Schulte and yours truly will be on the call for both the third place and championship games on Prepcasts.com.

In the feature game of the night, St. Francis Borgia defeated Whitfield 78-76 in a thrilling battle of state-championship contenders. Borgia rallied from a 15-point deficit to snatch the victory away from the visiting Warriors.
Senior standout Nathan Scheer led the Borgia rally with a game-high 36 points. The Missouri-State recruit was on fire from long distance, hitting seven of his nine 3-point attempts. Fellow senior Tyler Ressel had 15 points and 14 assists.
Whitfield was led by muscular senior Julian Johnson's 30 points and 21 from 6'6" senior Alex Rudd.
Borgia's early-season schedule will also include showdowns against Chaminade (next Monday night), Jefferson City Helias, CBC and St. Charles West.

The championship game of the St. Charles West Warrior Classic is also set. Host St. Charles West will take on Fort Zumwalt South in Friday night's finals. St. Charles West defeated Fort Zumwalt West 65-55 in the semifinals while Fort Zumwalt South defeated Ritenour 75-49 in the other semifinal game.

Wednesday Night Preview

2009-12-09T07:00:00.000-08:00

We have some pretty good action on tap for Wednesday night. I will be making the trip to Troy to catch the semifinals of the Troy/Peoples Invitational Tournament.
The first game will pit Class 5 state contender Columbia Rock Bridge against Hazelwood East at 5:30 p.m. Following that game will be a match-up between McCluer North and the host school Troy at 7 p.m.
Rock Bridge finished third in the state tournament last year and would like to get back to take care of some unfinished business after blowing a 20-point lead in the fourth quarter in the 66-65 loss to Chaminade in the semifinals.
The Bruins feature 6'5" guard Ricky Kreklow (pictured), who's headed to the University of Missouri and a talented supporting cast. Kreklow is a talented do-it-all guard that is worth driving out to Lincoln County to see if you live in the St. Louis area. He reminds me a little of former Collinsville High McDonald's All-American Richard Keene.
Hazelwood East is led by 6'3" senior Don Shumpert, a University of Iowa football recruit and junior guard Jaylen Fulton, who scored 21 points in East's first-round victory over Howell.
The next game should be a good battle featuring the perennial power McCluer North Stars and the always-tough Troy Trojans. McCluer North is 2-0 and coming off an impressive victory over Class 5 Final Four participant Oakville last night at home.
The Stars are led by 6'5" senior forward Denzel Reed, the son of North coach Randy Reed, 5'9" senior point guard Ollie Roundtree and 6'5" senior post man Ryun Davis. Reed is off to a quick start, averaging 22 points and eight rebounds in North's two victories.
Troy is led by 6'1" tough-as-nails junior guard Neil Branham, who is averaging 21 points in two games. Neil is a very underrated player in the junior class, but he can play. The Trojans are also getting 20 points a game from 6'3" junior Cullen Devins.
The championship game is set for Friday night at 8:30 p.m. I will be on hand to call the game for Prepcasts.com with B.J. Schulte on the play by play.

There will be a nice showdown of small-school powers tonight when Whitfield High travels to Washington, Mo. to take on St. Francis Borgia at 7 p.m.
This could be a very entertaining game as both teams are averaging 75 points a game after playing four games this season. Both teams have multiple scoring threats and like to play up-tempo basketball.
Borgia, the Class 4 state champions, is led by 6'5" senior Nathan Scheer, who is averaging 23 points a game. Fellow senior Tyler Ressel is averaging 18 points while sophomore Bryce Dolan is averaging 14 points a game.
Whitfield is 3-1 after winning its own round robin tournament last week. The Warriors had three impressive victories, before stubbing their toes unexpectedly in a loss to DeSmet last Friday night. The Warriors have a balanced scoring attack led by senior Micahel Gallagher's 16.5 points a game. He is followed by 6'6" senior Alex Rudd (15.3), sophomore guard Zach Ellis (14.8), senior forward Julian Johnson (11.) and senior guard Maurice Burns (8.5).

Trinity will visit Cardinal Ritter tonight in a early conference showdown in the Archdiocensan Athletic Association. Trinity is an emerging program that is still trying to get their bonafides around the area. A victory at perennial small-school power Ritter would do the trick, but it will not be easy as Ritter fields another excellent team under the direction of Hall of Fame coach Marvin Neals.
The Lions are led by 6'3" senior guard Eric Clark, who scored 32 points in Ritter's AAA victory over Lutheran St. Charles on Monday night. Ritter is also getting 17 points a game from sophomore Cameron Biedschied, a slender 6'5" forward while senior veterans Mylin Jordan and Wendell Crowder are scoring nearly 10 points a game.
Trinity is just coming off the championship of the Valley Park Tournament. The Titans are led by senior guard Marquise Hill, who averaged 17.7 points a game in the three games at Valley Park. David Minor, an improving 6'5" junior, is averaging 12.3 points and 7.7 rebounds a game.

The semifinals of the St. Charles West Warriors Classic will be held tonight. Fort Zumwalt South will face Ritenour at 6:30 p.m. followed by St. Charles West vs. Fort Zumwalt West at 8 p.m. The championship game will be held on Friday night. You can hear that game on Prepcasts.com with Charlie Kennedy on the call.
The SCW Tournament saw an impressive debut performance by freshman guard Anthony Virdure of Lutheran North. The son of former LN standout Anthony Virdure, Sr., young Anthony had 22 points, three assists and three steals in the Crusaders' loss to the host St. Charles West Warriors. The 5'7" Virdure is a talented young player who can play both guard positions. He will be one to watch in the future.

Ricky Kreklow photo courtesy of Nate Latsch, saintlouis.scout.com

My "St. Louis Knicks"

2009-12-08T06:48:00.000-08:00

The National Basketball Association has reached the "quarter-pole" mark of the season, so it's a good time to update you on former local prep stars David Lee and Larry Hughes, who both play for the St. Louis, oops, I mean New York Knicks.
Both players are enjoying productive seasons and have been in the middle of the Knicks' recent three-game winning streak this week. After a dreadful start, the Knicks have been showing some signs of life in recent games and my boys have been up front and center in the Knicks' recent surge.
The 6'9" Lee (Chaminade) is currently averaging 18 points, 10 rebounds and 2.5 assists while shooting 57 percent from the field. Hughes (CBC/Saint Louis U.) is coming off the bench to average 12.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game. He assists to turnovers ratio is a very good 2.5 to 1.
Both have been very good in the last three games, all Knicks victories. In last night's 93-84 victory over Portland, Hughes had 21 points and six rebounds while shooting four of eight from the 3-point line. Lee had 17 points and 10 rebounds.
In NY's 106-97 victory over New Jersey, Hughes had 25 points (16 in the third quarter), four rebounds and four assists while Lee had 24 points and nine rebounds.
Lee had 18 points and 12 rebounds while Hughes added 16 points and seven assists in the Knicks 114-107 victory at Atlanta.
It's always good to see the local boys represent on the NBA's big stage.

Earl on the air this week

2009-12-07T18:50:00.000-08:00

You can catch me broadcasting high school and college basketball games on the radio and streaming on line this week.
On Tuesday night, I'll be broadcasting the Edwardsville at Belleville East Southwestern Conference showdown on prepcasts.com with Charlie Kennedy. These two teams were the co-champions of the hyper-competitive Southwestern Conference in 2009.
On Friday night, I'll be on the mic for the third-place and championship games of the Troy Tournament.
On Saturday night, you can catch myself and my SLU Hall of Fame play-by-play partner Bob Ramsey for the Saint Louis U.-Rockhurst game on 101-ESPN, beginning with the pre-game at 7:45 p.m.
As for Wednesday night, you might catch me either at the semifinals of the Troy Tournament or at the big small-school clash in Washington, MO. between Whitfield and St. Francis Borgia.

Bradley named A-10 Rookie of the Week

2009-12-07T18:42:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to Saint Louis University freshman guard Jacy Bradley on being named the Atlantic 10 Conference Rookie of the Week.
The 5'6" freshman from Florence, Kentucky enjoyed a productive week in three games for the Billikens, averaging 12.3 points, three assists and a steal per game.
Bradley had 13 points and four assists in SLU's victory over Arkansas State last Monday. She followed up with nine points, three assists and three steals in a loss at Creigton.
Over the weekend, Bradley scored a season-high 15 points, including a three for five performance from the 3-point line.
Bradley is enjoying a solid freshman campaign, averaging 7.8 points, 2.9 assists while shooting a team-high 47 percent from 3-point range.

Bills back on winning track

2009-12-06T06:06:00.000-08:00

The comfy confines of the Chaifetz Arena proved to be the perfect tonic as the Bills defeated Southern Illinois 71-61 to end a three-game losing streak.
Our Billikids were a little bruised and batted after our three-game road trip into BCS-land, but they got their mojo back on both ends of court last night in front of a big and energetic crowd.
The Bills shot 51 percent from the field for the game, including a sizzling 57 percent in the second half. The defense returned as well, limited Southern Illinois to 34 percent shooting.
The Salukis came into the game averaging nearly 80 points a game. With the exception of excellent sophomore guard Kevin Dillard, who scored a game-high 23 points everyone else was held in check.
The difference in the game proved to be a 12-1 run to open the second half. We trailed 31-30 at halftime, but the guys came out like gangbusters in the second half.
Consecutive 3-pointers by Femi Johnson, Kwamain Mitchell, Christian Salecich and Mitchell again turned a 31-30 halftime deficit into a 42-33 lead. The teams played virtually even for the rest of the way.
It was an excellent team effort by the kids. All nine players got into the game and they all contributed something positive to the victory.
There was one defensive sequence in particular in the second half that really got me excited. Every guy did a great job of moving their feet, cutting off the dribble and getting into the passing lanes. It was a defensive clinic like you would see in a shell drill.
The Salukis tried a backdoor pass on the baseline, which Christian opened up to the ball perfectly and stole the pass. It led to a fast break with Kwamain finishing on the back end with a left handed layup. I think I screamed louder than Rammer after that one. It was textbook defense, which led to an easy score. As a said on the radio, I wanted to smoke a cigarette after that one, stealing a line from my media buddy Frank Cusumano.
Kwamain was excellent tonight. He scored 22 points, had four rebounds, five assists and a blocked shot. Those little guys always get excited when they get a block. It's like when a major league baseball pitcher hits a home run.
Kwamain did a great job scoring, penetrating and finding the open man. HIs personal match with Dillard was outstanding to watch. It was a battle of excellent sophomore guards who will probably see each other for the next two years.
Willie Reed was something else once again. Who would have thought he had an ankle injury. Willie was as bouncy and energetic as ever as he had 16 points, 12 rebounds, four blocks and several altered shots.
Willie opened the game with a nice turnaround jumper in the lane over his right shoulder. He also displayed two picturesque jump hooks for scores. On one play, he outran the field and Justin Jordan found him ahead for an emphatic slam dunk.
What I liked most about Willie's performances is that he's starting to make his free throws with more regularity. He made eight of 12 from the stripe last night, following up on the 6 for 6 performance against Georgia. The consistency of Willie's performances has to be really encouraging as well
Christian and Justin also scored in double figures with 10 points each. Christian really struggled on the road, but he came back tonight with a lot of confidence. The play which got him going was an open court opportunity where he made a beautiful spin move around Dillard and scored on a fast break layup. He his a big 3-pointer in that second half run and got himself to the free-throw line on the drive.
J.J. got himself going with a couple of long, long, long 3-pointers in the second half. He provided good quickness as Southern started two small, quick guards. The only thing I need to get on J.J. is his 4 for 7 shooting from the free throw line. A small guard with his kind of shooting ability should not be hanging around the 50 percent mark from the line. J.J. needs to be around 80 to 90 percent.
Femi John, Brian Conklin and Kyle Cassity combined for only 11 points, but the impact was really made on the defensive end. Brian did an excellent job of guarding their top scorer Carlton Fay, holding him to five points on two of nine shooting.
Brian is used to guarding bigs in the low post, but Fay was a different player at 6'8" and 230, but likes to roam the perimeter. Brian constantly kept a hand up and crowded him, forcing him to put it on the floor.
Femi is settling into his role as a strong defensive player with the occasional offensive burst. He has been playing well. He made two little mistakes in the second half which got him yanked. He was beaten for an offensive rebound and a score and he turned the ball over for a fast-break layup. The mistakes weren't what got him taken out, it was the timing of the mistake.
Both of Femi's errors came when the Bills were in the middle of good runs and had control of the game. It's a momemt of knowing in your head, the time and score and how the game is going. Otherwise, more good solid work from Femi. He was really good at doubling down on the post and making it tough for the Saluki bigs. He even tied up his former high school teammate Anthony Booker on a couple of occasions.
Kyle finished with four points, but coach Majerus said in his post-game radio comments that he thought is was his best defensive effort as a Billiken.
Corey Remekun and Jon Smith played limited minutes, but had a big impact in those minutes. Corey gave us some good low-post defense and even took a charge and forced two turnovers.
Jon came in briefly in the second half and really lit it up. He had a big block on SIU's Booker and tipped in J.J.'s missed free throw. Their positive minutes were vital because they impacted the game and gave Rick a chance to rest Willie without losing any momentum.
Overall, it was a good game to watch and fun to see the kids get back on the winning track. It got a little testy at the end of the game when SIU's Justin Bocot took down Kwamain hard when he was trying to dunk it. Kwamain laid on the ground for several minutes and the crowd booed quite lustily. Me and Rammer were a little fired up as well. Kwamain appeared to be o.k., though at the end of the game.
The SLU-SIU rivalry is a fun game to play. Tonight proved to be more of the same. The game was tough and hotly-contested, but the home team usually comes out on top.
Tonight's win was also part of a good night for the Atlantic 10 Conference. Temple defeated Penn State, Rhode Island defeated Providence and Charlotte won at Louisville by 22 points, handing Rick Pitino his worst home loss in his career at U of L.
In the nonconference, the league has racked up some nice wins, including Creighton and Georgia Tech (by Dayton), Mississippi State and Missouri (by Richmond), Penn State and Siena (by Temple), at Louisville (Charlotte), Creighton again (by Xavier), Nebraska and Southern Illinois (SLU), Boston College (St. Joseph's), Providence (Rhode Island) at Iowa (Duquesne). There were also a couple of near misses when Duquesne took pit into double-overtime and Temple missed some late FT's to keep them from winning at Georgetown. That would have been huge.
Anyway, way to get back on the winning track young men. Job well done.
The Billikids have week off for finals, then Rockhurst comes to town.
See you then.
Go Bills.

Kwamain Mitchell photo courtesy of saintlouis.scout.com

Washington U. defeats McKendree in area college showdown

2009-12-05T13:36:00.000-08:00

In a battle of area college powers, Washington University defeated McKendree University 84-69 in the first-round of the Lopata Classic Friday night at the Wash. U. Fieldhouse.
Washington University is the No. 1 ranked team in NCAA Division III while McKendree is ranked No. 5 in the NAIA standings.
Washington U. looked like they were going to run the Bearcats out of the building as they built a 47-22 halftime lead. However, McKendree cut the lead all the way down to four points, but that was as close as they got as the Bears held on to improve their record to 4-0.
Veteran guards Aaron Thompson and Sean Wallis did most of the damage for the Bears. Thompson scored a game-high 21 points while Wallis added 20 points. Caleb Knepper (13 points) and Zach Kelly (10 points) also scored in double figures for Washington U.
McKendree (8-3) was led by John Steppe's 19 points.

Tournament Recaps

2009-12-05T12:30:00.000-08:00

I ventured over to the last night to take in the championship game of the Pattonville Tournament.
Chaminade won Missouri Class 5 state championship in 2009, but they did not win the Pattonville Tournament. That honor went to the McCluer Comets, who defeated Chaminade in the semifinals on their way to the tourney title.
The Red Devils took care of this unfinished business by defeating McCluer 69-53 to win the Pattonville title. Junior All-American guard Bradley Beal scored a game-high 25 points. He did a little of everything as he played point guard for much of the game and also blocked five shots.
The 6'4" Beal blocked three shots in the first half when he chased down three McCluer would-be layups in transition and blocked them, LeBron James style. Three other players scored in double figures for Chamiande, including 6'5" junior Brendan Kelly's 14 points and 14 rebounds.
A pleasant surprise for the Red Devils was the play of junior xx Evans, who came off the bench to score 14 points.
Chaminade utilized an effective match-up zone defense which cut off the Comets' penetration and held standout guard Shaquille Boga to two points and no field goals in the first half. Boga finished the game with 17 points, while sophomore Demetrious Floyd added 10 points.
One player who I was impressed with in his limited time was freshman Shaquille Edwards of McCluer. Edwards is already 6'3", but he is destined to be big because he comes from a big family. He already has a strong set of hands, a physical body and a nice shooting touch from the high post. He did some nice things for a young big kid in the heat of battle against the state champions. Stay tuned.
CBC defeated Layette 51-49 to win third place in a real thriller. Senior center Ryan Pierson tipped in a missed shot with one second left to give the Cadets the victory. Big Ryan finished with a team-high 20 points. Mike Messer led the Lancers with 24 points.
The 6'5" Messer had an impressive tournament for Lafayette, which starts three sophomores around him. Despite the graduation of top scorers Tyler Griffey and Will Kirksey, don't sleep on the Lancers just yet. If the sophomores come around and Messer continues his fine all-around play, Lafayette can still be very good.
Jennings defeated Hazelwood West 54-45 forthe consolation title while Pattonville defeated St. Charles 54-34 for seventh place for Kelly Thames' first victory as the head coach at Pattonville.

Hazelwood Central won the Vianney Tournament for the sixth consecutive year with a 66-59 victory over the host Golden Griffins. Junior sharpshooter Jordan Wilson scored a game-high 27 points to lead the Hawks. The 6'2" Wilson scored the Hawks' first seventeen points of the game, including five 3-pointers to get the Hawks going.
Curtis Churchman, a 5'7" junior point guard and the brother of former Vashon High standout Dwayne Polk, added 17 points.
In the third-place game, Clayton defeated Eureka 77-65 as 6'5" junior forward Christian Thomas scored a career-high 41 points. With a strong summer showing and as excellent start to the season, Thomas has really put himself on the radar with several schools around the country. As he continues to improve his perimeter game, he will become even more attractive to some Division I schools.

SLUH used its superior size to defeat St. Mary's 52-36 to win the Southside Classic title at Bishop DuBourg. Micheal Butler, an athletic 6'6" senior forward, had 14 points and five rebounds for the Junior Billikens. Mike Mayberger, a 6'5" senior small forward, added 10 points.

Trinity High won the Valley Park Tournament with a 60-52 victory over Principia. Senior guard Marquise Hill scored 21 points while 6'5" junior David Minor added 16 points. The Titans are off to a 3-0 start after last year's breakthrough season when they won 18 games.

Whitfield came out on top of their own round robin tournament with victories over Cardinal Ritter and Sumner. Whitfield, DeSmet and Ritter all finished with 2-1 records, but Whitfield took home the trophy on points.
The one mild surprise of the tournament came last night when DeSmet defeated Whitfield 66-59. Now, it may seem strange to think of DeSmet beating Whitfield an upset, but that's how much things have changed in high school basketball. Whitfield came out smoking with three big victories and some high-scoring games, but the Spartans came up with a spirited effort to momentarily halt Whitfield's early start.

On the girls front, Fort Zumwalt West defeated Nerinx Hall 45-44 to win the Randi Perkins Invitational title at Marquette. Both teams were outstanding last year as Nerinx Hall finished fourth in the Class 5 state tournament while Fort Zumwalt West advanced to the state quarterfinals. Junior forward Jasmine Swopshire led the Jaguars with 14 points.
Nerinx Hall will host its won tournament, beginning on Monday.

Cardinal Ritter defeated Westminster Christian 32-27 to win the Orchard Farm Tournament in a low-scoring affair. Senior Hazaria Washington scored 12 points to lead the Lions while Kiera Baker added 10 points. The Lions are coming off the Class 3 state championship season.

SLU vs. SIU (The Preview)

2009-12-05T05:55:00.000-08:00

The Billikens return home after a tough three-game road stretch to face another tough opponent in Chris Lowery's Salukis in the annual renewal of this regional rivalry.
The home team has pretty much dominated this rivalry in recent years. The last road team to win was Southern Illinois, which came into the Scottrade Center to win in 2001. The Salukis were outstanding that year as they went on to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.
Last year, the Salukis struggled through a 13-17 season, which was very uncharacteristic of a program that has known nothing but success this decade. However, the Salukis were very young last year with several freshmen logging big minutes.
SIU was at a place last year where we are this year, playing lots of young guys. The job got even tougher when senior guard Bryan Mullins went down with a season-ending injury, forcing the youngsters to fend for themselves. Lowery is hoping that the year of growing pains will pay of this year.
He is hoping that his team will get back that defensive identity that made Southern Illinois one of the most feared teams to play in the region. They guarded each possession as if their lives depended on it and it led to incredible success and a lot of championships. They were also unbeatable at home. Now, they are trying to regain that snarling defensive intensity, at home and on the road.
For the Bills, the good news for SLU fans is that sophomore center Willie Reed should be good to go for tonight. Reed sprained his ankle at the end of Wednesday night's loss to Georgia and left the game on crutches. He practiced with the team on Friday and should be available tonight.
Reed's presence is vital tonight because the Salukis have some pretty good size on the front line. Their leading scorer is 6'8" junior Carlton Fay, who averages nearly 15 points a game despite not being a starter. Fay is a versatile big who can post up, but he can step out and shoot it from deep. He shoots 39 percent from the three.
The Salukis also have 6'8" sophomore Anthony Booker from McCluer North, 6'11" sophomore Nick Evans and beefy 6'9" 285-pound freshman Gene Teague to throw at us. If you remember last year, the Salukis used their size to punish us inside in Carbondale. We were in all kinds of foul trouble as SIU made it a point to jam the ball in the post, much like Georgia did the other night.
Obviously, it's impearative for Willie and Brian Conklin to stay out of foul trouble, plus we need some positive minutes from either Corey Remekun or Jon Smith tonight as Coach Lowery has already stated that he will employ all of his bigs to try to wear our two bigs down, especially Willie.
The Salukis have an excellent group of perimeter players. Sophomore Kevin Dillard was as good as advertised as a freshman in making the All MVC Rookie Team. He is averaging 13.8 points and five assists a game. He and fellow sophomore Kwamain should be an excellent matchup.
The other guard is senior Tony Freeman, a transfer from Iowa who provides more scoring. He was Iowa's leading scorer two seasons ago. He is averaging 10 points a game. The third guard is 6'4" sophomore Justin Bocot, who can shoot the long ball.
Lowery can also bring in 5'10" freshman point guard Kendal Brown Surles off the bench to create some more tempo. He averages seven points and three assists a game. Also coming off the bench are 6'5" freshman John Freeman and 6'4" junior Jack Crowder.
The Salukis are getting great production from the bench to the tune of 32 points a game. Fay and Brown Surles are largely responsible for the excellent production, but the others aren't chopped liver.
It is good to be back home, but it doesn't guarantee a victory against a tough opponent such as SLU. The Bills must defend well like they did in their four home victories where they limited opponents to a shooting percentage in the 30s. That must continue.
Offensively, they must limit the long drought that has plagued them throughout the season, even in the victories. One positive sign from the Georgia game was the ability to get out on the break and create some easy scoring opportunities. When you struggle in the halfcourt, you must get out and run when you have the chance.
Obviously, keeping Kwamain on the floor in the first half is key. In two of the three losses, he missed much of the first half with foul trouble. The offense is so much better with your point guard on the floor.
We need more production from the wing. We saw Femi John come through with nine points in his first start and Kyle Cassity break out of his little slump with two consecutive 3-pointers in Georgia. Justin Jordan also hit a couple of shots as the team hit seven 3-pointers in Georgia after hitting a combined four in two games in Chicago. I would also love to see Christian Salecich bust out in the Chaifetz Arena once again. Just think what it would do for his confidence to knock home that first jump shot.
It should be a big and lively crowd tonight at the Chaifetz. Look forward to seeing you all there.
If you can't make it, you can always catch the action on 101-ESPN with myself and my SLU Hall of Fame play-by-play parter Bob Ramsey on the call.
See you there.
Go Bills!

SLU-SIUC (personal memories)

2009-12-04T09:44:00.000-08:00

One of the days that I always look forward to on the SLU schedule is when we take on Southern Illinois.
It has been a great regional game for so many years. The games have been competitive for the most part and the fans from both sides really get into the action as you might expect.
What I've really enjoyed about our rivalry with the Salukis has been the relationships and friendships that I have been able to develop with the coaches over the years.
From head coaches Rich Herrin, Bruce Weber, Matt Painter and current coach Chris Lowery have all been good friends over the years as have assistant coaches such as Ron Smith (now at Iowa State), Rodney Watson (head coach at Southern Illinois), Paul Lusk (assistant at Purdue).
These are all good guys who I always look forward to talking to whenever our teams get together. Because of that friendship, I find myself following the teams where they are currently employed, such as Illinois, Purdue, Iowa State, Southern Indiana and the Salukis for every day except for one, of course.
What made the relationship even stronger was that the SIU coaches made a living in St. Louis recruiting our players. They enjoyed great success in recent years with what Chris Lowery called the "St. Louis Salukis."
Young men such as Darren Brooks, Stetson Hairston, Bryan Turner, Randal Falker, Michael Dale, Tony Boyle and Josh Warren from the STL metro area helped put the Salukis on the national map with several Missouri Valley Conference titles and a couple of Sweet 16 appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
It's always fun when the guys return to St. Louis in March for the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. It makes it much easier when you can just sit back and enjoy them and root for them instead of against them when we play. Watching the local boys represent "The Lou" in the NCAA Tournament all of those years really made me proud.
There have been some great memories from the SLU-SIU series over the years if you are a Billiken fan. Who could forget that night in the late 1990's when the two teams played a late-night game that was broadcast on ESPN. SLU guard Orlando Stewart hit a last-second shot to give the Billikens a one-point victory.
However, that highlight of that game came during a time-out when SLU assistant coach John Mulroy went over the broadcast table and watched on the monitor as SIU coach Rich Herrin designed his play. Mulroy was busted for his investigative work by ESPN's Dan Patrick, who was doing the game that night.
I can also remember a late rally in 1990 when the Billikens edged SIU when Saluki forward Rick Shipley inbounded the ball right to SLU's Anthony Jones, who laid in the last second shot for the victory.
In 1991, the Billikens won only five games in what was a most trying season. However, one of those wins came in the Arena against the Salukis when freshman Julian Winfield drove the lane and scored on a layup just before the buzzer to give SLU a one-point win.
One of my greatest SLU-SIU memories came right after Christmas during the 1993 season. The Billikens got out of the gate quickly after an 8-0 start. SLU was still averaging about 10 to 11,000 a game and a big curtain covered one side of the Arena. When the Salukis came to town for a Dec. 28 game, thousands of people showed up out of nowhere. The curtain was suddenly removed and a crowd of more than 17,000 turned out to see the Billikens take a thrilling 100-85 victory. For the next two years, the SLU crowds were routinely in the 19 to 20,000 range. It was a glorious time.
In December of 1997 in a game in Carbondale, the Bills trailed the Salukis for much of the game. Southern led by about nine points in the last three minutes, but SLU super-freshman Larry Hughes simply went off. With Larry leading the way, the Bills scored the last 17 points of the game to take an improbable road victory. Larry finished with 37 points that night, the final two coming on an emphatic, game-clinching dunk with Larry pointing at the hundreds of blue-clad Billiken fans after he landed.
Those are just a few of my best memories of the SLU-Southern Illinois series. Let me hear some of yours in the comments section. I'd also like to hear from some Saluki fans as well. There have been many SIU highlights as well. I just tend to block those out. Maybe, you can refresh my memory for me.
I will have the actual game preview later.
Go Bills

Former Vashon standout sizzling on the West Coast

2009-12-04T07:32:00.001-08:00

Former Vashon High standout Kenny Daniels has been on a tear to begin his senior season at Cal-State Northridge.
The 6'4" senior guard enjoyed a career night on Thursday in leading the Matadors to 95-93 victory over Idaho. Daniels scored a career high 39 points and added 10 rebounds. The 39 points was the most by a Cal-State Northridge player since 1967.
For the game, Daniels hit 12 of 17 from the field and 13 for 15 from the free throw line as he sparked a Matador rally from a 14-point deficit.
Last night's game is an prime example of how Daniels has continued to blossom as a top-flight collegiate player. He has continued to get better and better with each game he plays.
In seven games this season, Daniels is averaging a team-high 19.7 points, 4.4 rebounds and two assists while shooting 54 percent from the field. He is also emerging as the Matadors' go-to guy when they need a basket.
Daniels was a starting forward on Vashon's Class 5 state-championship team in 2006. After a two-year junior college stint at Sheridan College, Daniels became a starter as a junior for the Matadors. He averaged nine points a game in helping the Matadors to the Big West Tournament title and a berth in the NCAA Tournament. He was voted the team's Most Improved Player at the end of the 2009 season.
Daniels scored 14 points in the Matadors' first-round loss to Memphis in Kansas City. Playing before many family and friends who made the short trip from St. Louis, Daniels and his Matador teammates gave the top-seeded Tigers quite a scare as they nearly pulled off the shocking first-round upset.

Photo courtesy of gomatadors.cstv.com

Local cousins excel at Southern Ill. Juco

2009-12-04T07:05:00.000-08:00

Former Gateway Tech basketball standouts Jesse Perry and Kenneth Harris have continued their excellence at the junior college level at John A. Logan College in Carterville, Ill.
Perry, a versatile 6'8" forward, and Harris, a 6'5" forward, not only have been teammates at the high school and junior college levels but they are also cousins as well. They have been major factors in Logan's 6-1 start, which includes victories of Missouri juco powers Three Rivers and Mineral Area. Both players are stuffing the stat sheet with great regularity.
Perry (pictured, left) is currently averaging 17.7 points, 10 rebounds while shooting 54 percent from the floor and 77 percent from the free-throw line. He has also improved his 3-point shooting. Perry enjoyed a 33-point, 18-rebound game against Mineral Area earlier this season.
Harris (pictured, right) is currently averaging 11.7 points, 8 rebounds, four assists and 2.5 steals. In the victory over Three Rivers, Harris had 17 points, eight rebounds, five assists and three steals.

Photos courtesy of jalc.edu

Chaminade vs. McCluer heads Championship Friday

2009-12-03T18:44:00.000-08:00

A host of early-season tournaments will have their championship games tonight at various schools around the area.
The Pattonville Tournament final will feature a showdown between Class 5 state champion Chaminade against McCluer. Tip-off is at 8:15 p.m.
The battle within the game will be between two of the state's top juniors and summer basketball teammates Brandon Beal of Chaminade and Shaquille Boga of McCluer. The two junior standouts have been grade school teammates for many years and summer hoops teammates with the St. Louis Eagles, which had one of the top 16-and-under teams in the nation last summer.
Beal, who committed to Florida earlier this week, is averaging 26 points a game in Chaminade's two victories over Hazelwood West and Lafayette. Boga, a 5'10" point guard, was electrifying in the Comets' 74-73 victory over CBC in the semifinals. Boga scored a career-high 43 points in leading the Comets back from a double-digit deficit. Boga is a clutch performer who loves to perform in the highest of high-pressure situations.
Both teams are loaded with underclassmen. Chaminade starts five juniors, with Brendan Kelly, Luke Baumgarner, Aaron Lombardo and Giovanni Ferrara joining Beal. McCluer is even younger with Boga, 6'6" junior DeAries Tate leading the way along with sophomores Demetrius Floyd, Tyrone Griffin, Alex Henry and freshman Shaquille Edwards in the mix.
McCluer defeated Chaminade in last year's semifinals on their way to winning the Pattonville Tournament last year.
There is also the SLU Billiken connection on the sidelines. McCluer's head coach in former Billiken star Erwin Claggett while Chaminade's coach is former SLU assistant coach Kelvin Lee, who was on the staff when Claggett led the Billikens to NCAA tournament berths.
CBC will play Lafayette in the third-place game with Jennings and Hazelwood West to meet for fifth place.

In the Vianney Tournament, top-seeded Hazelwood Central will face host Vianney for the championship. The Hawks have rolled out to a 4-0 record with its variety of offensive weapons, led by 6'4" senior Chris Babbitt, 6'2" junior B.J. Young and many others. The Golden Griffins will be underdogs, but they not be pushovers on their own court. They have a nice 6'5" post man is senior Jake Voelker and some good guards in senior Joe James and sophomore shooter Tony Cochran.

The Southside Classic will conclude tonight at DuBourg with SLUH and St. Mary's hooking up for the championship in a 8 p.m. tipoff. The Junior Billikens have a sizable unit with 6'5" Mike Maybarger and 6'4" Tim Cooney on the perimeter and 6'6" senior Mike Butler leading a tall front line which also includes a 6'8" and a 6'9" in the lineup. St. Mary's is led by senior Jonathan Connelly and his 21 points a game. Junior Kevin Brotherton checks in at 12 points a game.

Trinity and Principia will hook up in the championship game of the Valley Park Tournament tonight at 7:30 p.m. Trinity is looking to build on last season's breakthrough year with 19 victories. They are led by guard Marquise Hill, who's headed to Arkansas on a football scholarship. Principia advanced to the finals with a thrilling 59-57 victory over Brentwood last night in the semifinals. Forward Tim Gilman had 22 points and 12 rebounds to lead Principia. There always seems to be a Gilman ballin' at Principia and doing nice things on the court. Like Hank Williams Jr. sang, "It's a family tradition."

On the girls side, Cardinal Ritter will meet Westminster Christian in the championship game of the Orchard Farm Tournament tonight at 7 p.m.
Ritter is off to a fast start after winning the Class 3 state title last season. The Lions are led by Tiera Baker (18 ppg.), Hazaria washington (13 ppg.) and Breanna McCullough (12.5 ppg.). The Lions also play excellent defense, which is the cornerstone of their success. Westminster has a fine all-around player in sophomore Courtney Powell, who is averaging 15 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals a game.

Hazelwood Central's girls won the Suburban North Conference tournament last night with a 63-30 victory over McCluer in the championship game. The Hawks were convincing throughout the tournament, winning their three games by an average margin of over 30 points. Central graduated several members of last year's Class 5 third-place team at state, but the Hawks have appeared to have reloaded. Junior guard Jasmine Crawford led the Hawks with 25 points and eight steals against McCluer. Fellow junior guard Candyce Ussery added 11 points and four steals.
Hazelwood West defeated Pattonville 51-44 in the third place game while McCluer North defeated Riverview Gardens 46-39 for the consolation championship.
Bishop DuBourg defeated Notre Dame 47-44 to win the Southside Classic title last night in an entertaining game at Lutheran South. Junior center Jamie Buehrig led the Cavaliers with 17 points.

STL girls meet up in Chicago

2009-12-03T07:02:00.000-08:00

The women's teams at DePaul and University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) will meet up tonight in a battle of Chicago schools.
There will be a distinct St. Louis flavor in this Chi-Town battle as area girls play key roles for both teams.
One of DePaul's top players is 6'3" junior Felicia Chester (pictured, left), a former standout at Incarnate Word Academy. UIC features former Normandy High teammates Jasmine Bailey (pictured, right) and Shameia Green, who are both starters. A fourth St. Louis player, Rachel Pierson (a former IWA teammate of Chester's) is also on DePaul's team, but has been battling injuries.
In DePaul's first six games, Chester is averaging 19.8 points, 7.7 rebounds with a team-high 16 blocks. Felicia could always swat some shots. She is also shooting 56 percent from the field.
Bailey and Green have done a fine job for the Flames. a 5'9" sophomore forward, Bailey is averaging 10 points, nine rebounds and two assists a game. Green, a 5'7" guard, is averging 7.6 points and two assist a game. Together, they led Normandy High to a berth in the Final Four of the Class 5 state tournament in 2007. Both were also named to the Horizon League All-Freshmen Team as well.

Felicia Chester photo courtesy of: depaulbluedemons.com
Jasmine Bailey photo courtesy of: uicflames.com

SLU rally falls short in loss at Georgia

2009-12-03T06:15:00.000-08:00

The first possession of SLU's 64-56 loss at Georgia on Wednesday night in Athens kind of set the tone for what became a tough night down South.
The Bulldogs scored first as 6'4" forward Travis Leslie went over the top for an easy layup. The Bills got the ball inside on their first possession to their top inside guys, Brian Conklin and Willie Reed. Brian's first attempt was blocked. Willie got the rebound and went for one of his emphatic dunks. Instead, he was met at the rim by Georgia's 6'11" 265-pound senior Albert Jackson, who blocked the would-be dunk attempt.
It was an omen of things to come.
That early block-party turned out to be the theme for much of the game as the bigger, brawnier Bulldogs dominated us for nearly three quarters of the game. UGA led by as many as 20 points before the Billikens mounted a big rally in the second half, cutting the lead to five with just over three minutes left. However, that was as close as SLU would come as Georgia held on to hand the Bills their third loss in succession.
Boy, Georgia had some beef on the front line and they used it to lean on us, hard. Their four-man frontcourt rotation when 6'10" 247 pounds, 6'11" 265 lbs., 6'9" 250 lbs. and 6'8" 240 lbs. Plus Leslie goes at 6'4" 205 and plays above the rim. Our poor Billikids couldn't accomplish anything in that first half without one of those slabs of beef hanging on them.
Whatever happened to Southern hospitality?
The first half was just difficult to watch. We didn't get our first field goal until Femi John scored on a drive at the 10:37 mark. The Bulldogs used their significant height and weight advantage to pound the ball inside on offense and attack us with aggressive traps on defense. They seemed to challenge every shot we took inside the paint.
They really rocked us and we did not respond well, except for Femi, who had half of the team's 18 points and halftime as we trailed 31-18.
The second half didn't get much better to begin with as the lead ballooned to 40-20. The rout appeared to be on, but one thing we have learned about our young team, they will compete. And compete they did.
While we gave away height and strength, we did have a quickness advantage, which came into play during the final 10 minutes. The defense picked up, we created some turnovers, (Georgia had 19 for the game), which allowed us to get out in transition. That got us back into the game. We struggled mightily against UGA's physical half-court defense, but it was a different story when we got out on the break.
Kwamain Mitchell (pictured) started to heat up and Willie found some openings on the inside. Kwamain led the charge back, scoring all but one of his 16 points in the second half. Willie finished with 14 points and seven rebounds before leaving the game late after turning his ankle. (x-rays today will determine the severity of the injury).
We got the lead down to 55-50 with about three minutes to play when Kwamain scored on a 3-pointer, then a steal and a coast-to-coast layup. But the Bulldogs scored on their next two possessions as they pounded the ball inside to their top player Trey Thompkins and their other top post-man Jeremy Price, who scored to keep the Bills at bay. UGA's top player was point guard Dustin Ware, who scored a game-high 17 points. He hit three 3-pointers, all of them which came at a critical time when the Bills were mounting a challenge.
Femi was very solid in his first start as a Billiken, especially in the first half, when he scored all nine of his points. It was nice to see Kyle Cassity regain his stroke in the second half, when he hit two 3-pointers during the second half rally. Kyle had gone more than two and a half games without a field goal, so seeing him hit those two treys in succession was a welcome sight.
Justin Jordan came off the bench with five points, three rebounds and a team-high four assists. He even showed a little more energy on the defensive end after a little prodding by coach Rick Majerus.
Freshman Christian Salecich continues to struggle a little bit away from home. He went without a field goal and committed six turnovers. Christian is just pressing a little bit and just has to relax and let things come to him. it's a process with many youngsters and he's learning some tough lessons against athletic guards who get up in him. He just has to let it flow and he will start to have some success again.
It was a gutsy comeback, but we fell just a big short. We had only nine players on the trip as freshman Jeff Reid stayed back because of a head injury suffered in the Notre Dame game when he was clocked by Ben Hansbrough. We expended a lot of energy playing against those UGA bruisers and trying to come back from 20 down in the second half. The margin of error is so small when you're trying to do that. You almost have to be perfect.
That's why I have to give Bruce Weber and his Illinois team all the credit in the world for coming from 23 points down to win that game at Clemson last night. Unbelievable. Especially, considering the fact that Illinois was staring their third consecutive defeat in the face, but they found a way to come back and get it done.
We nearly did it as well, but we just didn't have enough gas in the tank to pull it off, although Georgia was very accomodating down the stretch with some timely turnovers and missed free throws. We might have pressed a little more down the stretch, but I think we were on fumes for the last few minutes of the game.
It will be nice to get home once again for the next six games. Southern Illinois is next on tap. Always a fun time when the Bills and Salukis get together.
I love this regional rivalry.
I'll have a preview on Saturday morning.
As always, Go Bills!

Kwamain Mitchell photo courtesy of slubillikens.com

Former local stars lead Mules rout

2009-12-03T06:07:00.000-08:00

Former St. Louis Post-Dispatch Co-Players of the Year Alex Moosman (St. Francis Borgia) and Sanijay Watts (Jennings) combined for 50 points to lead Central Missouri State to a 115-99 victory over Southwest Baptist in an early season showdown of NCAA Division II top 10 national powers.
Central Missouri State entered the game ranked No. 2 in the NABC Division II natinoal rankings while MIAA rival Southwest Baptist was ranked No. 7.
The CMU Multipurpose Building in Warrensburg was on fire as the Mules registered their highest scoring game during the tenure of head coach Kim Anderson. Leading the way were the local boys, Moosman and Watts.
Moosman (pictured, left) hit a game-high 28 points, including a perfect six for six from beyond the 3-point line. The 6'4" Watts (pictured, right) contributed 22 points, nine rebounds, six assists and two steals to the Mules impressive victory as they improved to 5-0.
Southwest Baptist was playing without its 6'11" All-American center Matt Rogers (Doniphan, Mo.), who was out with an ankle injury. SBU fell to 7-2 on the season.

photos courtesy of cmo.com

Big D-II Clash in Warrensburg tonight

2009-12-02T06:11:00.000-08:00

Central Missouri State University will host Southwest Baptist tonight in a clash of Division II national powers in Warrensburg, Mo. at 7:30 p.m.
Both schools are members of the MIAA and are ranked in the top 10 of the latest NABC Top 10 rankings. Central Missouri State is ranked No. 2 while Southwest Baptist is 7-1.
Central Missouri State (4-0) advanced to the Final Four of the NCAA Division II Tournament last season. The Mules defeated Southwest Baptist in the regional finals on their way to the Final Four. Both teams are loaded again and led by players from the Show-Me State.
The Mules are led by the pair of 6'3" forward Sanijay Watts (Jennings) and 6'0" guard Alex Moosman (St. Francis Borgia). The two former area standouts shared the Post-Dispatch Player of the Year award in 2006. Now, they are in Warrensburg together leading the Mules to national prominence under head coach Kim Anderson.
Watts, an All-American is currently averaging 21.3 points, 8.5 rebounds while shooting 61 percent from the field. Moosman is averaging 14.5 points, three assists while hitting nine of his 14 three-point attempts.
Southwest Baptist (7-1) is led by 6'11" All-American center Matt Rogers from Doniphan, Mo. Rogers does it all for SBU, averaging 24.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, three blocks. He is also shooting 56 percent from the 3-point line and 86 percent from the free throw line.
The UCM Multipurpose building will be rocking tonight.

Spoonball is back (sort of...)

2009-12-01T14:02:00.000-08:00

I know what you're thinking. But no, Charlie Spoonhour is still enjoying retirement while doing a little television work.
However, his son, Jay Spoonhour has continued the family tradition of excellence on the sidelines with what he is doing at his latest gig at Moberly Area Community College.
J-Spoon has the Greyhounds out of the gate quickly with an 11-1 record. After dropping their first game, Moberly has won 11 consecutive games, including road victories at NJCAA national tournament participants Southwestern Illinois College (SWIC) and Highland Junior College (Ill.).
The Greyhounds have been led this season by 6'8" freshman center Karron Johnson, who has been a beast in the post. The Richmond,Va. native was an Oklahoma State signee out of high school.
Spoonhour has made the most of his head coaching opportunities. He led Wabash Valley Junior College to the NJCAA national title in 2001. He also took over for his father in 2004when he stepped down and UNLV and led the Rebels to within a jump shot away from the Mountain West title and a NCAA tournament berth.
In between head coaching gigs, Spoonhour has been an assistant at Missouri and Texas San-Antonio.
Who knows what that Southeast Missouri program might have become had they hired Spoonhour as its head coach instead of the ill-fated hiring of Scott Edgar?
Something that make you go hmmmm.
Hey folks. The young man can coach. Hopefully, some Division I school will figure that out and give him a chance in the near future.

Bills vs. Dawgs

2009-12-01T09:15:00.001-08:00

The Billikens will play their first true road game of the season on Wednesday night when they visit the Georgia Bulldogs of the Southeastern Conference.
Save for a miracle run to the SEC Tournament title and NCAA berth at the end of the 2008 season, the Georgia program has been struggling in recent years.
After making a late run at Mizzou coach Mike Anderson, the university brass went West and tabbed former Nevada coach Mark Fox as the new man in charge. Fox had a nice run at Nevada as an assistant under Trent Johnson (now at LSU) and a head coach.
Like the Billikens, the Dawgs are young and still trying to find themselves during this building stage. One of those fine building blocks is 6'9" 247-pound sophomore Trey Thompkins. An All-SEC Freshmen Team pick in 2009, Thompkins is currently averaging 15.6 points and 8.8 rebounds a game.
Thompkins represents another excellent big man that the Bills have to contend with for the third consecutive game. It will be fun to watch Thompkins match up with Bills center and fellow sophomore Willie Reed, who is coming off an excellent showing at the Chicago Invitational Challenge.
Supporting Thompkins on the perimeter are fellow sophomores Travis Leslie and Dustin Ware. Leslie is a big, bodied swingman at 6'4" and 205 pounds, the kind of player that has been having much success against us as of late. He is averaging 12 points and five rebounds a game. I would not be surprised to see Femi John guarding Leslie at times. Femi's physical strength has come in handly on defense. he was the only player who could physically match the strength of Notre Dame's Ben Hansbrough last Saturday. Femi has a chance to develop a nice niche on his team as a defender, rebounder who can knock down the occasional jumper, preferrably from the middle area.
Ware is a 5'11" point guard, who started as a freshman, as did our own Kwamain Mitchell. Ware leads the team in assists. The third guard is 6'1" senior Ricky McPhee who averages nine points a game.
The Bulldogs have some pretty good size and beef along the front line in addition to Thompkins. Junior Jeremy Price goes 6'8" and 264 pounds, junior Chris Barnes is 6'8" and 240 while senior Albert Jackson is 6'11" and 265. Willie, Brian Conklin, Corey Remekun and Jon Smith have to do a good job of holding their position and not getting pushed under the basket by the beefy frontcourt players of UGA.
That shouldn't be too much of a problem for Brian, who has also been playing some excellent ball on the interior. the more physical the game, the more he likes it, regardless of how much height he gives up to his opponent.
It should be interesting to see how the Billikids perform in their first road game in a hostile enviornment. To win on the road, you have to play with poise and be able to make big shots at key junctures of the game. We have to avoid that critical stretch where a team can get away from us quickly, like Iowa State and Notre Dame did. it will be interesting to see what we took from last weekend and how much we learned from it.
We definitely have to knock down some perimeter shots. We have to find a happy medium between the hot-shooting (22 of 47 from the three) that we saw in the first two games of the Chicago Challenge and the frosty 4 for 33 shooting from 3-point land.
Kwamain got into a nice rhythm in our last game against Notre Dame, especially from the mid-range area. That is good to see because that mid-range jumper is available to him all the time, as opposed to him overpenetrating into the land of the giants and forced to leave his feet to make a difficult pass. He can do a lot of damage making the nice 10 to 12 footer off the bounce as well as getting all the way to the basket.
Look forward to bringing you the action along with my SLU Hall of Fame play-by-play partner Bob Ramsey.
Enjoy the game.
Go Bills.

Lady Bills win two in a row

2009-12-01T08:37:00.001-08:00

After suffering a three-game losing streak, the Saint Louis University Billikens women's team responded with two impressive victories in the past three days.
The Billikens defeated Montana 72-55 in the third-place game of the Courtyard by Mariott Los Angeles Westside Thanksgiving Tournament in California. Senior center Amanada Kemyzys (Belleville East) enjoyed a big performance with a game-high 26 points and nine rebounds to lead the Billikens. The 6'4" Kemezys was named to the All-Tournament team.
On Monday night, SLU defeated Arkanaas State 79-70 in a very entertaining game at the Chaifetz Arena. Several Billikens got in on the scoring act as five players scored in double figures.
Leading the way was senior guard Katie Paganelli (picture), who scored 19 points, including five 3-pointers. Junior Lauren Woods (Belleville East) added 17 points while Kemezys added 14 points and a career-high 19 rebounds. Forward Kathryn Hester and guard Jacy Bradley each scored 13 points.
Former Kirkwood High standout Shania Hurst scored 13 points for Arkansas State. Teammate Meghan Lewis (McCluer South-Berkeley) added nine points.
The Billikens are now 3-3.

Katie Paganelli photo courtesy of slubillikens.com

UMSL Tritons on a roll

2009-12-01T08:25:00.001-08:00

My buddy Chris Pilz (pictured) has his UMSL Tritons on an early-season roll after two weeks. The Tritons are currently 5-0, which is the best start in the school's history.
The Tritons have a potent offense which is averaging nearly 82 points a game. They are led by sophomore guard Beaumont Beasley, who is averaging 21.8 points a game.
Junior forward Ryan Lawrence (De Soto High)is averaging 16 points and six rebounds a game. The 6'3" Lawrence was named the Great Lakes Valley Conference Player of the Week after two dynamic performances in victories over Truman State and Upper Iowa. Lawrence had 19 points and 14 rebounds against Truman State, then 20 points against Upper Iowa.
Guard Jeremy Brown is averaging 12 points a game while 6'10" senior Adam Kaatman (Hazelwood West) is averaging 10.4 points. Kaatman is an excellent shooter for a big man.
Former Webster Groves standout Zach Redel has been solid, averaging 8.8 points and 5.6 rebounds. The 6'6" Redel transferred back home to UMSL after playing at NCAA Division II Final Four participant Central Missouri State last season. Junior Eddie White (Parkway West) also averages nearly eight points a game.
The Tritons also gained in the recruiting game this week when versatile 6'7" forward Kevin Dwyer of Rockwood Summit inked a letter of intent.
UMSL will begin GLVC play this weekend with road games at Lewis and Wisconsin-Parkside.

Chris Pilz photo courtesy of umsltritons.com

Brad Beal picks Florida

2009-11-30T09:45:00.000-08:00

Chaminade College Prep basketball standout Brad Beal gave Billy Donovan and the Florida Gators a verbal commitment on Monday morning.
The junior shooting star picked the Gators over Missouri, Kansas, Illinois, Duke and Ohio State at a morning press conference in the school's library.
Donovan made a final visit to Chamiande on Sunday to attend practice and make his final pitch. Beal now becomes the third St. Louis area player and second from Chaminade to commit to Florida in the decade.
Former Chamiande All-American David Lee played for the Gators from 2002-2005 while current Florida starting forward Alex Tyus played at Hazelwood Central.
Beal averaged 23.5 points a game as a sophomore to lead the Red Devils to the Class 5 state championship last season. He was also a star on the summer circuit with the St. Louis Eagles and an international standout as well after leading USA Basketball's 16-and-uder team to the gold medal and the World 16-and-unders in Argentina.
Beal's Chaminade team will open its season this afternoon against Hazelwood West in the opening round of the Pattonville Tournament.

Brad Beal photo courtesy of Wiley Price, St. Louis American

O'Fallon, Borgia, Alton are early winners

2009-11-30T04:13:00.000-08:00

The high school basketball season got underway last week with some pretty good Thanksgiving Holiday tournament action.
The most impressive performers last week were the O'Fallon Panthers, who won the championship of the Methodist Medical Center Invitational Thanksgiving Tournament in Peoria. Coming off a 13-16 record in '09, the Panthers go the new season started in fine style by going 4-0 against a talented field of teams put together by director Shawn Powell.
O'Fallon defeated Little Rock Hall 81-80 to win the title in a double-overtime thriller. Junior swingman Roosevelt Jones scored a game-high 26 points for O'Fallon. The 6'4" Jones was named the Most Valuable Player for the tournament. Junior Shane Watson added 18 points for the Panthers with Chevaughn Lawrence chpping in with 14.
O'Fallon also defeated Springfield (Ill.), Sherman (Tex.) and Peoria Notre Dame on its way to the title.

St. Francis Borgia won the championship of its own Turkey Tournament with a 75-54 victory over Maplewood in a battle of state-championship teams. Senior forward Nathan Scheer of Borgia was the MVP of the tournament after averaging more than 25 points a game.
In the third-place game, Pacific defeated Washington 62-52 while U. City defeated Wellston 100-70 for third place. In the seventh place game, Carnahan defeated Union 59-56. It was the first victory as a varsity program for Carnahan, which played a junior varsity schedule last season as a first-year program.
Scheer headed the all-tournament team which also included Tyler Ressell (Borgia), Bryton Hobbs, Calvin Belts, Jr. and freshman Kevin Baker (Maplewood), Ben McLemore (Wellston), Travon Williams (University City), Jordan Stapp (Washington), Alex Rolwig (Union) and Chris Jackson (Pacific).
After winning its own tournament, Borgia will go through a ambitious two week stretch against the likes of Whitfield, Jefferson City Helias, Chaminade, CBC and St. Charles West all in succession.

The Alton Redbirds won their own Alton Tip-Off Classic with a 60-51 victory over Southwestern Conference rival Belleville East. LeVaughn McDouglar took home MVP honors for the Redbirds, who also defeated Vashon, Roosevelt and Carbondale in the tournament.
Senior guard Montinez Knight scored 14 points, but 11 of them came in the pivotal third quarter when Alton took total control of the game. Dorian Scruggs led Alton with 17 points. C.J. Goldthree led Belleville East with 13 points.
The all-tournament team was McDouglar, Tony Bradley and Mikkel Lumpkins of Alton, Thomas Poston, Sean Pettiford and Joe Gilmore of Belleville East, Conner Wheeler and Ty Neal of Carbondale, Saladin Smith and Antonio "Flip" Hopkins of Vashon.

Metro East Lutheran won its own Thanksgiving tournament with a 52-43 victory over East Alton Wood River in the championship game. Senior forward Bob Schnietz scored 24 points to lead ME Lutheran in the finals. The 6'3" senior had a huge tournament, averaging 27 points in the four games.

Triad defeated Breese Mater Dei 71-61 to win the Waterloo/Triad Round Robin. Senior forward Travis Felex scored a game-high 26 points to lead Triad. Mater Dei was led by sophomore shooting whiz Cory Arensten's 15 points.

Centralia won the Jacksonville Round Robin with a 4-1 record. Collinsville also had a 4-1 record in the tournament, but the Orphans got the tourney win by virtue of their victory over the Kahoks in the opening game.

There's plenty of good action on tap this week as the Pattonville, Vianney, Whitfield Tournaments get underway as does the Southside Classic.
The big game to watch today will be the battle of Class 3 state contenders Whitfield and Cardinal Ritter in the first game of the Whitfield Round Robin. It should be a good one.
Heading the field at Pattonville are defending Class 5 state-champion Chaminade along with Metro Catholic Conference rival CBC. McCluer, Jennings and Lafayette are also excellent programs in the field.
Hazelwood Central got the top seed a Vianney. Also watch out for the host Golden Griffins, Fort Zumwalt South, Clayton, Eureka and Riverview Gardens.

Brad Beal to make decision on Monday

2009-11-28T20:43:00.000-08:00

Chaminade College Prep junior standout Bradley Beal will make his commitment on Monday morning at the school.
The 6'4" junior All-State guard will make his college choice known at 10 a.m. Monday, just hours before his Red Devils team is to take the court in the first round of the Pattonville Tournament.
Schools such as Kansas, Illinois, Missouri, Florida, Duke and many others have been in hot pursuit of Beal, who emerged as one of the top shooting guards in the nation after an explosive sophomore year in which he led Chaminade to the Class 5 state championship. He is ranked No. 7 nationally in the Rivals.com Class of 2011.
During the summer, Beal was a star for the St. Louis Eagles Basketball Club. He was also the leading scorer for the USA Basketball 16-and-under team that won the gold medal at the inaugural 16-and-under World Championships in Argentina.

Bradley Beal photo courtesy of Wiley Price: St. Louis American

Irish top Bills for third place

2009-11-28T17:41:00.000-08:00

Notre Dame's 64-52 victory over the Bills in the third-place game of the Chicago Invitational Challenge was nearly a carbon copy of the Bills 65-54 loss to Iowa State in the semifinals.
Just as on Friday, the Bills battled Notre Dame with a great defensive effort and trailed only by three points and halftime. Iowa State took control of the game with a 13-0 run and the Irish did the same with a 9-0 run. They shot 57 percent in the second half.
This time, the Bills battled back to cut the lead to 36-35 and had two opportunities to take the lead, but couldn't convert and Notre Dame never trailed from that point. Notre Dame's experience proved to be the difference. They are made up of juniors and seniors while we are freshmen and sophomores.
Once again, sophomore forwards Willie Reed (pictured) and Brian Conklin turned in fine performances, but the perimeter shots were not falling once again. After going one for 16 from the 3-point line against Iowa State, the Bills shot a chilly three for 17 against the Irish, making them four for 33 for the weekend.
On Friday, 6'4" Diante Garrett of Iowa State had his way with the smaller Bills guards. On Saturday, it was Poplar Bluff native Ben Hansbrough using every bit of his 6'3" 205 pounds and country strength to muscle his way to 15 points one six of nine shooting from the field. Ben even clocked freshman Jeff Reid with an elbow to the head on one of his bull-moose drives to the bucket. Jeff didn't return to the game. I hope he wasn't injured seriously on that play.
Heck, the score was almost the same.
It was another valuable lesson for a young team going up against a formidable opponent from a power conference. The Bills left it on the floor with a great effort. We just did not have enough experience of offensive firepower to get over the proverbial hump against a BCS opponent.
Willie and Brian came through with very productive efforts again. Notre Dame played a lot of zone defense to try to combat our young bigs. Brian finished with 10 points and five rebounds in 32 minutes. It was fun watching him battle ND's All-American Luke Harongody in the paint. It was like watching a big brother go against his little brother in the driveway. A young bull and a old bull if you will.
Willie enjoyed a huge effort, setting new career bests in seven different categories.
Willie finished the game with 20 points and 15 rebounds, both career highs. He also had career highs in offensive rebounds (nine), field goal attempts (19) steals (three), minutes played (32) and free-throws (6-8). Had he converted a few more of his opportunities that he rushed a little bit, it would have been a truly dominant night for Willie, but I can's nit-pick too much. 20 and 15 against a good Big East team is pretty darn good. Willie was selected to the All-Tournament team for his efforts.
It was quite a performance for Willie on the big stage while playing against a collegiate A-List post man for the second consecutive night. Last night, it was Craig Brackins of Iowa State. Tonight, it was Luke Harongody of Notre Dame, a consensus preseason All-American. Willie continues to play with great energy and activity. And as you see by his minutes, he's going for longer stratches without asking out of the game.
After a slow start, Kwamain Mitchell really picked up the offense in the second half, scoring 11 of his 14 points. I was really impressed with Kwamain's elevation on his jump shots. He got great height and release tonight, especially on his mid-range jumper. He still struggled from the 3-point line (1-6), but I was glad to see him more aggressively looking for his shot.
Our wing players really had a tough weekend as Kyle went scoreless in the two games and Christian had only two field goals. They had good looks tonight, but they just wouldn't fall. One thing they cannot do is lose confidence and get tentative. They just have to forget about this weekend and shot the next jumper with full confidence as it is going in. When you have the wide open look, shoot it.
This past weekend should make Bills fans appreciate what Tommie Liddell and Kevin Lisch did for the past four years. Not only did they score about 3,300 points between them, but they provided different ways to score with how they could break defenses down off the dribble consistently. Replacing one of them would be difficult, but two at the same time is really hard.
The young men who are in their place right now (Kyle Cassity, Femi John, Christian Salecich and Justin Jordan) have had some very positive moments in the first six games this season, and will have many more in Billiken uniforms, but they are still young and learning on the job. They have a comfort level at home in the Chaifetz, but it was their first time away from home (except Kyle), so it was a new experience, which will make them better. It might be painful at times, but it will prove to be beneficial down the road.
Playing against a higher level of compeitition this weekend was a good eye-opener for our young wing players. Not only did they have to contend with tough defensive pressure, but they also had to guard big, athletic guards off the dribble.
Overall, it was a tough weekend to lose two games, but it showed up where we need to improve. The road doesn't get any easier as we must head South to face Georgia in our first true road game of the season. One thing that must not change is the effort and intensity. that has been a constant. Hopefully, the shooting will soon follow.
I'll have a preview on the Dawgs on Monday or Tuesday.
On a side note, it was a good weekend for some mid-major programs around the country.
Future SLU foe Richmond of Atlantic 10 won the championship of the South Padre Island Tournament in Texas. The Spiders defeated Missouri in the championship game after knocking off Mississippi State in the semifinals.
The Portland Pilots of the West Coast Conference are in tomorrow night's championship of the 76 Classic in Anaheim after beating UCLA and Minnesota on consecutive nights. And how about the Bradley Braves of the Missouri Valley Conference, who knocked off in-state big brother Illinois tonight in the Las Vegas Invitational.
So, there's hope.
Go Bills!

Showdown of state champs at Borgia Turkey Tourney

2009-11-28T05:21:00.000-08:00

It will be a battle of state champions tonight in the championship game of the St. Francis Borgia/Pepsi Thanksgiving Tournament.
The Class 4 state-champion Borgia Knights will face the two-time Class 3 state-champion Maplewood Blue Devils in tonight's championship game. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
Both teams advanced to the finals with easy victories. The host Knights defeated Carnahan and Washington while Maplewood bested University City and Pacific in lopsided victories.
It should be a fun early-season matchup, featuring two of the two programs going in the state of Missouri. The Knights feature the senior duo of 6'5" forward Nathan Scheer and 6'1" guard Tyler Ressel. Scheer is headed to Missouri State while Ressel signed with Missouri Southern. Ressel had 25 points in the Knights 72-37 victory over Washington in the semifinals while Scheer added 22.
Junior center Ben Reuther has added some inside presence to the Knights while sophomore Bryce Dolan has stepped in nicely in the Knights backcourt.
Maplewood is started to get used to life without do-it-all guard Bryant Allen, who is now at the University of Minnesota. So far, so good. The Blue Devils are led by returning starters Bryton Hobbs, a 5'10" senior and Calvin Belts, Jr., a 6'5" junior. Junior guard Tony King is a 6'0" guard who played a lot of minutes last season.
You also have a matchup of two of the top coaches in the state. Borgia's Dave Neier has more than 500 victories to his credit and five state titles at Borgia. Meanwhile, MRH's Corey Frazier has quickly established himself as a top young coach with his back-to-back state titles and great intensity on the bench.
Frazier also has a history with Borgia going back to his high school days as a player at Charleston High School in Southeast Missouri. Frazier was a top player on some Charleston teams in the mid-90's that had some classic battles with Borgia in the Class 3A state tournament.
So, if you don't have any plans on a Saturday night, get yourself down to Washington, Mo. and enjoy this early-season showdown.
A couple of other championship games will be held tonight on the Illinois side. Southwestern Conferene foes Belleville East and Alton will meet in the championship game of the Alton Tip-Off Classic tonight at 7:30 p.m.
Both teams are 3-0 and needed late rallies to remain undefeated and advance to Saturday's finals. Alton trailed Vashon by six points in the fourth quarter before rallying to take a 49-47 squeaker. Belleville East rallied from a 10-point deficit in the second half to defeat Carbondale 53-50. Belleville East is the defending tournament champion.
Metro East Lutheran and East Alton Wood River will meet tonight in the championship of the Metro East Lutheran Thanksgiving Holiday Tournament. Tip-off is at 7:30 p.m. Senior forward Bob Schnietz of Metro East Lutheran has been on a tear during the tournament, averaging 28.6 points in the first three games of the tournament.

(Stayed tuned for the unveiling of my new and improved basketball website, earlaustinjr.com, which celebrates the past, present and future of St. Louis basketball. It should be up and running sometime next week, so make sure to check it out).

Bills face Irish for third place

2009-11-28T04:29:00.000-08:00

The Billikens and Notre Dame will try to get the sour taste of defeat out of their mouths today as they meet in the third-place game of the Chicago Invitational Challenge at UIC Pavilion. Tip-off is at 4:30 p.m.
Both teams suffered their first loss of the season on Friday. The Bills were defeated by Iowa State 65-54 while the Fighting Irish were bested by Northwestern 72-58 in a mild surprise.
The one common thread between these two teams was that both really struggled from 3-point range on Friday night. SLU made only one of its 16 3-point attempts against Iowa State's pressure man-to-man defense. Meanwhile Notre Dame shot 7 of 31 from long distance against Northwestern's 1-3-1 zone defense that put a blanket around ND's All-American center Luke Harongody and forced the Irish to chuck it up from the cheap seats early and often.
The Irish will pose another strong challenge for the young Billikens. For the second night in a row, SLU will see another A-List collegiate front court player. After dealing with Iowa State's future pro Craig Brackins, today's challenge comes from the 6'8" 250-pound Harangody, who came into the weekend averaging 27 points and 10 rebounds a game. He has been on everyone's preseason All-American list.
The big fella has a great touch around the hoop and a myriad of ways to score. Although he struggled inside NW's zone last night, he still managed to score 21 points and nine rebounds. It will be good to watch Haragody go up against Billiken bigs Willie Reed and Brian Conklin, who are both playing good basketball this season as the Bills' top two scorers.
The Irish also have an experiened point guard in senior Tory Jackson, who has been at the controls of the ND offense for much of his career. He is averaging nearly 10 points, six assists and four rebounds a game. He also plays stout defense. Watching him and SLU sophomore Kwamain Mitchell go at it should also be a treat.
Notre Dame's top perimeter threats are 6'8" sophomore Tim Abromaitis and 6'3" junior Ben Hansbrough. Abromaitis does not start, but he comes off the bench with the green light to shoot it. He is averaging 13 points a game.
Hansbrough is Tyler's younger brother and an ornery cuss on the basketball court. he loves to mix it up as well. He struggled from the field on Friday, shooting 1 for 10 and missing all seven of his 3-point attempts. Before last night, he came in averaging 12 a game. Ben is good player with a lot of strength and toughness to his game.
Notre Dame's other two starters are 6'8" sophomore Tyrone Nash, who is an excellent leaper and 6'3" senior Jonathan Peoples, who is a solid all-purpose player. The only other player to get significant minutes in the Irish rotation so far is guard Carlton Scott.
It will be interesting to see how our Billikids respond to their first loss of the season. They put up a good fight against Iowa State and played with great effort. Can they muster up that kind of energy for another big effort less than 24 hours later against another formidable opponents. It will be another opportunity to see how these young men grow, especially when faced with adversity.
I look for Kwamain to respond with a nice game tonight after sitting out much of last night's game in foul trouble and never finding his groove. Hopefully, a few more perimeter shots will drop now that the kids have had a game to shoot against the background of the Pavilion.
Friday night was also a night of growth for the Billikens' young bench. The kids were productive, especially in the first half as Corey Remekun, Justin Jordan, Femi John and Jeff Reid contributed 13 points and 10 rebounds off the bench, most of which came in the first half when the Bills were most competitive. They must bring that same kind of energy to the game again.
Of course, Willie and Brian must continue their strong play in the post. Brian battled his way to 18 points against Iowa State's big front line while Willie posted his second double-double of the season with 14 points and 13 rebounds.
Willie is really starting to put himself on the radar with his dynamic performances. Facing Craig Brackins and Luke Harongody on consecutive nights is the perfect opportunity for the bouncy 6'9" sophomore to earn his bonafides, not to mention an early look from those sshhhh... NBA scouts, many of whom were in the house to watch Brackins and Harongody. He just has to stay focused and continue to play to his strengths, which is his quickess and ability to elevate quickly on the boards. He is also starting to make moves facing the basketball as well. So far, so good.
Let's see if we can get the split in Chicago.
See you at the game. If not, you can listen to me and my Hall of Fame play-by-play partner Bob Ramsey on the call on 101-ESPN, beginning at 4:15 with the pre-game.
As always, Go Bills!

(Stay tuned for the coming of my new improved basketball website, earlaustinjr.com, which celebrates the past, present and future of St. Louis basketball).

Cyclones hand Bills first loss

2009-11-27T18:36:00.000-08:00

The Billikids went down to defeat for the first time this season as Iowa State came away with a 65-54 victory over SLU in the semifinals of the Chicago Invitational Challenge the UIC Pavilion.
The guys battled hard for much of the game, but some poor shooting from the 3-point line and free throw line, coupled with Iowa State's overall size, athleticism and depth proved to be too much for the kids to handle on this night.
A 13-0 run by the Cyclones early in the second half proved to be the difference in the game. AFter trailing 30-27 at halftime, we actually took the lead 31-30 on consecutive baskets by Christian Salecich and Brian Conklin.
The advantage was short-lived as Iowa State responded by scoring the next 13 points to take total control of the game. They led by as many as 17 points in the second half. The Bills made several attempts to get back into the game, but could never get any closer than eight points.
It was a good lesson to be learned by a young team. We've seen these droughts before in previous games, but we were able to overcome and come away with a victory. Against a team the caliber of Iowa State, overcoming a lull is much harder to accomplish and we saw that tonight. During the run, they hurried us into some tough shots, then got some easy run-out baskets and 3-point baskets in transition. It was a tough stretch, but one in which we will learn from.
The main culprit tonight was 3-point shooting. We shot only one 16 from long distance. We came into the game shooting 44 percent as a team, but the perimeter game was non-existent tonight.
The Iowa State perimeter defenders did a great job of crowding our shooters, especially Kyle Cassity and Christian Salecich. Rarely did they have a open look at the basket. When they did, the shots were hurried a little bit because the Cyclones recovered well. Kwamain Mitchell encoutered early foul trouble and could never get in the flow of the game, shooting only two of 10 from the field and one for six from 3-point land.
We also struggled from the free throw line, making seven of 12. We missed the front end of two one-and-ones late in the first half, which could have resulted in a halftime lead.
Despite the loss, there were plenty of positive things to take from tonight's game. The Bills made the first half a competitive affair, which was more impressive when you consider that Kwamain played only one minute. After picking up his second foul early, he came to the bench and sat the rest of the half.
SLU managed to battled the Cyclones on even terms for the rest of the half. We played solid defense in holding ISU to 35 percent shooting in the first half and we outrebounded them as well.
The bright spots tonight were our bigs Willie Reed and Brian Conklin (pictured) were came up with big games against Iowa State's plethora of big men. Conklin tied a career high with 18 points. He scored on a variety of tough shots in the paint in making eight of 10 from the field.
Willie was impressive as well with 14 points and 13 rebounds for his second double-double of the season. Willie is also showing an explosive first step off the dribble. When faced against a bigger, slower defender, Willie showed the abilit to blow by his defender and stay under control for a good shot.
I was also encouraged by the performance of the youngsters off the bench in the first half. When Kwamain went to the bench early with his second foul, I held my breath.
But Corey Remekun, Justin Jordan, Femi John and Jeff Reid contributed 11 points in the first half. That was big with Kwamain on the bench and Christian and Kyle being neutralized by ISU's pressure defense. Remekun really gave us a lift with five points, two rebounds, two blocks one big dunk and some very energetic minutes. After seeing limited minutes, Rick rewarded his effort with a few more ticks tonight as Corey logged 15 minutes. Corey still gets his fouls, but he is not cheated on effort. In the first half, we were able to combat Iowa State's pressure with some pretty good backdoor cuts and passes for easy layups.
The Billikids also showed some fight in the second half when it looked like it could have easily been a big blowout. Iowa State built a 51-34 lead and appeared poised to run the Bills out of the UIC Pavilion. Instead, SLU fought back and threatened to make things a little interesting down the stretch. The real decisive run never came, but I like the fact that they kept playing hard. That will come in handy down the road when they do make an improbable rally to win a game that they are not supposed to win.
I am impressed with Iowa State's team. Coach McDermott has a nice team that is better equipped to handle the Big XII Conference than any of his previous three outfits. They have good size, a great player in Craig Brackins, better athleticism and good depth. It will be interesting to see what happens when they get into conference play. Their point guard, Diante Garrett, a 6'4" athlete, gave us the blues on both ends of the court.
Overall, it was a tough game, but a good learning experience for a young team playing away from the comfy confines of the Chaifetz Arena for the first tiime against a quality opponent.
We have a quick turnaround, then we have to get after it against another good team tomorrow night. I left the arena at halftime and Northwestern was leading Notre Dame. Either way, it will be another tough game.
I'll have a preview on the game either later tonight or in the morning.
It was cool to see a lot of folks in Billiken blue make the trip to Chi-Town.
I'll talk to you in a little bit. In the words of the late, great Jack Buck, "So long for just awhile."
Go Bills.

Brian Conklin photo courtesy of slubillikens.com

Note: Be on the look out for my new and improved basketball website (www.earlaustinjr.com) coming up next week. The new earlaustinjr.com will celebrate the past, present and future of St. Louis basketball. A big feature of the new website will be a section dedicated to SLU basketball. Stay tuned.

Local Preps Represent in Peoria

2009-11-26T11:10:00.000-08:00

St. Louis area teams represented well during the first day of the State Farm Tournament of Champions in Peoria, Ill.
Whitfield, the Class 3 state runners-up from 2009, defeated Varma (Ill.) 91-57 in one of the Shootout games of the event. Sophomore guard Zach Ellis had 28 points, steals and two assists to lead the Warriors. He was selected the Player of the Game. Senior 6'6" forward Alex Rudd added 22 points. It was Rudd's first game back after missing his entire junior season with a knee injury. Guard Mike Gallagher added 17 points.
In another Shootout game Hazelwood Central blitzed Bartonville Limestone 89 55. Junior guard B.J. Young earned Player of the Game honors with 25 points and seven rebounds. Senior Trae Anderson added 17 points.
O'Fallon High is participating in a tournament in Peoria. They opened the tournament with a 56-51 victory over Springfield (Ill.) High. Standout junior swingman Roosevelt Jones led the Panthers with 13 points and eight rebounds.
Soldan High will also be playing in Peoria over the weekend.

*(Be on the look out for the new "earlaustinjr.com" the basketball website for the local basketball fans. Earl will celebrate the past, present and future of St. Louis basketball in his new website, beginning in early December).

Chi-Town Weekend

2009-11-26T05:10:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.
I trust that everyone will enjoy a happy thanksgiving with the family and friends. I plan on doing the same.
After a great day of eating and family fellowship, it's off to Chicago with the Billikids for a very intriging weekend of baskeball.
The Bills will take on Big XII member Iowa State in the third game of the Chicago Invitational Challenge. Tip off is at 5 p.m. and the UIC Pavilion on the campus of the University of Illinois-Chicago. Notre Dame and Northwestern will follow in the nightcap.
On Saturday, we will either play Notre Dame or Northwestern at either 4:30 p.m. or 7 p.m. depending on Friday's results.
The Cyclones are 5-0 and will represent the biggest challenge for the Billikens in the young season. They are big, deep, talented and boast a bonafide NBA first-rounder in the lineup. The Cyclones are averaging 86 points a game while shooting 53 percent from the field as a team, which leads the nation.
Their All-American candidate is 6'10" junior Craig Brackins, who is averaging 17 points and seven rebounds a game. He can do it all. He can score in the post or step out and hit the jumper. When you can drop 42 points on the Kansas Jayhawks, you have some serious game.
Brackins has plenty of help up front. Marcus Gilstrap is a mature 6'6" senior forward who is averaging 14 points and a team-leading nine rebounds a game. There is also the 6'11" pair of sophomore Justin Hamilton and senior Jamie Vanderbeken. Both average about 14 minutes a game.
If that wasn't enough size, there is also robust 6'9" juco transfer LeRon Denby, who had 16 points in Iowa State's first game, but hasn't played since because of injury. Not sure if he's going to play or not on Friday. Either way, we will have our hands full.
Their top perimeter threat is 6'5" junior LUcca Staiger, a native of Germany. He is averaging 11 points while shooting a toasty 50 percent from 3-point range. The point guard is 6'4" junior Diante Garrett, who is averaging nearly eight assists a game. Sophomore guard Scott Christoper has also been playing well at 11 points a game.
Iowa State coach Greg McDermott may have his best team since taking over in Ames four years ago. McDermott enjoyed immense success at Northern Iowa, where he guided the Panthers to two NCAA Tournament berths.
Success has been a little bit harder to come by in the hyper-competitive Big XII. Despite the presence of great programs such as Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma, Mizzou and others, the folks in Ames are used to seeing their Cyclones in the mix, so this is a pivotal year for McDermott. The Big XII is loaded again this year, but Iowa State could be a surprise team. On a side note, one of McDermott's assistant coaches is Daniyel Robinson, who is the younger brother of former Billiken forward David Robinson, a starter and key player for the Billikens two NCAA Tournament teams in 1994 and 1995.
For the Billikens to be successful against the Cyclones, they must continue to play stout half-court defense. When you play against a team that averages in the high 80's, you must do a couple of things to keep them below their average.
You have to limit your turnovers, which could lead to easy fast break points. You have to limit their offensive rebounds, which lead to easy layups. That has been an issue with us so far this season. We must take high-percentage shots on offense with good floor balance. Poor shots with bad floor balance could lead to easy run-outs buckets for the other team. For the most part, we have been good at getting the ball to the right man in the right spot for a quality shot. It would be nice to avoid that seven or eight minute lull when we struggle to score. We have to keep that to a minimum.
You have to make teams score consistently against your good half-court defense and get the rebound should they miss. Try to disrupt their rhythm and make them take shots that they are not used to taking. A tall order yes, but necessary if you're going to knock off one of the big boys.
Offensively, we must make them guard us consistently and continue to move the ball and find the open man. I look for Brian Conklin to step up and have an effective game inside to support Willie Reed. I suspect he'll have Brackins to start with, so it will be a challenge. Brian must stay out of foul trouble, especially early on.
Overall, I'm looking forward to this weekend. The kids are playing well and with a lot of confidence. It is still early and many lessons are to be learned, but I'm glad to have these two games against a good Iowa State game and either Notre Dame of Northwestern.
Playing four games in seven days can be taxing on a team without a lot of depth, but at the same time, it's a chance to develop some good team chemistry and flow.
Look forward to seeing many of you Bills fans in Chicago over the weekend. If you can't make it, you can listen to the call on 101-ESPN with me and my Hall of Fame play-by-play partner Bob Ramsey. The pre-game show begins at about 4:45 p.m. Have fun.
And always, Go Bills.

Earl's New Basketball Website

2009-11-25T13:43:00.000-08:00

Next week, my website, earlaustinjr.com, will become a full-fledged basketball website. The theme of the new earlaustinjr.com will be: Celebrating the past, present and future of St. Louis basketball.
The new website will cover all aspects of basketball in the area. We will cover high school boys and girls, the colleges, a special SLU basketball page, a look back and past greats of area basketball, youth team spotlights and many other great features.
Be on the lookout for the new, earlaustinjr.com.

Sizzling Sophomores

2009-11-25T09:11:00.000-08:00

University of Missouri coach Mike Anderson's freshman class of 2009 was instrumental in bringing the Tigers their first Big XII Conference postseason title and NCAA Elite Eight berth last season.
Youngsters such as Kim English (pictured), Marcus Denmon and Laurence Bowers played a pivotal role in providing depth and firepower off the bench in the Tigers' 11-man rotation.
The graduation of veteran leaders DeMarre Carroll, Leo Lyons and Matt Lawrence has created more minutes for these talented sophomores and more opportunities to showcase their talents. With senior guard J.T.Tiller battling early injuries and talented junior forward Justin Safford struggling, the sophomores are getting it done in a big way early
After three games, the Tiger sophomores are already laying down tracks for big-time success in the future. After a 1 for 9 performance in Mizzou's opening win over Tennessee-Martin, English has been on fire in the last two games since entering the starting lineup.
English enjoyed back to back games of 25 and 26 points in victories of Texas-Pan American and Tennessee-Chattanooga. English is averaging 19 points a game while shooting 45 percent from 3-point range.
The 6'8" Bowers has been arguably the Tigers' most consistent player during the preseason and first three games. While forward Justin Safford is trying to get on track, the athletic Bowers has been putting it down to the tune of 13 points, six rebounds and a toasty 73 percent shooting from the field.
The 6'3 Denmon provided potent scoring off the bench as well last season. With more minutes, his numbers has increased, averaging 12 points and five rebounds.
The Tigers have run their three overmatched opponents out of the Mizzou Arena while averaging a whopping 94 points a game.

Kim English photo: Courtesy of life.com

Abe Pollin Dies at 85

2009-11-25T08:28:00.000-08:00

As a lifelong fan of the Washington Wizards, it was sad to hear of the passing of long-time owner Abe Pollin at the age of 85.
Pollin had been the owner of the franchise since 1964, making him one of the longest tenured owners in professional sports. He was also a noted phliantropist as well as a sports owner.
What I will remember most about Mr. Pollin was the relationship he had with my uncle, Wes Unseld, who was the greatest player in the history of the franchise. Pollin brought Wes to Baltimore in 1969 and the Bullets had their most successful stretch, including the NBA world championship in 1978.
The photo above from the Washington Post was of an overjoyed Pollin and my uncle sharing a hug after the Bullets defeated the Seattle Supersonics 105-99 in Game 7 of the NBA Finals to win the only championship in the franchise's history.
Abe and Wes were joined at the hip in the Bullets organization for more than 40 years, much like the late Red Auerbach and Bill Russell were with the Boston Celtics. After Wes' retired, Abe tabbed him in various roles in the organization, including team president, head coach and general manager.
When my grandmother died in 1987, one of the first people who I saw at her funeral was Mr. Pollin, who had a close relationship with the Unseld family.
Here's a salute to Abe Pollin. May he rest in peace.

Photo of Abe Pollin and Wes Unseld: Courtesy of the Washington Post

The Running of the Bills

2009-11-25T07:38:00.000-08:00

The hot shooting of the Billikens continued on Tuesday night in their 75-39 victory over Mississippi Valley State in the second game of the Chicago Invitational Challenge at the Chaifetz Arena.
For the second consecutive game, the Billikens set a Chaifetz Arena record for most 3-pointers made in a game. The Bills made 10 of 20 from 3-point land against Kennesaw State last Sunday.
SLU followed up that shooting performance by making 12 3-pointers on Tuesday night, on 44 percent shooting from long distance.
Several players got in on the 3-point shooting parade. Justin Jordan hit four 3-pointers off the bench. Christian Salecich was three for seven, Kyle Cassity was two for four while Femi John was two for six. Kwamain Mitchell also added a trey in the second half.
As, the Billikens got off to a quick start making six of their first seven shots. However, their early offense came from inside the paint. Kyle Cassity scored on a driving left-handed layup to open the scoring, then Willie Reed (pictured)took over with three consecutive hoops from in close, including a beautiful jump hook on the baseline.
Mississippi Valley State battled back to make it somewhat competitive at halftime as the Bills led 31-24. The Delta Devils went to a zone and our shooting went cold and they got back in the game. Luckily, we re-discovered our 6'9" athlete in the middle and started to throw him the ball again and Willie responded with a few late hoops to provide a little breathing room at the half.
The Bills exploded in the second half with another offensive barrage as they outscored the Delta Devils 44-15. SLU shot 61 percent from the field in the second half and 66 percent from 3-point range on 8 of 12 shooting from behind the arc.
For the game, SLU shot 52 percent from the field, 44 percent from 3-point range and 70 percent from the free-throw line. The solid defense continued on the other end as the Bills limited Valley to 27 percent shooting from the field.
Reed led four Billiken players in double figures with 17 points. The maturity of his low-post game continues to be astounding. Willie arrived on campus as a dunker who can run and throw down alley oops. Now, he is gradually evolving into a legitmate low-post threat. On Tuesday night, he showed a variety of moves from the baseline jump hook, to the spin move. He even passed cross-court out of a double-team to a wide open Kwamain for the 3-pointer.
As a former low-post player myself, it's beautiful to watch Willie's evolution. He made eight of his nine field goal attempts and none of them were dunks. That's good.
Salecich added 14 points, Jordan scored a season-high 12 points off the bench while Cassity added 10 onts. Kwamain played the consummate point guard role again with nine points, six assists, five steals and no turnovers. Femi was solid off the bench again with six points and four rebounds.
The balanced scoring is nice to see because everyone is looking for the open man and delivering it to a teammate who has a chance to do something with the ball. We had 19 assists and only eight turnovers. The highlight of the game was a Kwamain push up court, with a no-look pass to Christian, who delivered his own no-look shovel pass to a streaking Brian for an easy layup.
After that play, I blurted out on the radio broadcast, "It's the running of the Bills!"
There were also plays when all five players touched the ball in a matter of only seconds before someone had a wide-open shot. Such ball movement on offense can be breathtaking. The Billikids have bought into this already and they are still puppies. Just wait until they are grown men who are playing with such savvy. Kyle had five assists and Christian dropped three dimes in addition to Kwamain's six.
Our only bugaboo on Tuesday night was fouls. We fouled early and often. Brian Conklin picked up his first foul on an illegal screen 12 seconds into the game and Willie picked up a foul less than a minute later. Brian picked up a second foul two minutes into the contest and had to sit the rest of the half. He had trouble getting into a rhythm because he sat so long.
Rebounding contines to be a challenge at times, especially when we have to go to a small lineup with four guards. MVSU was able to grab 12 offensive rebounds and convert many into easy baskets. Not having Brian in the game for such a long stretch really comprises us down low because he is so physical.
We committed a total of 11 fouls in the first half with Brian, Willie, Kwamain and Corey Remekun each getting two. Kwamain got his third right at the beginning of the second half and Corey fouled out in 11 minutes. Corey was doing good job of battling for low-post position on defense and going after the ball aggressively. He's getting better in his limited time.
Oh well, it's good to be 4-0 for the first time since Larry the Legend wowed us on a nightly basis. This team is still young and a work in progress and there is so much work that needs to be done to improve, but I think you can get a little excited at some of the seeds that are being planted here. Not only for the rest of the season, but for the future.
Starting with Iowa State on Friday, we're going to have our mettle tested in the next couple of weeks, and I think that's good. To tell you the truth, I think the boys are hankering for a little more competition, which we will surely see in Chicago this weekend.
I'll have a preview of the Iowa State game as well as a look at Notre Dame and Northwestern coming up.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone and Go Bills.
I'll see you in Chi-Town.

SLU moves to 4-0 with big win

2009-11-24T19:43:00.000-08:00

The Billikens improved to 4-0 with an impressive 75-39 victory over Mississippi Valley State in the second game of the Chicago Invitational Challenge.
The Bills had four players in double figures with Willie Reed leading the way with 17 points. Christian Salecich added 14 points, Justin Jordan came off the bench to score 12 while Kyle Cassity added 10. Kwamain Mitchell had nine points, six assists, five steals and no turnovers.
SLU shot 52.8 percent from the field and 44 percent from 3-point land, hitting 12 of 27 from long distance.
The Bills are 4-0 for the first time since the 1997-98 season.
I will have a more extensive report on the game tomorrow morning.
Go Bills.

Mater Dei tops Althoff in early girls showdown

2009-11-24T07:24:00.000-08:00

Two of the top girls basketball teams in the metro east hooked up in the championship game of the Alton Tip-Off Classic over the weekend.
Breese Mater Dei edged Belleville Althoff 57-52 to take home the championship trophy in an early-season showdown. Mater Dei ended Althoff's season last year in the state playoffs. These two talented teams should lock up a few more times during the season.
Mater Dei's performance was even more impressive, considering that several of the players are just joining the basketball team after an extended volleyball season where the Knights were state runners-up in the IHSA Class A state tournament.
Sophomore Brooke Schulte led the Knights with a game-high 21 points. Junior Ashley Rakers added 15 points. Althoff was led by senior guard Jazmin Hill, who scored 19 points in the losing cause.
Hill, a Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville signee, was selected the Most Valuable Player of the Tournament.
The All-Tournament First Team consisted of Schulte and teammate Kaley Boeckmann, Jordyne Crunk and Amarah Brooks-Williams of Althoff and Whitney Henderson of Cahokia.

Billikens host Mississippi Valley State

2009-11-24T06:46:00.000-08:00

The Billikens will host Mississippi Valley State tonight in the second game of the Chicago Invitational Challenge at the Chaifetz Arena. Tip off is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.
Mississippi Valley State is a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC). It's most notable alum is Pro Football Hall of Famer Jerry Rice. The Delta Devils are led by second-year head coach Sean Woods, who was one of Rick Pitino's "Unforgettables" at Kentucky during his collegiate career.
Woods is trying to rebuild the program with nine new players in the fold this season. The Delta Devils are currently 1-3 with their losses coming on the road to Gonzaga, Washington State and Iowa State, so they have seen some good competition. The newcomers have been thrown into the fire early.
The Delta Devils like to run, press and shoot the 3-pointer. They are forcing nearly 20 turnovers a game, so the Bills have to be on their P's and Q's a little bit more tonight against pressure defense.
MVSU is led by 6'2" junior Julius Cheeks, who averages 11 points a game. He is followed by 6'1" junior D'Angelo Jackson (9.8 points), 6'4" sophomore Tashan Newsome (8.5 points) and 6'3" junior Michael Mayo (8.3 points).
SLU (3-0) will be looking for its first 4-0 start of the season since the 1997-98 season when the great Larry Hughes roamed the perimeter for the Billikens.
One of big reasons for the Billikens' early sucess has been a balanced scoring attack. After three games, five players are averaging in double figures. That's right, five.
Kwamain Mitchell leads the way at 13.3 points per game, while leading the team in assists. Brian Conklin, Kyle Cassity, Willie Reed and Christian Salecich are all averaging 10 points a game.
The 6'9" Reed is also averaging a team-high 11 rebounds and three blocks a game to go along with his 10 points. He had 12 rebounds and five blocks in SLU's victory over Kennesaw State on Sunday.
The Billikens are shooting 48 percent from the field and 41 percent from 3-point range, thanks mainly to Justin Jordan's five for eight shooting and Kwamain Mitchell's three for six. Cassity and Salecich are both six for 16 for 37.5 percent from long distance.
I'm looking for better execution against the press, should we see a lot of it tonight. That would lead to great scoring opportunities on the back end. As this young team continues to evolve, you look for more consistency over the course of the game.
So far this season, we've seen the guys come out of the gates with a rush, only to hit a lull in the later stages of the first half. The second half usually is a repeat of the first half. As the season progresses and the competition stiffens, we have to find a happy medium in terms of consistency and execution.
I'm enjoying how hard we play and how we like to compete. That has to remain a staple, especially after tonight because the next four game stretch includes Iowa State, either Notre Dame or Northwestern, Georgia and Southern Illinois. And the only game at home is the SIU game.
We'll see you tonight at the Chaifetz. If you can't make it, listen to me and SLU Hall of Fame play-by-play man Bob Ramsey on the call on 101-ESPN.
Go Bills.

STL girls shine as Drake tops Iowa State

2009-11-23T13:25:00.000-08:00

St. Louisans Jordann Plummer (pictured) and Kayla Person played a big role in Drake University's 78-72 victory over No. 24 ranked Iowa State on Sunday in Des Moines.
Plummer, a senior point guard from Cardinal Ritter, had 12 points and a game-high six assists. Person, a freshman guard from Incarnate Word Academy, scored 10 points on four of five shooting from the field. She also added two rebounds and two assists in 30 minutes of action.
Plummer, an All-Missouri Valley Conference First Team selection in 2009 is off to a great start as a senior. After three games, Plummer is averaging 17.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and nearly four assists per game.

Borgia Turkey Tourney Kicks off Prep season

2009-11-23T07:38:00.000-08:00

The 57th Annual St. Francis Borgia/Pepsi Cola Thanksgiving Tournament begins this week, celebrating the Thanksgiving holidays with fellowship and good high school basketball.
What a combination.
This year's Borgia Turkey Tourney features two defending state champions in Class 4 state champion Borgia and two-time Class 3 state-champion Maplewood-Richmond Heights. They are the top two seeds with Boriga getting the No. 1 seed and Maplewood getting the No. 2 seed in the eight-team field.
Rounding out the field at No. 3 Pacific, No. 4 Washington, No. 5 Wellston, No. 6 Union, No. 7 University City and No. 8 Carnahan.
Borgia will be led once again by the duo of 6'5" senior Nathan Scheer and 6'1" senior Tyler Ressel. Scheer signed with Missouri State University while Ressel is headed to Missouri Southern. I also like 6'6" junior Ben Ruether for the Knights. He had a nice summer playing for my buddy Mike Martin's St. Louis Gameface team. He could be a factor.
For the first time in four years, MRH coach Corey Frazier won't have all-star guard Bryant Allen to coach around any more. He's not ballin' at Minnesota, playing football and basketball for the Gophers.
For leadership this year, Frazier will look to senior guard Bryton Hobbs, 6'5" junior Calvin Belts, Jr. and 6'0" junior guard Tony King.
The first-round matchup between Washington and Wellston should also be interesting. Wellston has one of the area's top underclassmen in 6'5" junior Ben McLemore while the Bluejays have a talented senior guard in Aaron Spurgeon as well as 6'5" senior post player Skyler Suggs. "Big Sky" is the younger brother of former Washington standout Scott Suggs, who is now at the Univesity of Washington.
I will be at Wednesday night's first-round games. Hope to see your there. I will also be signing my new book, "You Might Need a Jacket: Hilarious Stories of Wacky Sports Parents."

Here is the tournament schedule:
Wednesday, Nov. 25
Borgia vs. Carnahan, 6 p.m.; Washington vs. Wellston, 7:30 p.m.

Thursday, Nov. 26
Maplewood vs. U. City, 6 p.m.; Pacific vs. Union, 7:30 p.m.

Friday, Nov. 27
Semifinal Games at 6 and 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 28
Seventh-Place game, 3 p.m.
Consolation Final, 4:30 p.m.
Third-Place game, 6 p.m.
Championship Game, 7:30 p.m.

Bills outshoot Kennesaw

2009-11-22T13:55:00.000-08:00

In a game reminescent of the mid-1990's where 3-pointers were the order of the day, the Billikens ran and shot their way to an entertaining 76-66 victory over Kennesaw State in the first game of the Chicago Classic at Chaifetz Arena.
SLU (3-0) shot a robust 50 percent on 10 of 20 shooting from behind the arc. Sophomore Kyle Cassity (pictured) and freshman Christian Salecich channeled Scott Highmark and Erwin Claggett with a combined 7 of 12 from long distance.
Cassity hit four of his five treys en route to a career-high 18 points while Salecich hit three of seven to score 15 points. Freshman Justin Jordan also added two 3-pointers for his six points. The 3's were raining in from all over the Chaifetz, much to the delight of the 6,538 who were in attendance.
Showing no signs of letdown from last Wedensday's big victory over Nebraska, the
Billikens raced to a 16-4 lead, mostly on drives to the hoop and layups by Cassity, Salecich and Kwamain Mitchell.
The good times were brought to a sudden halt momentarily as Kennesaw changed defenses and went to a variety of trapping defense in the full and half court. The Owls willed their athleticism on the Bills for the final nine minutes of the half as they forced turnovers with their pressure and punished the Billikens with nine offensive rebounds. The result was a slim 31-28 halftime lead for SLU and a real dogfight on their hands.
Kennesaw has been Division I for four years and can finally play in the Conference tourament (Atlantic Sun). They are pretty good. They have good size, good athleticism and some quick guards and they love to run and shoot. I like their forwards, especially, Markeith Cummings, a 6'6" 220 pound beast of an athlete who is just a redshirt freshman. He will be a snootful in the A-Sun for the next four years. He and senior Jon-Michael Nickerson were a handful in the first half.
Whether we wanted to or not, we had a ball game on our hands and I was a little concerned at halftime.
However, the boys came out of the locker room focused. The second half started in the same manner as the first as the Billikens charged out with an 11-0 run, with two 3-pointers by Salecich and one trey by Cassity keying the run.
Kennesaw managed to reel the Billikens back in to pull within 65-60 with the ball with just over four minutes left. However, SLU got two big stops which led to fast break layups by Conklin and Cassity to give the Bills some breathing room down the stretch.
For the second game in a row, the Billikens exploded in the second half. After scoring 41 points in the second half against Nebraska, they scored 45 against the Owls on 65 percent shooting in the half and 61 percent shooting from the three (8 of13). That was impressive.
The 20 assists was also nice as the ball contined to move for open 3's and when we beat the press, the guys attacked the basket and got some easy scores.
That was when we beat the press. KSU's pressure really caused a lot of problems as the Billikens had 16 turnovers, many coming on wild passes when we got too much in a hurry to make a play. We also had a bad habit of dribbling right into traps on the sidelines, which is a big no-no. That will have to be cleaned up, especially when we see A-10 Conference foes such as Duquesne, Rhode Island and to some extent Dayton, who like to pick teams up in the full court.
Cassity followed up his big effort against Nebraska with another big game with 18 points, four rebounds and two assists in 30 minutes. Salecich added six assists to go with his 16 points.
Willie Reed and Brian Conklin were absent for much of the first half with a combined two points and and five rebounds. By the end of the game, Reed had nine points, 12 rebounds and five blocks while Conklin finished with 11 points and four rebounds. It was nice to see the bigs get busy in the second half.
Kwamain played more of a facilitator role today with six assists. He took only five shots and scoed seven, but he created all kinds of opportunities for his teammates. Many of Christian's and Kyle's open looks came off Kwamain's penetration and kick-outs.
Femi John had another solid effort off the bench with seven points and two rebounds in 16 minutes. Corey Remekun added a deuce on a layup off the press offense while Jon Smith added a free throw.
Although frustrating at times to see us struggle with pressure, it was nice to see the boys shooting the basketball with so much confidence. As I referenced the SLU teams of the mid-90's at the beginning of the report, good shooting can cover up a lot of issues.
Let's home the ball keeps going through the hoop. They will be quite all right with me.
On Tuesday night, SLU resumes action by hosting Mississippi Valley State.
I'll have the preview on Tuesday.
Go Bills.

photo courtesy of www.slu.edu

SLU host Kennesaw State

2009-11-22T07:37:00.000-08:00

The Billikens will open a busy week of basketball this afternoon when they host Kennesaw State in the first game of the Chicago Classic.
SLU will play an NBA-like schedule this week with four games in seven days, all which are part of the Chicago Classic. SLU will host Kennesaw State today and Mississippi Valley State on Tuesday night before heading to Chi-Town over the Thanksgiving weekend for games against Iowa State and either Notre Dame or Northwestern. The youngsters will get a lot of run this week.
The schedule is a challenge because it will test the team's depth with only 10 players. At the same time, playing a lot of games in a short amount of time will help develop some team chemistry and rhythm, while helping the coaching staff continue to define roles on the team.
As for today's foe, Kennesaw State (Ga.) is a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference. A former NCAA Division II school, Kennesaw joined the Division I ranks four years ago. They are no eligible to compete in their postseason conference tournament with a shot at an NCAA Tournament berth.
Both teams are 2-0. The Owls defeated North Greenville and North Georgia. The Owls are led by 6'3" sophomore guard Kurtis Woods, who averaged 10 points a game as a freshman and earned Atlantic Sun All-Freshman honors.
Junior Kelvin McConnell and sophomore Spencer Dixon are also back in the Owls backcourt. Up front, the Owls are led by 6'6" senior John-Michael Nickerson and athletic 6'7" redshirt freshman Markeith Cummings.
Cummings had a double-double in KSU's last victory while Nickerson is averaging 16 points in the Owls' two victories. The Owls also have some size with a 6'10" and three 6'9" players on the roster.
The Billikens are coming off a big 68-55 victory over Nebraska of the Big XII Conference. The young Billikids showed a lot of growth in that win, especially in the second half when they scored 41 points and displayed some crisp ball movement, which led to easy shots.
Today will present another chance for further growth by this young basketball team. I'm looking forward to seeing how this young team reacts mentally after such a big win over a team from one of the major conferences.
Instead of playing a team with a well-known name from a well-known conference, the Bills are facing a team that very few people know about in St. Louis. It's a game where the Billikids will be favored to win, but cannot take for granted.
That's where the growth comes in. Can these youngsters put last Wednesday behind them and come out with great intensity and effort, which has become an early staple of the 2009-10 SLU Billikens. And add some good execution to go along with it. Sophomores Kwamain Mitchell, Brian Conklin, Willie Reed and Kyle Cassity must set the tone and come out as if the Billikens are playing Kansas.
We will find out a few more answers about our Billikids, beginning at 1 p.m. See you at the Chaifetz. If not, you can listen to me and Hall of Fame play by play man Bob Ramsey on 101-ESPN, beginning at 12:45 p.m. with the pre-game.
Come on out. If you get a chance, stop by the table and say hi to me and Rammer.
I promise. We won't bite. Unless, your a referee, then Rammer might take a nibble out of you.

Lady Bills host Butler, alumni

2009-11-20T08:54:00.000-08:00

Saint Louis University's womens basketball team will host the Butler Bulldogs in a nonconference game on Saturday afternoon at the Chaifetz Arena. Tip off is at 2 p.m.
SLU will also host several former players as well during its annual Alumni Weekend. The festivities will kick off tonight with a reception at Humphreys, beginning at 7 p.m. There will also be a alumni game on Saturday at 11 a.m.
Coach Shimmy Gray Miller's (pictured) Billikens are currently 1-1. After a season-opening victory against Southern Illinois, the Billikens were defeated 75-59 by Missouri State on Wednesday night in Springfield.
Junior forward Lauren Woods scored a career-high 21 points to lead the Billikens. Senior center Amanda Kemyzys added 14 points and eight rebounds, despite playing only 19 minutes with foul trouble.

photo courtesy of http://www.slubillikens.com/

St. Louis girls at Arkansas State key big upset

2009-11-19T11:17:00.000-08:00

St. Louis natives Shania Hurst (Kirkwood) and Meghan Lewis (McCluer South-Berkeley) were instrumental in Arkansas State's 80-79 upset road victory over Kansas State last night in Manhattan. The starting backcourt combined to score 24 points to help ASU to the big road victory.

Lewis, a sophomore guard, provided the heroics by hitting a 3-pointer with 9.6 seconds left in the overtime period. She finished with eight points on the evening. Hurst, a 5'10" sophomore guard, finished the game with 16 points, three rebounds and two assists.

Arkansas State's starting frontcourt also features two other players from the Show-Me State. Senior forward Lyndsay Schulp played her prep ball at Jefferson City Helias while 6'4" sophomore center Lynsay Henke was a former standout at Jefferson City Blair Oaks.

Show Me Hoops Summit in Indy

2009-11-19T06:14:00.000-08:00

Last night's New York Knicks-Indiana Pacers game in Indianapolis featured four of the best players who have come out of the state of Missouri in recent years.

The Knicks featured St. Louisans Larry Hughes and David Lee while the Pacers have Poplar Bluff's Tyler Hansbrough and Kansas City-native Brandon Rush on their squad.

It's quite rare to see so many players from the Show-Me State on a NBA court at one time. But it goes to show that the state of Missouri can put out some pretty good ballers.

New York came away with the victory behind strong performances from Hughes and Lee. Hughes, the elder statesman of the Show-Me quartet, had a sparkling performance off the bench with 22 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists and three steals. Lee had one of normal nights with 17 points and eight rebounds.

Hansbrough came of the bench with a solid effort in scoring 14 points, grabbing five rebounds and handing out three assists. Rush was the only player who struggled on this night, scoring only three points on 1 of 9 shooting from the field.

It was nice to see some of the former greats from the state of Missouri get together for a little Wednesday night NBA hoops.

Brandon Rush photo: courtesy of Indy.com

Tyler Hansbrough photo: courtesy of Collegerag.com

SLU tops Huskers with big team effort

2009-11-18T20:05:00.000-08:00

The Billikens had a great overall team effort on Wednesday night to defeat Big XII Conference foe Nebraska 69-55 at the Chaifetz Arena.

All 10 Billikens played in the game and had a hand in this big victory from Kwamain Mitchell's (pictured) game-high 20 points in 30 minutes to freshman Jon Smith's three big blocks in just six minutes.

Everyone played their part and the result was a nice victory in front of an energetic crowd, which included former Billiken standouts Erwin Claggett, Scott Highmark, Justin Love, Corey Frazier, Joe Wiley and Troy Robertson.

After a quick start in which the Billikens jumped out to a 26-20 lead, the Huskers started to will their strength and athleticism on us on the defensive end. SLU was held without a field goal for the last seven in a half minutes of the first half, but still held on to a 28-27 lead.

Before we went on the air in the second half, I asked my partner Bob Ramsey if we could score 50 points tonight. We were really bogged down and Nebraska was really putting the wood to us defensively. I admit, I was a little frustrated.

The second half was a different story. The spacing on offense was excellent and some of the ball movement made my mouth water at courtside. It led to some great 3-point opportunities in rhythm for Christian Salecich, who finished with 11 points. Basketball is a beautiful game to watch when that ball is moving and players are making the extra pass. That was what we witnessed for much of the second half. I loved it.

With the offense clicking, the Bills continued to play lockdown defense in holding Nebraska to 33 percent shooting in the second half. They held their biggest lead of the game at 58-41 before salting away the game at the free throw line.

During our pre-game broadcast ( and in my pre-game blog), I thought two things needed to happen for the Billikens to knock off the Huskers.

First, the night needed to belong to No. 3 (Mitchell). I thought we need to get 18 to 20 points from our leader and he delivered 20 big points on 7 of 10 shooting from the field. Nebraska fielded a team of big, physical guards, including junior college transfer Lance Jeter who must have been on loan from Bo Pellini's football team. However, Mitchell was simply too quick and elusive for the bigger Nebraska guards. It was like a elephant trying to chase a mouse. Not gonna happen. The little fella was ballin' tonight. He added three rebounds, two assists and two steals.

I also thought we needed to make some perimeter shots. We ended up hitting seven of 19 for a decent 37 percent. Salecich drained three treys while Mitchell hit two and Kyle Cassity and Justin Jordan hitting one each. Christian really brought a lot of passion and energy, especially when he would hit a dagger 3-pointer. After two shaky games, Christian finally settled down and showed us the type of player he really is.

Cassity had his finest all-around performance as a Billiken with eight points, seven rebounds and four assists. Cassity was our leading rebounder for much of the game before Willie Reed started channeling Kevin Garnett in the later stages of the game, taking rebounds off the top of the rim. Reed finished with seven points, nine rebounds, one block while closing off the middle to the Huskers.

Femi John was also solid off the bench with nine points and four rebounds in 18 minutes. I was pleased to see Femi hit five of six from the free throw line after some dreadful free throw shooting during the preseason games. His strong body came in handy against the physical Nebraska swingman.

Freshman bigs Jon Smith and Corey Remekun made positive contributions in limited minutes as coach Rick Majerus continues to spoon-feed them into Division I basketball. Smith had a game-high three blocks, including two in one possession while Remekun scored his first bucket on a nice drop step move off Cassity's feed.

Meanwhile, Brian Conklin collected another head for his mantle when he nailed Nebraska's Ryan Anderson with a tough screen in the backcourt that had Anderson rubbing his head for several minutes afterwards. Brian loves to set those aggressive screens. Defensive guards, you better have your head on a swivel and your big man had better talk. Chalk up another one for the Eugene Enforcer.

It was a very enjoyable performance and I still have a smile on my face as I write about it. I had fun tonight. The kids played hard and competed with a lot of passion, especially when Nebraska started to come with the hard challenge. That effort will have to be a constant if we are to enjoy more nights like this, especially when we have to go on the road.

That is what you are supposed to do on your home court. Protect it with everything you got. It happened a year ago when we beat Boston College at home after being thrashed the previous year at their place. Now, it happened again.

I was really impressed with the growth that this team has shown in the last couple of weeks.

Hope you all enjoyed it. i sure did. We'll do it again on Sunday when we host Kennesaw State.

I'll have a pre-game report that morning.

Go Bills.

Bills Face Huskers tonight

2009-11-18T08:59:00.000-08:00

After a season-opening victory against Southeast Missouri State, Saint Louis University takes a step up the competition ladder tonight with a home game against Big XII Conference foe Nebraska.

It is the back end of a home-and-home series which saw the Cornhuskers defeat the Billikens 71-57 last season in Lincoln.

When I first laid eyes on the diminutive Nebraska team last year, I immediately had flashbacks to those old Charlie Spoonhour-coached teams that had little size, but plenty of intensity and heart. Without a player over 6'6" Nebraska had the smallest team in the nation last year, but their defensive intensity was simply too much for the Billikens to overcome.

NU coach Doc Saddler will be bringing some bigger bodies to the rematch tonight at the Chaifetz Arena. In his starting lineup tonight will be 6'11" redshirt freshman Jorge Brian Diaz and 6'10" true freshman Brandon Ubel. Bringing more size off the bench is 6'8" 240-pound juco transfer Quincy Hankins-Cole.

Even the guards are big with 6'4" Sek Henry, and 6'3" juco transfer Lance Jeter. Ryan Anderson, last year's power forward at a towering 6'4" gets to play a more comfortable role at small forward. Henry scored a game-high 19 points in last year's victory over SLU.

The Huskers may have had a size makeover, but one thing will not changed with a Doc Sadler-coached team. They will guard, guard and guard you some more.

For the past two season, the Huskers have been the Big XII leader in scoring defense. That is the identity of his teams, whether he trots out a bunch of smurfs or a team of trues. You had better be ready to execute against some solid defensive pressure. They gave up only 49 points in the opening-night victory over USC Upstate.

The presence of the Nebraska bigs will be a new challenge for SLU sophomore forwards Willie Reed and Brian Conklin. They had their way last Saturday against a smaller SEMO team, combining for 29 points and 19 rebounds. Tonight, they will be looking up at their foes for the first time this season.

It should be interesting tonight. I look for Willie to use his quickness inside against the NU bigs and run the court a little more and get a few cheap baskets. Brian is smaller, but he should have no trouble banging inside. He just has to be smart and stay out of foul trouble.

Sophomore point guard Kwamain Mitchell is a big key to SLU's success tonight. He has to set the pace with his quickness and leadership. A excellent defensive team matched against a team that struggles to score is not always a good mix, so Kwamain must really be on his game to make sure his teammates get good opportunities to score, plus make some shots of his own.

The Billikens have started fast in their games, but they must keep their mid-game lulls to a minimum to beat a team the caliber of Nebraska. Finding some perimenter offense from the wings will also be a priority. Willie and Brian are improved inside, so I'm confident that they can handle their business, but some perimeter shots will have to fall at sometime for this team to be competitive against the big boys.

So far, freshman Justin Jordan has been able to ring the bell from long distance in his minutes. I'm looking forward to either Christian Salecich, Kyle Cassity to hit a few. Femi John could come into play tonight to match up against Nebraska's big, physical guards, especially Jeter, who goes at about 220 pounds.

Hope to see you tonight. If not, you can catch me and Hall of Fame play-by-play man Bob Ramsey on the call on WXOS, ESPN-101. Pre-game begins at 6:45. Opening tip at about 7:07 p.m.

Go Bills.

Former Hawk shines in big upset

2009-11-17T19:59:00.000-08:00

Former Hazelwood Central standout Morris Smith IV was instrumental in the University of Texas-San Antonio's huge 62-50 upset at Big Ten Conference school Iowa last weekend.
The 6'4" Smith scored a team high 16 points to spark the big upset. It marked the first time that Hawkeyes had lost a home opener in 47 years.
Smith also put himself in the school's record book by making all ten of his free throws, which tied the school record.
After a standout career with the Hawks, Smith spent his freshman year at Western Illinois, transferred to Southwest Missouri-West Plains J.C., where he earned NJCAA All-Region 16 honors.
As a junior at UTSA, Smith averaged nine points and three rebounds in helping the Roadrunners to a 19-13 record and a berth in the championship game of the Southland Conference postseason tournament.

photo courtesy of www.goutsa.com

A Happy Homecoming

2009-11-17T19:42:00.000-08:00

The University of Louisville's 96-66 victory over Arkansas in the Hall of Fame Classic proved to be a satisfying way to open the season for coach Rick Pitino.

Tuesday's night victory at the Scottrade Center downtown meant much more to St. Louis native Jared Swopshire, a sophomore starting forward for the Cardinals.

It was a chance to come home and play in front of all of his family and friends. And the 6'8" Swopshire made the most of his homecoming with an excellent performance. Swopshire scored 10 points and grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds, much to the delight of his parents, siblings and other family friends who were all in attendance at the game.

"This was a statement game for me," Swopshire said. "It felt great to come home and play in front of all my family and friends. I really enjoyed coming back home."

Swopshire did most of his damage in the first half as the Cardinals built a 48-31 halftime lead. He scored all 10 of his points, including two 3-pointers and grabbed eight rebounds. His effectiveness was limited in the second half due to persistent cramps, which forced him out of the game on several occasions.

"He was terrific," Pitino said of his sophomore forward. "He was the best rebounder on the floor tonight."

Swopshire was making his first start in a Cardinal uniform on Tuesday night. As a freshman, he saw reserve minutes behind current NBA players Terrance Williams and Earl Clark. Now, he has a chance to be a mainstay on the Cardinals front line for the next three years.

Swopshire spent his first two years of high school in St. Charles County at Fort Zumwalt West High. He spent his junior and senior seasons at IMG Academy in Florida.

Once a skinny, gangly young player, Swopshire has built his body to a solid 220 pounds. I even saw him doing a little pushing and shoving out there against some of those beefy Arkansas players.

Excellent job, Jared. It's always good to see a nice young man come home and deliver a sparkling performance for all of his family to see in person.

photo courtesy of www.life.com

Local head coach returns to Show-Me State

2009-11-17T13:43:00.000-08:00

The Missouri Tigers will open their regular season tonight against visiting Tennessee-Martin tonight at the Mizzou Arena in Columbia. Tip-off is at 7 p.m.

Naturally, most the fans in the house will be on hand to cheer on the Tigers as they embark on what is expected to be another stellar season.

However, there will be a small group of fans dressed in Tennesee-Martin swag from the St. Louis area. Those loyal UTM fans will be the family and friends of first-year head coach Jason James, a graduate of Parkway West High.

An assistant coach at UTM for the past seven years, James was elevated to the top spot in the program when former coach Brett Campbell suddenly at the end of the season.

At 31, James is now the second-youngest coach in NCAA Division I basketball and the youngest African-American coach in the country in Division I.

I am very proud of this young man and I am so glad to see Jason get this opportunity. I've known Jason since he was in grade school and he has always wanted to be a head coach.

He is a very nice young man with a passion for coaching and a great knowledge of the game. He has a tremendous work ethic, so it was not surprising to see him get the opportunity to run his own program at such a young age.

He got his first opportunity to be a Division I assistant coach when he was only 23 years old. At the time, he was an assistant at Forest Park Community College, working for my buddy Preston Thomas, when UTM called.

In the years since the move, James has been instrumental in UTM building its program to the point where they won the Ohio Valley Conference regular title and a berth in the National Invitational Tournament.

I know Jason's parents, Ivan and Grace, will be two proud people tonight when they see their son bring his team on to the Mizzou Arena floor tonight.

Big Doublheader tonight in the Lou

2009-11-17T13:33:00.000-08:00

I'm really looking forward to checking out tonight's college basketball doubleheader at the Scottrade Center.

The Hall of Fame Showcase will feature Rick Pitino's Louisville Cardinals against the Arkansas Razorbacks in the opening game at 6:30 p.m.

In the nightcap, Bill Self (pictured) and his preseason No. 1-ranked Kansas Jayhawks will take on the Memphis Tigers at 9 p.m. If you cannot make it to the arena tonight, the Louisville-Arkansas game will be televised on ESPN-2 with the KU-Memphis game to be shown on ESPN.

The doubleheader is part of a long marathon of college basketball coverage on ESPN. If you like college hoops (as I do), it will be easy to overdose today.

I got an stern look from my wife this morning when she woke up and saw that I didn't have the morning news on the television, as we do every morning. Instead, I was watching the St. Peter's-Monmouth game and getting ready to watch Niagara and Drexel. The wife was not happy.

Anyway, enjoy the rest of the marathon and I hope to see you at Scottrade tonight.

MSU clips Auburn in opener

2009-11-17T13:28:00.000-08:00

The Missouri State Bears opened the 2009-10 season in the same manner that they opened the 2009-09 season. With a home court victory over a school from the Southeastern conference.

Missouri State defeated Auburn 73-62 to kick off the season in fine style. Last year, the Bears knocked off Arkansas to open the season as well as the brand new Hammons Center.

Guard Travis Leonard led the Bears with 14 points. Sophomore Kyle Weems adde 13 points while junior college transfer Jermaine Mallett added 12 points, eight rebounds, six assists and a highlight reel dunk to spark the Bears in the first half.

Former Oakville High standout Keith Pickens got the starting nod in his first game as a collegian and scored two points.

Congrats to MSU head coach and former East St. Louis Lincoln star Cuonzo Martin on his team's impressive opening season victory.

Chi-Town Billikens

2009-11-16T14:45:00.000-08:00

Saint Louis University men's basketball coach Rick Majerus (pictured) signed two excellent players from the Chicago area during the early signing period.

Dwayne Evans, a 6'5" small forward from Bolingbrook and Mike McCall, a 6'1" guard from Chicago Foreman inked letters of intent with the Billikens.

Evans averaged 14 points and 10 rebounds in leading Neaqua Valley to a 31-1 record as a junior. Neaqua Valley is expected to be one of the top teams in the state of lllinois this season. Evans is expected to provide size and athleticism at the small forward position.

McCall is rated as one of the top guards in the Chicago. As a junior, he averaged 14 points a game while shooting 44 percent from 3-point range. He is an exciting young combo guard who will be able to play alongside current SLU point guard Kwamain Mitchell or run the point himself.

The recruiting of McCall and Evans are SLU's first successful attempts in the Chicago area since the program had former SLU standout Marque Perry, who played at Chicago Prosser.

Getting both of these quality players is another step in the right direction of a program that is still building towards being a contender in the Atlantic 10 Conference. This class gives the Billikens three consecutive years of signing quality talent that will be able to grow and develop together over the next three or four years.

Three for SIUE

2009-11-16T14:33:00.000-08:00

Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville stayed in the region to sign three players in the Class of 2010.

The latest player to sign was 6'9" forward Alex Brown from Herrin, Ill. Brown is a long, athletic player who is one of the players in Southern Illinois. He blocked 145 shots as a junior.

Not only does he have great length, but he can run the floor as well. He game is still developing. I think this was a great get for SIUE coach Lennox Forrester (pictured).

SIUE's other two signees are from the St. Louis area. McCluer South-Berkeley guard Gerald Jones and 6'5" forward Mike Messer of Lafayette also inked letters of intent with the Cougars.

Photo courtesy of siue.edu

The 6'0" Jones is a versatile stat-sheet stuffer who can play either guard position. He averaged 16 points, 10 rebounds and six assists for the Bulldogs, who are coached by his father, Gerald "Dinky" Jones.

Messer is an excellent perimeter shooter who provided a great compliment to former Lafayette standout Tyler Griffey, who is now a freshman at Illinois. Messer averaged nearly 11 points a game as a junior.

Messer played summer basketball with the Gateway Basketball Club while Jones played with Team Rameybasketball.com.

Lennox Forrester photo courtesy of siue.edu

Mizzou Lands Top-Flight Class

2009-11-16T06:25:00.001-08:00

The hits just keep on coming for University of Missouri head coach Mike Anderson.

After leading the Tigers to their first Big XII tournmanet title and NCAA Elite 8 berth in 2009, Anderson has capitalized on Mizzou's success by bringing in yet another talented recruiting class.

Mizzou's recruiting Class of 2010 became even better over the weekend when Anderson got a verbal commitment from 5-Star recruit Tony Mitchell, a athletic 6'8" small forward from Dallas. Mitchell is ranked as one of the top small forward in the country.

Mithcell is currently ranked No. 15 overall by Rivals.com and the No. 3 small forward in the senior class. He brings an abundance of athleticism and skills to the Mizzou program.

Mitchell is the Tigers second top recruit from the fertile state of Texas. Last week, Mizzou signed Top 50 point guard Phil Pressey from Dallas. The 5'10"Pressey is the son of former NBA standout Paul Pressey.

Also signing on the dotted line last week for Mizzou were local standout Ricky Kreklow, a 6'5" guard from Columbia Rock Bridge and 6'8" power forward Kedeem Green from Charlotte, N.C.

St. Louis kids excel at Highland J.C.

2009-11-15T09:53:00.000-08:00

On Saturday afternoon, I ventured over to Belleville, Ill. to watch a little junior college basketball at Southwestern Illinois College (SWIC).

I got a chance to watch one of my best friends, Ronnie Dean (pictured, left), who is the head coach at Highland Junior College in Freeport, Ill. They defeated Illinois Central College 81-75 in a very entertaining game.

In all of his coaching stops, Ronnie has always considered the St. Louis area to be fertile recruiting ground. His current Highland team is no different as five players from the area got a chance to come home and play two games in front of their family and friends.

The most productive of the lot so far as been 6'7" freshman Connell Crossland, a rapidly improving forward from Hazelwood Central. Through Highland's first five games, Crossland is averaging 11.6 points, 7.8 rebounds while shooting 55 percent from the field.

Crossland is a long and lanky hybrid forward who can play inside in the post or step outside to shoot the jumper. He is also adept at swooping in for offensive rebounds. He has a lot of talent and he is only beginning to scratch the surface of his potential.

Abel Tillman, a 6'7" sophomore leaper from McCluer South-Berkeley is averaging 10.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.1 blocks while shooting 67 percent from the field. Tillman has a nice touch on short jumpers and he loves to block shots. He has offers from Division I schools such as Fresno State, Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Oral Roberts and Tennessee Tech.

Also up front from St. Louis is rugged 6'8" freshman Richard Anderson from Beaumont. Anderson averages six points and four rebounds while providing plenty of physical play in the low post.

The biggest player on Highland's team is 6'11" sophomore Terrance Williams from Edwardsville.

A transfer from SIU-Edwardsville, Williams is a shot-blocking presence in the middle. He has already signed at IUPU-Fort Wayne.

The fifth member of the Highland's St. Louis crew is freshman guard Jerryl Partlow from McCluer High. He backs up both guard positions. Known for his outside shooting in high school, Partlow has displayed some sharp defensive skills early in the season.

The Cougars are currently 3-2 on the season. In 2009, they advanced to the National Junior College Athletic Association National Tournament, where they finished in seventh place with a 31-6 record under former coach Pete Norman (pictured, right). Norman stepped down before the season to concentrate on his duties as the school's athletic director.

It was nice to see several young men from St. Louis come home and perform well in front of their families.

Photo courtesy of Freeport Journal Standard.

Billikens Bigs Dominate SEMO

2009-11-14T20:31:00.001-08:00

Saint Louis University sophomores Brian Conklin and Willie Reed established dominance in the paint early and often to lead the Billikens to a 59-41 victory over Southeast Missouri State in the regular-season opener for both teams on Saturday night at the Chaifetz Arena.
The 6'9" Reed had 15 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks on the evening while the 6'6" Conklin bulldozed his way to 14 points and eight rebounds. It was Reed's first double-double of his career. Hopefully, there will be many more in the future.
The first half belonged to Conklin, the "Eugene Enforcer." Despite playing with a sprained ankle, Conklin got the Billikens rolling early with nine points and five rebounds in the first eight minutes of the game. Brian missed much of last week's practices as he received constant treatment on his ankle, but he looked quite bouncy as he displayed a improved shooting touch around the basket and a fiesty desire for offensive rebounds.
Meanwhile, Reed was making his presence felt on defensive end early with three blocks, including two on SEMO's first possession of the game. The Bills enjoyed a 44-31 edge on the boards thanks to the work of the sophomore bigs.
As bonus, freshman Corey Remekun had five rebounds and one block and freshman Jon Smith contributed a blocked shot as the SEMO players found the going tough around the basket during the Billiken Block party. The Billikens were officially credited with six blocks, but I think there might have been one or two more that were missed. There was one play where Willie and Jon blocked a shot at the same time.
Sophomore guard Kwamain Mitchell contributed 13 points, two assists and two steals to the effort. In total, the three "veteran" Billikens Conklin, Reed and Mitchell combined for 42 of the team's 59 points.
The Billikens held a 36-20 lead early in the second half, but the Redhawks fought back to cut the lead to 41-36. SLU answered with an 8-0 to take regain control of the game, with a transition 3-pointer by Kyle Cassity and conventional three-point play by Reed as the big plays. Reed's And 1 came off a nice feed from Mitchell for a spectacular dunk.
Freshman Justin Jordan continued his fine perimeter shooting with two 3-point buckets in the first half.
It was a solid effort and the kids played hard, especially on defense and on the boards. Free throw shooting continues to be an issue as the Billikens made only 11 of their 23 attempts. That's less than 50 percent and that has to improve. It must improve. We must also clean up our ball security as we committed 15 turnovers. Hopefully, our perimeter shooting will come around a little bit. We had plenty of open looks throughout the game, but couldn't convert. It we start to hit some of those, life will be much easier for Willie and Brian inside.
All in all, it was a solid effort that the crowd enjoyed. I saw lot of smiles as I watched people leave the Chaifetz. Part of that was obviously because of the victory. I also think that a big part was the 40-minute effort that the kids put out last night, which fans always appreciate. Even with all of the mistakes and poor shooting, a strong effort, especially defensively and on the boards, can get you through those rough patches.
Next on the slate is Nebraska, a Big XII Conference opponent that earned an NIT berth last season. We'll get to the Huskers later this week.
Anyway, congrats to the Billikids on getting the first one under the belt.

Earl's Note: Sorry for the double photo of Willie. I am just getting into the 21st century with all of this blogging and technology. I haven't figured it all out yet. You weren't seeing double. Just pressed the wrong button. My bad.

SLU opens with SEMO

2009-11-14T08:55:00.000-08:00

Saint Louis University opens its regular season with a tilt against in-state opponent Southeast Missouri State tonight at the Chaifetz Arena. Tip-off is at 7 p.m.
Both teams are in a building stage and hoping for bigger and better things for the future. The Billikens are one of the youngest teams in NCAA Division I basketball with five freshman, one redshirt freshman and four sophomores on their 10-man roster.
SEMO is trying to rebuild its program after a 2-23 season a year ago and a NCAA probe which resulted in SEMO having to forfeit several victories over the past couple of seasons.
The man in charge of SEMO's rebuilding project is former Arkansas State head coach Dickie Nutt. Nutt has had his share of success at the Divison I level, having led the Indians to a couple of postseason bids during his time in Jonesboro, Ark.
Nutt has brought in 11 new players in the fold, including St. Louis products Sam Pearson (Hazelwood Central) and Leon Powell (Vashon). The 6'2" Pearson will start at guard for SEMO tonight while the 6'7" Powell is sitting out the season as a medical redshirt after tearing his anterior cruciate ligiment (ACL) during the summer.
It should make for an interesting time tonight at the Chaifetz.
I'll have a post-game wrap-up later tonight. See you at the game.

A "Grand" Evening

2009-11-14T08:45:00.000-08:00

Legendary college basketball coach Harry Statham reached the 1,000-victory plateau in his Hall of Fame career as his McKendree Bearcats defeated East-West University 79-49 in Lebanon, Ill.
Statham becomes the first coach in the history of men's college basketball to record 1,000 victories at a four-year institution. He joins junior college legend Gene Bess at Three Rivers Community College and women's coaching icon Pat Summitt of Tennessee in the 1,000-win club.
In 44 seasons at McKendree, Statham has compiled a record of 1,000 wins and 381 losses. His current edition of the Bearcats are 5-0 and ranked No. 5 in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) poll.
I would like to extend a personal congruatations to Coach Statham on his historic accomplishment last night. As a alum and former player and Lindenwood University, I can proudly say that I contributed four victories to Coach Statham's total during my career at LU.
Coach Statham has brought winning basketball to the folks of Southern Illinois for the better part of five decades and he's done it with an entertaining style of play that puts plenty of points on the boards and victories in the win column.
Job well done, Harry. Good luck for the rest of the season.

SLU women open with win

2009-11-14T08:36:00.000-08:00

The Saint Louis University women's team opened the regular season in impressive style with a 71-45 victory over Southern Illinois University on Friday night at the Chaifetz Arena.
The Billikens opened the game with a 22-2 run and coasted to the east opening-season victory. SLU shot 52 percent from the field for the game.
Senior center Amanda Kemezys (pictured) recorded a double-double to lead the Billikens with 21 points and 11 rebounds. The 6'4" Belleville East product made seven of her nine shots from the field and seven of eight from the free-throw line.
Junior forward Lauren Woods added 14 points while senior guard Katie Paganelli added 11 points. Sophomore guard Janisha "Pooh" Geralds added a career-high eight assists.
SLU will visit Missouri State on Wednesday night in Springfield, Mo.

Milestone Friday night

2009-11-13T13:20:00.000-08:00

A couple of long time metro east collegiate basketball coaches have a chance to reach special career milestones tonight.
In Lebanon, Ill., McKendree head men's basketball coach Harry Statham goes for career victory No. 1,000 when his Bearcats host East-West University tonight at 7 p.m.
A member of the NAIA Hall of Fame, Statham has more coaching victories than any other man at a four year college. The other members of the 1,000-victory club are junior college coaching legend Gene Bess at Three Rivers Community College and women's coaching icon Pat Summitt at the University of Tennessee.
Over in Belleville, head coach Jay Harrington of Southwestern Illinois College (SWIC) tries for victory No. 700 tonight as his team will host Highland Junior College (Ill.) in an 8 p.m. tilt.
Harrington is a member of the National Junior College Athletic Association Hall of Fame. His SWIC teams have averaged nearly 30 victories a season during the past five years.
Good luck to these metro east coaching giants in their quest to make history.