Bay Area Billiken

In addition to his 26 points, LH II had 4 steals.

It was a good, entertaining game. CSUN lost 2 baskets, 4 points, to offensive goaltending, both of which were proper calls, one confirmed after CSUN coach’s challenge. SLU’s NET remains 27. Stanford is 83.

Larry Hughes, Jr. at 6’4” and Benny Gealer at 6’1” have been guarding each other. Larry has been on fire, has deep shooting range. But CSUN, a 16.5 point underdog, looks like it’s run out of juice. Larry, Sr. is here sporting a navy blue STL Cardinals cap.

I’m at the game. Stanford starts 2nd Half on 13-0 run.

SLU’s NET this morning is 22️

Watching last night’s massacre, I realized I’ve been waiting most of my life for this SLU team.

https://x.com/zakboisvert/status/2000938652998783417?s=46&t=jikm5nKg-NlIUjy2c9C9zw Everything is coming up Billikens️

https://x.com/isaacbourne_/status/2000581622354399730?s=46&t=jikm5nKg-NlIUjy2c9C9zw If the mid-major status is accepted, We’re (SLU is) #1️

Another bad optic cover over of bleacher spaces is UCLA Football at the Rose Bowl. UCLA is trying to move its football games to SoFi Stadium.

SLU Basketball’s NET is 28; SLU Soccer is in the College Cup. Life is very good.

I think that’s a valid point. Of course, I want all the games on TV or streaming, and am grateful they are. The Old Blues sometimes bring me along to Cal games, and Cal’s attendance is way down, in the 2 or 3 thousands. The team that sells out consistently is St. Mary’s, but that place seats only 3,500.

ESPN Matchup Predictor per ESPN Analytics has SLU at 81.3%. Beat the Dons. Saturday night is payback time.

Indiana lost. The Marlins used to cover over seats. The Tampa Bay Rays did it at Tropicana Field, closed the upper deck. Curtains, covering over seats is an admission you cannot fill them. The mystery, the issue is why SLU attendance has been lower in the on campus arena the vast majority of us thought SLU needed than it was at the currently named Enterprise Center and continues to lessen. (I love attending games at Chaifetz Arena. It’s a great place to watch a game, one of the very best.) Then the Cardinals’ attendance has had an appreciable drop. I am aware of the recent angst in the fanbase with the Cardinals’ ownership and upper management, was there twice this past summer, see on tv all the loyal Cardinal fans disguised as empty red seats. As a lifelong Cardinal fan, and a St. Louis football fan who has seen two NFL franchises move away, it’s troubling, irrespective of the on the surface reason. Is something deeper happening? Are these attendance drops a St. Louis issue? Are they a societal issue? Are they related? I do expect Billiken Basketball game attendance to increase as the word gets out re this team. This is an exciting, very good SLU team that plays an exciting brand of up tempo hoops. The team played a near perfect game vs. Central Michigan, scored 107 points, with only 4 turnovers.

Answer: Last Season, Wofford, and I’ll be there Saturday night. Curtains are for losers, a bad optic. This team is a winner, doesn’t need a curtain. Covering over seats isn’t the answer either. Here in the Bay Area the whole upper deck of Mt. Davis at the Oakland Coliseum was covered for both A’s and Raider games. Both teams eventually moved away.

Ron Ekker called the Steamers "those kicking guys." We once went to The Checkerdome box office on a Friday afternoon trying to get tickets for a Steamers Friday night game. Few seats remained and they gave the three of us seats in the center section between the two benches for that, as Marty Brennaman would say, titanic struggle vs. the long gone San Francisco Fog. The Steamers were a hot item in St. Louis, easily outdrew the Blues at the time, were coached by former Billiken great Pat McBride.