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My dudes crushed it this weekend at Innsbrook. The love fishing at Busch Wildlife as well.

Let's remember the Majerus mantra ... rebound and defend. If this team does indeed defend and keeps shooting percentages down for our opponents, and we dominate the boards on their missed shots as I expect a French, Foreman, Santos, Gordon, Goodwin, Bess, Thatch group to do .... then the simple math is that we will be even or likely ahead for most games. The known 'catch up" strategy in every game played everywhere now is 'extend the clock/game' which means employ the Haq-A-Shaq routine. So it will be critical that our improvement be most noticeable at the free throw line than anywhere else. We don't need a high-volume three point shooter making 45% plus a game, we need one or two viable options per game that allow for seams to open down low. And we need to make free throws because it will likely come down to that sans a blow out. This season is set. All the ingredients are on the shelves. Ford now has to make them all mesh and work. I don't care who starts, I do care who finishes and what their free throw percentage is/will be. I don't care who gets what MPG. I don't care who averages the most PPG. I care about chits on the left hand side of the win column and ledger and the usual high water marks of the OOC, regular season, tournament and Dance. I care about recruiting 2019-20. I don't care about Mickey Pearson. I also care about ensuring our bouncing baby boys are all tucked into their beds at 8 pm each night. And that no one trips over a crack in the sidewalk. All the rest is just white noise ---- Top 144, preseason predictions, .....

Much more significant to me is free throw percentage. We figure to be on the line a great deal with this roster.

I think the Conklin senior led team that had Ellis and Jett coming off the bench may take exception to that statement. Let's not go overboard with the talent level on this team. Again, I'd rather have 7-8 excellent players than 12 really good ones. Only time will tell if we really have 7-8 excellent players. A fan can think whatever he wants, but I'm not going to be unsatisfied with this program if we make the leap from the last dreadful four years to making the NCAA tournament and don't win a game.

I just don't share this fear that others do... right now Ford is regarded by much of the college basketball world as a re-tread. It will take a lot for him to shake that label. And even after a couple of deep tourney runs are added to his resume, Ford may be very selective about jumping at the first P5 offer that comes his way. Not all P5 jobs are created equal and he may not be eager to get back into that grinder, especially if he has a good thing going here. Other programs wanting your coach is a good problem to have, so hopefully we'll be faced with that at some point. I just think he will have to have a lot of success before he becomes a popular name in coaching searches. Younger coaches who have not been previously fired at P5 programs will be higher on a lot of lists.

Sweet 16 would be a run in my mind

Fishing at Busch is not a bad thing - I would not let your concern keep me away but of course it is your call. Rivers can be tricky for new angler and one so young. Look for small lakes/ponds. You can go on line at the MDC and they have list of all the lakes and ponds that are part of the MDC system. You will be surprised at the number of fishing lakes/ponds they have on their list.

Nothing better than waiting to hear your name called on selection Sunday, and then immediately talking yourself into a S16 run. *Greg Gumbel voice* “And they’ll be taking on the Billikens of Saint Louis University!” CHILLS (This is what we’re talking about, right? Think I just blacked out a little bit. NCAAs or bust.)

I view this upcoming season with more of a big picture view. As others have pointed out, the NCAA Tourney can be a bit of a crap shoot. A deep tourney run would be great of course, but my hope is that this year begins a long sustained run of success - consistent NCAA Tourney appearances, always being relevant .. like Xavier and Gonzaga. Avoid major rebuilding seasons. That's far more important than a Cinderella run like Loyola or Mason, etc. I want Ford to build a program that has staying power.

I think some of us are more concerned about team “meshing” than is warranted. Our 3 returning studs are in tune with themselves. -s2 they would of been hard pressed to have exceeded their minutes played last year. With all incoming talent we will come together quickly. I think anything short of making tournament will be a disappointment.

I am thinking the TF strategy is to offer these high ranking players, then let our performance dictate who wants to join the Big Blue Train! Get on board now, cause you don't want to be left at the station. Woo Woo! mhg

rockin that 3rd city kit. Love it.

I want to say "anything less than Sweet 16" is a disappointment, but I would just be so so happy to get back to March that I think I would be satisfied.

Missouri river. Go big or go home.

hmmmm. 4 for 12 on threes i.e. 33% = 12 points. 6 for twelve on 2's i.e. 50% = 12 points. Would seem anything at 33% would be good.

Busch Wildlife area is a great place to take an 8 year old. I started fishing at Busch when I was a kid when there was a two lane highway from Chesterfield to 94. I hope you all have a good fishing trip together.

Four new offers: Caleb Mills - PG, 6-3, 170 - Asheville, NC (Asheville Christian Academy) Offers: VCU, St. Joe's, George Mason, Xavier, Marquette, Providence, Florida State, Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, Clemson, Pitt, K-State, Auburn, Mississippi State, Cincinnati, Houston, Charlotte, Old Dominion, Murray State, Lehigh, Charleston, Boston, Towson, Wofford, Winthrop, High Point, UNC-Greensboro, Appalachian State, Western Carolina, Lipscomb, Liberty. Interest: UNC, NC State, Ohio State, Iowa State, LSU, Ole Miss, UAB, South Alabama. Latest News: Mills' recruitment has exploded, with over a dozen offers in the past week. (7/23/18) Scouting Report: Mills is a combo guard who can be the primary ball handler for entire games or be his team's primary scorer. He has excellent awareness and poise at the point, using his size to take advantage of smaller defenders. He's got great handles and changes speeds easily. He's an excellent shooter and strong finisher. He plays his AAU ball with Pro Skills Basketball Elite. -This kid has exploded this month, and over the course of this month, his offers and interest have increased in quality. Extremely versatile, great all-around skill set. Given how he's played lately, it's amazing he's just now blowing up. Part of that has to do with his decision to play for PSB Elite instead of a shoe company-affiliated AAU program. Christian Braun - SG, 6-5, 180 - Overland Park, KS (Blue Valley Northwest) - Twitter: @Ballin25Braun Offers: SLU, DePaul, Wake Forest, Minnesota, K-State, LSU, Ole Miss, Tulane, Loyola-Chicago, Missouri State, Lehigh. Interest: Creighton, Michigan State, Purdue, Kansas, Oklahoma, Georgia, Oregon, Colorado, Northern Iowa. Latest News: Braun received offers from SLU, Minnesota, and Tulane. All but 3 of his offers came this month. (7/23/18) Scouting Report: Braun is an elite shooter but also a crafty finisher at the rim. He can break defenders down off the dribble and find his teammates in space with his high-level passing ability. He's a skilled defender and smart player at both ends. He can play PG, as well. He had a strong July for MOKAN Elite. His dad played a few seasons for SLU in the late 80s/early 90s. His older brother Parker will attend Mizzou as a walk-on this season and scholarship player thereafter. -This is the kid @TheChosenOne mentioned last week as having SLU recruiting him. He's really blown up this month, as well. He's a nice looking all-around player. Kansas is said to be the dream offer. He's 6-5 but his brother is 6-9 so he might still be growing. Joshua Pierre-Louis - PG, 6-3, 180 - North Arlington, NJ (Roselle Catholic) - Twitter: @mvojet1 Offers: SLU, Dayton, St. Joe's, UMass, George Washington, St. Bonaventure, La Salle, Seton Hall, Rutgers, Oklahoma State, Georgia, Mississippi State, Temple, Tulsa, East Carolina, UNLV, Wyoming, Hofstra, James Madison, Cal State-Bakersfield. Interest: Syracuse, Iowa, Auburn, Cincinnati, Wagner. Latest News: Pierre-Louis received an offer from SLU. (7/23/18) Scouting Report: Pierre-Louis is a crafty lead guard who likes to push the tempo. He's got great handles and passing ability, and plays with a ton of smarts and toughness. His brother Nate received a SLU offer from Jim Crews and now plays at Temple. -JPL is a tough, solid all-around PG, kind of like his brother. He plays for the powerhouse Roselle Catholic HS program. He's being recruited by pretty much the whole A10. Tyrell Jones - PG, 6-2, 175 - Tallahassee, FL (West Oaks Academy) - Twitter: @TurboRell Offers: SLU, VCU, La Salle, Xavier, Boston College, Clemson, Rutgers, Oklahoma State, Auburn, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Wichita State, Houston, South Florida, UAB, Southern Miss, Tulane, Wyoming, Old Dominion, Florida International, Florida Atlantic, Kent State, Buffalo, Illinois State, Western Kentucky, Tennessee Tech, Winthrop, Little Rock, Florida Gulf Coast. Interest: Louisville, Virginia, Pitt, Illinois, Florida, Temple, Central Florida. Latest News: Jones' latest offers are from SLU and BC. (7/23/18) Scouting Report: Jones is a PG with good strength and smarts, strong finishing ability, and a smooth jumper with a ton of range. He's an explosive scorer. He also does a good job running the offense and getting his teammats involved. He's got a strong frame and long arms. He's right-handed but frequently attacks to the left. He plays his AAU ball with the Showtime Ballers. -He's on theme with the other offers - basically a strong, solid combo guard who has blown up recently. He plays his HS and AAU ball with 2021 SLU offer A.J. Neal. SLU is recruiting Florida more seriously all of a sudden.

Suson County Park in South County has 2 decent lakes, a farmpark with many animals and a good sized playground. Bee Tree county Park has a nice lake and playground.

Josh Pierre-Louis, a class of 2019 PG playing for Sports U (NJ), just picked up an offer from Saint Louis.

Looks like @TheChosenOnewas ahead of the news

All this big talk is making me nervous given that we have not won a single game yet with this group. Discretion may be the better part of valor at this point.

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Iceland napped the 15th place trophy with a 103-84 beat down of Romania today. Ingvi scored 5, 1 of 1 from the arc. I don't understand why this board hasn't been hyping Ingvi more than it has. I'm seeing Ingivi as a One and Done. What do you think TGloryTDays? My guess is the Lakers will want him to play with LeBron.

Removed as post was in bad taste. My apologies.