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I thought we handled the Bell situation perfectly. As soon as he realized he would play only in emergency situations, he left. No fault on either side. We can't ask our recruits who could easily play big mins elsewhere to be the 12th man on the roster their 3rd year.

my take on bell was i was intrigued by the size, impressed by his apparent heart and determination he could lose that much weight (as a former overweight guy I KNOW how hard it is to lose weight and keep it off. it took Cancer for me to get in shape). he exhibited that he was a good kid and teammate. so naturally i had hope all those traits could translate into becoming a formidable basketball player. he still might and i hope he does, but honestly he was still pretty much the same player he was when he arrived at slu and no doubt was 3rd on the depth chart for the inside the lane position. honestly if we are just looking for that basketball player and taking all the above traits out of the discussion, that player is out there for the taking anytime. my guess is ford would rather look for a player he believes can progress a little faster and further.

i am fine with taking a flyer on an athlete. if we didnt have a competent center, that would be quite the risk, but third on the depth chart? all ok. likely will start out as a practice body. his job to show he's better than that.

I think this was missed earlier. Kyle Engstler has committed as a walk-on for this season. A 6'5 SF from Downers Grove North. A belated welcome to Kyle.

-Go Get 'Em Ladies! Have a great and healthy season

If the 13th scholarship in every recruiting cycle goes to a 6'9 athletic project, I've got no problem with that. At least he can make our starting center work in practice.

New thread addict — seek help

John Grisham’s latest novel is about a college basketball player from Africa who gets a scholarship at a low D1 college & leads them to the NCAA finals - good read

Welcome. You can’t teach 6’10”.

Diarra was a great bottom of the team big. If he is like that for a year, then great. We are not completely replacing J. Bell. I am happy with this player, and there appears to be mobility and upside.

rickma move lying down instead of the common lying up?

He looks huge... I am a fan. Time for the international flags to start coming up by the band with Sweden, Ivory Coast, Germany, and Nigeria.

Game day, Home opener for SLU vs Xavier. It’s the first of five Power 5/Big East games on the schedule. Xavier is only two seasons removed from being Big East regular season and conference tourney champions under Nate Lie. He’s done a nice job there his first three seasons before taking a step back during this past pandemic season. Xavier has two local Stl, long time defensive stalwarts, Hayley Jakovich (Eureka, SLSG), and Grace Brauer (Belleville East, SLSG). Jackovich earned all conference U23 Summer Ball honors this summer. The other local player to watch is Chloe Netzel. Chloe was the Golden Ball winner on the 16’s USYS National Championship team for Lou Fusz. (some of her teammates included Billikens Madelyn Smith, Enily Gaebe, and 2022 Commit Ellie Paloucek) Netzel is a goal scorer in a variety of ways. High motor and work rate, has a speed component to her game. Her younger brother is a defender for St. Louis City Academy. It will be interesting to see what kind of time she gets early in her college career and how she adjusts to the college game. Speaking of adjusting to the college game, local stand out Sydney Stephens was named offensive player of the year in U23 WSL. Stephens is an example of a good player, good student, good person, that had some challenges adjusting to the college game. (Georgia. She has since transferred to Illinois.) But she has bounced back in a big way. Two of Stephens’ Billiken teammates this summer were also named all conference, Emily Groark and Katie Houck. Billiken Caroline Kelly was named all conference for KC. Both Groark and Kelly have carried over their strong (and needed) offensive play into the preseason. Houck, a high minute defender, scored the game winner in SLU’s most recent exhibition game vs Evansville. SLU was able to get two first half goals, and make it stand, vs Xavier this past Spring in a unique indoor, neutral site setting. Anna Lawler has been participating in “light” non contact drills and cardio. Liz Stureman has been out with injury during the preseason. Larson is obviously out. There have been a few other “minor” injuries but most are ready to go. It’s also a big game for both Xavier and SLU as they both recruit Cincinnati, and the Ohio, Indiana, Michigan region for players. Ohio Elite, Cincinnati United (CUP), Internationals SC (Cleveland) Michigan Hawks, FC Pride, Indiana Fire, Louisville, etc…