thetorch

Reggie is definetely not a vocal leader or a take charge personality but last year he had the sack to take the big shot and be the man on offense. Soderberg has made it a point to push Reggie on the defensive end this year, I question the wisdom of that move. Reggie cannot be our defensive stopper, nor anything approaching that. This responsibity may be hindering Reggie's approach on the offensive end. Our seniors just don't seem to be the leader types. Izik and Reggie just aren't those types of guys and Tom seems a more introspective player, he can get fired up but about his play. More than once when the team was huddled up yesterday and Polk or Izik were bring them together Tom was lingering outside not paying any attention. The leader on this team will have to be Polk. He is not there yet, but game by game he is getting closer. We will be a good team by the end of the season when he has settled into his role as floor leader but until then we may have a rocky time, especially if our shots fall at a 30% clip.

Now they are only giving him 9 assists. Still he has improved leaps and bounds even from a good season last year. The wiz are in a weak division and have the makings of a decent playoff team. Hughes if he keeps it up could be an all star if not this year than next.

Really what difference does it make who starts? It is about minutes and Drejaj is getting plenty. He is a solid pg but Polk has the ability to be spectaucular, ex, his pass to Izik yesterday for the dunk. Drejaj has been the best perimeter defender so far this year, his role should be the defensive stopper on the outside. I am not sure if he is considered this as yet as Soderberg is pushing for Reggie to contribute more on defense. Drejaj has done a fine job, he is a more than adequate 3rd or 4th guard for a high major team.

>for those of you still a little skeptical about the real >skills of kevin lisch and tommie liddell and how they will >measure up to college ball, i noticed that in purdue's first >game, xaiver price started, played 31 minutes and by the box >score looked like he was at least the 3rd best player on the >team. Of course taking another view, you have Grant Agbo who consistently beat up on Kalen Grimes playing off the bench for truman St.

I'm excited we have all these playmakers, now we need someone who can shoot the ball.

I don't care what kind of contract we have Billiken basketball will never be on the air in drive time for KMOX.

Good for Marque. I imagine he is making decent scratch over there.

I haven't heard anything since he got cut by the SA Spurs. Is he in Europe? NBDL? CBA? Anyone have any info?

Shows how improved overall CUSA is. I think the pundits have been underestimating the strength of this league. Top 3 or 4 for sure and maybe 7 bids.

nm

First half saw a lot of good things for the Bills. Solid outings from Reg, Tom, and Ian. Polk is the fastest and quickest billiken ever one game into his career. Everyone else moves in slow motion compared to him. Va'shun is also a heckuva pickup. He is exactly what we need and the type of player that SLU fans have always coveted on other teams. Inside outside game is great, he and Izik will give other teams fits. Meyer and Brown were solid. Second half though was a complete breakdown. No doubt about it we got beat by UMSL and beat bad. The talent on this squad is no doubt superior to the last few years, but the mental makeup needs a little work. Polk will definetely be the key, he must be a leader and set the tone during the season, without that strong message this group could crumble. Alot to ask of a freshman but still he may be up to it. Troy Slaten is a nice d-2 player, a few steps slow for d-1 as has been said all along. Where was Darrren Clarke??????? The PA announcers will have trouble all season with Va'shun Newborne, they are going to have to say his name quite a few times so a pronunciation lesson will be in order, or just pick one a go with it.

Brad was just on the radio with Rammer and said Ian will be starting against UMSL tonight(along with Izik, Newborne, Bryant, and Polk). I am somewhat surprised to see Tom not getting the start, even if it is just the exhibition season. I have no idea if this is a permanent thing and Tom will be coming off the bech this season but if Ian is good enough to usurp Frericks we may just be looking at the best billiken big man ever.

Reports like this are somewhat disturbing. Assertions that game tactics or incidents involving players will leak is bordering on the absurd. And as far as the players feelings, hey these guys are major college athletes, they are on TV, radio, newspapers, etc. They are They are exposed to all kinds of media that could be extremely harsh to them, this board and others like it are no different. Players can easily avoid it, but if they choose not to it really is not our problem. We have to endure criticism in different facets of our lives, if any of these guys wants to go to a higer level, coaches or players they will have to get used to it. I am not advocating verbal abuse of anyone but I will not temper my speech in any way, good or bad towards any player or coach. If Brad sees this as a huge problem than he should not have open practices. Maybe have a once weekly or bi-weekly open viewing but have the others closed.

Telfair has been his classes best player since jr high. No one will deny that Stevenson was a mistake. He was the last pick in the first round by an old Utah Jazz team looking ahead for the future. He may not have been drafted if Utah had not taken him. HS Big men can go several deep in the draft, guards and wings, we the most this past year with 2.

nm

Hughes' contact with Hinrich was made to cause a foul. I dopubt he could have thought ahead so much as to guess where Deng would be and push Hinrich at that same moment to cause a collision. The gutless play was that of Brendan Haywood. He takes a swipe at Antonio Davis and then runs away.

While technically there is still a chance JJ will come back and play it will be tough for him. He will be a month behind on drills, plays, and most of all conditioning. By the time he is ready to contribute even a little the season will be half over. If he wanted a good time to get out, it would be now.

I have to agree with Roy here on Izik. He may have been our best low post help defender as he was the only one quick enough to get over and block shots but guarding someone straight up on the blocks was not a strong suit of Izik's. I remember being impressed with his perimeter defense a couple times, especially against Butler, but I never saw Izik really stand up to a player in the post with any effectiveness. Frericks would have to be our best low post guy while JJ showed he could do it in short stretches last year.

That is right. Although not all teams keep 15 players, mny in fact do not. SA made a cut the other day, they now have 17 players on the roster. Perry is one of the 15 getting in games thus far so that is a good sign.

With Parker DNPed not surprising to see Perry get some more time. He was probably matched up against some decent guys in Ridnour and Daniels also up against fellow NBDL alum Mateen Cleaves who is in a similar situation to Perry on the Sonics. He had a decent game, Just see how SA wants their team to go. Marque may still just squeeze in their as the 12th man.

I have my doubts as to whether marque can make this squad. He is the last guard on the depth chart right now. He is up against a returning center in Ruben Bounte Bountje, NBA journeyman Tony Massenberg who never plays but seems to always get on someones team, a PF. Those three guys look like they are on the outside looking in. SA has two pgs in Parker and Devin Brown, Ginoboli and Slovenian Udrih are both combo guys and Romain Sato appears to have a lock on that last spot at guard. Perry may want to reup with a team with a little less guard depth. Considering SA is the best team in the league Perry should get some looks from other teams if he made it through camp with this far.

soccerratings.com has a comprehensive ranking system sorta like sagarin. soccerbuzz.com is the best womens soccer resource. They have top 30 and top 15 regional rankings along with articles and the like.

Reggie being the star is a given. I fully expect him to get 20 points a game be all conference and fight for POY. We have a good team around him but all hopes of any success this season rest on his shoulders. The key for Reggie will be his defense. He must make similar strides that marque made in his senior year. If Reggie can be the type of defensive performer that his athleticism shows he can be it will make contributions on the offensive end that much easier for him.

You don't puke with asthma. Tom is a pretty tough sob to be play until he pukes whether he is in shape or not.

I don't think SLU will be ranked anytime soon in womens. We are top 10 in our region though. CUSA is not a real strong conference. Besides SLU Memphis and Louisville are the only womens teams ranked in the top 15 in their region.