nostatic

Please vote: Same offense as last 3 years Different offense -- mindset is slowly changing

No offense taken -- I heard him after we beat them the first team and he was complimentary to us. There were no secrets coming into this game. We did exactly the same things as the first game, only better. He says they did things worse -- I say we did it better. Semantics

Sean says X did not come to play. All on him for not motivating and preparing his team. And they couldn't hit a shot. No congrats to SLU for playing well. It was all about X. He says they couldn't hit shots; I say our defense had something to do with that. He kept referring to the grind it out style of SLU. Listening to the X broadcast, sounded like we broke out a number of times and DP really pushed the ball when he was in. There is nothing wrong with being patient when you have to set up offense, but this is a different grind it out offense then SLU has seen the last 3 years. Nice job Bills

http://www.wpen.com/ click on Listen Live on left side

I'm with you

We have a lot of JJ-like posters on this forum. You keep getting told the same thing over and over, but you don't seem to get it. I now understand why you keep calling for him to play -- because it is not getting through to you either. Play hard all the time . . . not just when you feel like it, not just after you've had a talk with the coach, not just when you're on TV, not just when it's against a ranked opponent. "I'll live with your mistakes if you play hard all the time." Coach K says it to Paulos and he does it. That's why he doesn't get the quick hook. UB says it to KL, and that's why he doesn't get the quick hook. Like him or not, UB said it to AD his freshman year -- he listened, and that's why he doesn't get the quick hook. JJ got the talk 4 years ago, and it still hasn't sunk in. TL has gotten the talk, but he doesn't quite believe it. Maybe it's the 4 rookie of the week honors, maybe he's feeling pretty good about himself, maybe he feels he can play this game without exerting a full effort. There is 1 reason to get the quick hook -- lack of effort. Some players don't understand it until it's too late. To the posters who keep saying that the quick hook is not doing any good, you have to figure out what kind of team you want. Team #1: You want the team that plays hard every game, and when it's over, you feel proud to call yourself a fan. Or you can have Team #2: the team that wins on talent, loses on lack of effort, isn't in the big games because they can't play defense when they need to -- and the fans like this, because this team will win a couple more games each year than the first team. Or there is a third team: right now it's called Duke, NC, etc. Their coaches get to pick from the most talented players, and they pick the players who get it right from the start. So they have got very talented players, playing hard all the time. I want SLU to be in that third group and I think it's easier evolving from Team #1 to Team #3, than going from Team #2 to Team #3. Once you say "OK, you're more talented than the others, you don't have to do the things we are asking of the other players" -- it's hard to get back what you just lost, because everyone at this level feels that they are talented, and should be cut the same slack. The cupboard was so bare when UB started, he has had to take a couple of risks in his recruiting. JJ? I wish it would sink in, but he is only 21 or 22. Heck, we have posters on this board that are 20 years older than that, and they still don't get it. And if we played the players who are talented, but don't give the effort, the main focus on this board would be "Why is UB playing these guys? They don't play hard, UB should be fired" It's a no win situation for UB. Luckily for SLU, he doesn't worry about what others are saying. He's trying to build the program the right way. There are a lot of posters on this board who are passionate about SLU basketball -- that's excellent. Now we just need all the players to feel that way too. All the players.

This excerpt came from an article about a top 20 team. I have taken out the names of the teams. It was one of the ugliest classics you'll ever see. Team A overcame a two-point, 1-for-11 shooting performance by its leading scorer, Joe Jones, to grind out a 62-59 double-overtime victory Sunday over Team B. Many thought the Team A couldn't win if Joe Jones didn't have a good game, especially on the road, but they still found a way It was an old-fashioned style of Team A victory -- not pretty, but the type that builds character. That was about Michigan State beating Ohio State -- good teams find a way to win even when they don't play their best. MSU plays tough defense and rebounds like crazy -- and they are in every game they play. I know SLU doesn't rebound like this, but be patient. This could be SLU. Let's step on the Spiders

http://gwradio.com/Links/listenlive/ I'm clicked on the 3rd choice -- it wouldn't connect at first, tried a second time and now I'm listening Game is tied at 12

Sorry it won't connect to the page -- is the address correct?

No gametracker from either SLU or GW. Do we have any other options besides watching the ESPN scoreboard?

Focusing only on the comment of playing poorly in last 3 games -- that same comment last year would show up in the record as 0-3. This year those 3 games ended with SLU at 2-1. HUGE DIFFERENCE. We have high expectations for this team -- that's OK. Playing poorly and winning is a huge improvement over last year. But we have to be patient. Mistakes will continue to be made, but look at the effort. This is not a team that will quit. They have been in every game. One last point: many posters have asked why can't we defend the 3 point shot. Think about the biggest concern going into the season -- keeping IV out of foul trouble. Without the depth in the front court, you almost have to pick your poison. Protect the lane and help IV, or give up a few open looks on the perimeter. I don't think you can have your cake and eat it too with this team -- maybe next year it will be a different story. We sure miss AD -- hope he doesn't come back too soon -- rather have him for the rest of the season than just the next game or two

Saw the last 5 minutes on Gametracker and was disappointed by the score. Then I looked closer at the box score, and understood what this game was all about. We shoot 45 free throws -- they have 40 fouls. I'm sure we never got into any rhythm offsensively. POSITIVE: we shoot 73%, IV goes to the line 17 times, JJ continues to shoot well with 5-6, KL 6-6 until he misses the last 2 We shoot 3-10 from 3 point land. POSITIVE: KL shoots 3-3 with an all around solid game We get outrebounded -- just a lot of missed shots. POSITIVE: JJ ties for team lead with 8 rebs (IV with 8, TL with 7) Defensively hold them to 52 points. POSITIVE: KL holds their leading scorer to 10 points under his average There might have been more for the people who were at the game, but let's not dissect this game too much. My guess is it was an ugly game, with no flow to it. So, take the positives and bring on Iowa.

Points in the paint-GON 16,SLU 30. Points off turnovers-GON 7,SLU 7. 2nd chance points-GON 7,SLU 9. Fast break points-GON 0,SLU 8. Bench points-GON 13,SLU 9. Score tied-8 times. Lead changed-14 times. This is all good stuff -- nothing to hang your heads about. Took the player of the year down to the final possession. No moral victory, but this team will break through soon. Article at SLU website says ankle sprain for AD, some posters are sasying torn ligaments. Let's hope the website is right

nm

This may be off-base, but I remember the job AD did on Novak of Marquette last year. I haven't seen enough of Morrison, but I have a feeling he is a much better player than Novak because he can create his own shots off the dribble. I know that others have mentioned JJ or TL to guard him, but I'm wondering if AD is the best answer. You know that he will rise to the challenge. And I would bet that he has already asked UB to guard him. Any thoughts?

We were 1 point away from having 5 players in double figures, 2 of these were off the bench. The #5's had 11 pts and 9 reb, while the #4's had 14 pts and 11 reb. These are both great things Getting scoring from IV is great, but we have to show teams that it is not necessary for us to win. Excellent win

No moral victory, but a solid 37 minutes of play. Do whatever you want with the last 3 minutes and the final margin of victory. IV played well, had a lot of touches in the first half, but not good scoring opportunities. Too often SLU had too many players bunched around IV which kept him from putting the ball on the floor. The offense is a work in progress. BH did well as relief for IV DP, KL (who is the real deal), AD all played well 9 pts, 7 reb out of the #4 -- we should be happy with that every game 1st Key to the season? TL -- if he is going to play 32 minutes, he has to be a factor for more than 12. His TO's in the first half were ugly, mostly just careless with the ball. He and IV have the ability to make everyone on the floor better. 2nd Key -- tweaking the offense to make sure IV has room to manuever 3rd Key -- DB or LM -- both have the ability to help our scoring, but both are struggling -- emerging 3 point shooters are KL, AD and maybe VN -- mid range shooters are DP, TL & JJ -- slashers are TL and maybe even DP -- we need 1 more perimeter player to contribute I hope we don't talk about last season anymore. This is a team with heart & determination. It will be fun to watch them grow as the season progresses

Looked like they got some good minutes out of VN & JJ, but where was TL in the 2nd half?

I didn't realize that there would be no gametracker. Is anybody staying up to give us out of towners an update on what's going on? Or is the only thing we will have is the scoreboard on ESPN.com or CBS.Sportsline.com?

www.sportsradio1420.com Doesn't look like it is free, might be a $3 charge from what I can tell. This is the Hawaii broadcast.

Don't forget -- if we are scoring a lot because we are pushing the ball up the floor -- that means we will use less shot clock, which will mean more possessions per game. But that means more possessions for the other team too. It would be unrealistic to think that we will score more, while our defensive average stays the same. You'll have a better idea when the people at the game get home and let us know how the defense looked. Don't expect too much for the 1st game, especially with 2 freshman playing a lot of minutes. Nostatic

BERKELEY, Calif. -- Dominic McGuire, a forward who started 23 games for California last season, has been given permission to transfer from the school. McGuire, a 6-foot-8 sophomore from San Diego, was the fourth-leading scorer last season for the Bears (13-16), averaging 7.2 points and 4.9 rebounds per game. He was Cal's top reserve as a freshman, averaging 4.3 points.

Has the name Kewain Gant come up before. Played at Moberly Area CC. THink they made it to the JC finals. 6'8" 220lb. Says he has interest in St. Louis

All of those recruits are Soderberg recruits. Bennett went out very little on recruiting trips. Didn't enjoy the process, refused to do it. Can't say that Bennett never talked to any of these guys, but BS did all the leg work and in most cases, did the home visits and sealed the deal. Does that mean you respect Bennett less. I hope not.

This was my first chance to see the team in person this year. Thought that DP displayed some of that "warrior" mentality with his ball toughness (0 TO), and rebounding. Once they started fouling to get into the bonus, you knew they were going to send DP to the line (after his recent struggles). That's the way to make them pay. Also an excellent job on defense. 1st possession of the game they tried to post up Chapman on DP. They couldn't get him the ball and never tried again. I think AD's tenacity is rubbing off on some of the younger guys. Other thoughts: AD was very good. The shots were huge, the "D" was even bigger. He got to the spots even before Novak did. I hope he continues to show the younger kids how hard they need to play on every possession. Don't count on him getting reduced time next year. Thought we struggled early on offense because of their changing defenses. Couldn't get into any kind of flow for the first 13-14 minutes and ended up settling for a lot of 3's. Once AD hit those 2 shots, I was just hoping to stay within 6 at halftime. The 1st 10 minutes of the 2nd half was just some solid bball. VN is a solid player. Hope he can score a little more next year. LM & DP are different players. They will give this team some versatility in the next few years. If anyone doesn't think there is a plan in place by UB, they need to look closer. At the point guard, JF was the guy, to be followed by DP. What they needed was someone to help with the transition. That was supposed to Morris until he messed up his grades. He would have given this team some scoring and leadership this year (both things they are missing). This is not a knock on DP; but not getting this kid is hurting us this year. Alexander was another guy they didn't get. But think about it: he had 3 years left. Absolutely another good risk to take late in the recruiting season. TF was a good pickup. The events of this year were just unfortunate. But he would have been the transition player in front of the 1st 4 year center (IV) in a number of years. These were all good chances to take. UB sees where the needs are, and goes to fill those needs. As the talent and athleticism of the 4 year players increase, those holes will be fewer and fewer. The "can't recruit" talk needs to go away. That's wishful thinking on my part. I know it won't happen until he has 3-4 years of post-season tournaments. Finally, there is JJ. Looked OK in his limited minutes. There has been no reason to rush this kid. He has always had someone ahead of him that was taking major minutes, so these first 3 years should be used to get his day to day performance up to the level it should be. Don't reward him for anything less than his best effort. Could be a big contributor in the next 2 years, or maybe just a part-timer. The outcry for an athletic #4 is understandable, but is it necessary? His primary responsibility is to make sure the person he is guarding doesn't get any rebounds. Why do you think the guards get so many rebounds? MP did it, JF did it, RB, AD, and DP are doing it. Maybe to have that athlete on the offensive end would be nice. Last point: I've heard it mentioned a couple of times on this board. Why does UB ask the players to be something that they are not? He knew what he was getting when he recruited them. Be a better rebounder, better defensive player, fewer turnovers, etc. If it's my son he's coaching, I say thank you for asking him to be a complete player. Thank you for challenging him to be the best he could be. MP wouldn't have been that special player if he wouldn't have accepted the challenge. Running the table this week is not out of the question. But you need people to step up (it can be a different person each game)