Pistol

I think D1 uses a sliding scale now, so a lower ACT score can be offset by a GPA (I may be wrong in my interpretation of this). That said, isn't the bare minimum 18 (total of 72)? It's a 68, or 17 average, for Division II. http://www.nats.us/player_zone/eligibility/clearinghouse.asp

ESPN reported that the entire team was on the bus to head up to Northwestern for the next game- no boycott after all.

I had Koper's earthquakes class, too. I remember him saying that, but I'd be surprised if they would be forced to keep it up for that reason. That's some heavy-duty expensive equipment, but I'm sure they could move it. And Box, I'm also a building hugger, but I have no qualms about letting go of the WPG. SLU has plenty of other needs and could make great use of that space. Hell, keep the earthquake equipment safe, tear the gym down, and build a science building so the equipment can stay. Just do something useful that will benefit the school.

Roy, the West Pine Gym (a.k.a. Bauman-Eberhardt Center) is not on the National Register of Historic Places. I did a search on their site, with no matching result, and also found this link: http://www.dnr.mo.gov/shpo/StLouisCity.htm If it's not on the national register, it isn't protected. It might be on a local or state register of historic buildings, but they aren't as strict (still probably a lot of red tape, though). And BAB, regarding the two games at once, that would be hard to do because there are no lines for the courts that are perpendicular to the main court. Three-pointers, out of bounds, etc. would all just be a guess by the refs. They do have little hashmarks for the FT lines, though. Also, I don't think you could consider those 'indoor tracks.' There are no lines, it's basically just several thick coats of paint over concrete. People are basically just running around the concourse and top rim aisle. The other reasons I'd favor tearing down the B-E Center: -After late spring/early summer, all offices and locker rooms will be vacant -Energy costs are very high (btw, ever hear the pipes in the basement there? -LOUD) -Prime campus real estate; way too good a spot to waste on a backup site for intramurals -Has some charms because it is old (1920), but not special or useful enough to keep -Other than intramurals, I don't see many other uses for it

Probably not intramurals. You could only have one game there at a time, while Simon Rec has 6 courts, which are generally plenty. I would tear it down and build something useful, like more student housing.

Oh man, no one would make a free throw in there.

I always liked the Billiken spinning the ball on his finger. Lose the red stripe on the pants, maybe polish it up a bit to update it, and that would be perfect at center court. If not that, I like the old Billiken logo like on kwyjibo's picture, but that would never happen. I miss not having something at mid-court this year.

Couldn't have said it any better. All the Big 12 enormous logos at center court are also a microcosm of Texas (that has leaked into surrounding states' competitive schools. Everything's bigger in Texas....except brains and class.

We weren't even out of line, just cheering for the Cards. That guy was classic- I'm sure his kid will turn out just fine. Some of the new NFL stadiums are going over the top with features, but I love that they're embracing the cutting edge of architecture instead of copying the distant past. I don't think that MLB understands that younger fans aren't going to be nostalgic for places they never saw anyway. A bigger West Pine Gym would have been sweet. Talk about a pit atmosphere.

I went to Houston with some buddies in the summer of 2006 for a Cards-Astros late-season game. The consensus was that Houston has the worst baseball stadium we've ever been to. The Cards were fighting for a playoff spot at the time, and the Astros beat us with a couple pop flies that would have been easy outs in any other park that wound up being home runs. The sightlines are weird, the wall dimensions make no sense, they put a pole on a useless hill in center field 440 feet from home, the hallways aren't wide enough, and I could go on with complaints. I don't get the whole throwback baseball stadium craze. People are trying to rebuild the charming stadiums of 80 years ago with modern amenities, and they just come off as totally artificial. The Yankees are building a $1 billion+ recreation of Yankee Stadium and the Mets are doing the same with Ebbets Field- they're missing the point. The NFL understands that if you're going to spend hundreds of millions or more on a new stadium, it should be state-of-the-art in every way and the architecture should reflect what's going on now, not a hundred years ago. This mindset is also why baseball is losing fans and football keeps gaining them (there are many other issues, but the overall mindset can be seen in the buildings). Anyway, that's why I'd want Chaifetz to be modern and state-of-the-art, not trying to manufacture nostalgia with gimmicks.

There's nothing for us with Time Warner- CSTV is useless here. I can't get a dish because of apartment rules, so there's no other option. I only get to see the games when they're on the ESPN networks.

Do you mean "I'm cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs!"? Also, the bird's name is Sonny if I remember correctly.

Williams Arena went up in 1927-28. I don't see the point of quirks like that in modern arenas- you can't manufacture charm or nostalgia.

If they are granted releases, they won't sit because they haven't played yet.

That all remains to be seen. I just don't want to write the kid off in the case he asks for and is granted a release from his LOI.

Joakim Noah is on the Bulls, and has been little more than a headcase so far- complaining to the media, showing up late, missing meetings, etc. His immaturity is costing him and the team big time.

Please don't forget SirValiant Brown. I got curious about other names this year and found this list (plenty of A10 love): http://bleacherreport.com/articles/5694-Co...lege_Basketball

Exactly. And even though the situation with Sampson is unclear right now, I don't know why everyone's so low on Roth. Having a shooter like him is an incredibly valuable and underrated asset.

Steve Smith was the guy from LaSalle, although I think he goes by Steven Smith now to avoid confusion with other athletes and announcers. He was A10 player of the year in 2005 and 2006, and I thought for sure he'd find a comfortable home on an NBA roster. He went undrafted in 2006 after declaring in 2005 to test first-round interest and withdrawing his name. He was waived by the 76ers last year, played for Anaheim in the NBDL for a while, and now plays in Italy's top league. I would not be surprised to see him back in the NBA someday.

He's still tied by the LOI, but can be released if the school grants him one. I see no reason why they wouldn't release him if he requested it, and schools have been more generous about that in recent years.

Is this official yet? Do you have a link? I've heard rumors of this all morning, but haven't seen it confirmed anywhere. The rumor I heard only involved Chicago and Cleveland and had Duhon, Wallace, and Smith (and others) going to the Cavs in exchange for Hughes and Gooden (and others). Sounds like a blockbuster is in the works.

I may be biased because I've seen the kid play 6 times this year, but Lavender controls every aspect of XU's game. He's the reason they have 6 guys averaging 10+ ppg. He's the reason they are 10-1 in the conference and have won their close games. He makes everyone better.

Another Billiken Club question- I sent in my registration and payment last week. How long does it typically take before I should receive some acknowledgement or registration confirmation or membership card? Do they give out membership cards? When you go to events, how do people know you're in the Billken Club (for access to the physical club area)?

Memphis is the #1 team in the country and no one else in the CUSA is even close, probably no other shot at an at-large bid. XU is first in the A10, is not as strong as Memphis and the rest of the conference is not as weak as the rest of the CUSA. Also, I don't know if you've seen the past several wins by XU, but they are just barely beating teams (URI by 4, Charlotte by 2, St. Joe's by 4, SLU by 2). The disparity between XU and the A10 and between Memphis and CUSA are not even close- no one in their right mind could argue that. Go to the XU page of the Cincinnati Enquirer's sports section, and read the list of headlines. You'll see that this team is not coasting through the league. http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/art.../802150438/1065 http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/sec...ategory=SPT0102

If they were in a holding cell for getting in trouble one night, they would be in there with whoever else is in trouble that night (drunks and the like), none of whom would have weapons. When you get in there, they take everything from your pockets along with your belt, shoes/shoelaces, etc. They even feed you a bologna sandwich. I think Roy means if they get arrested one night for something dumb, a few hours in a holding cell isn't going to kill them.