Pistol

JMM, Why does the rival have to be a mirror image of us? Duke and UNC are nothing alike. XU and Cincy are nothing alike. Marquette and Wisconsin are nothing alike. Gonzaga and Washington are nothing alike. I could go on, but the argument that the schools need to fit the same demographic is awful. And being close helps, but that isn't the best reason either. Columbia is closer than Peoria anyway. I know Mizzou fans don't dignify SLU enough to hate us. What I'm calling for is DEVELOPING a potentially very good rivalry. We don't have to call them our rival, and they don't either. But we should be playing them every year. Comparing the Big 12 and the Valley is ludicrous. This past year was your best chance for that argument, and a season like it won't happen again. On a day in and day out basis, the Big 12 is leaps and bounds above the Valley, and I am not even a fan of the Big 12.

We don't need an official "rival," but anything to fill more than 7,000 out of 20,000 seats in the arena would help.

At least give him a shot- none of us truly know what will happen with this. But Ian has to make it official one way or the other shortly after the pre-draft camp, so it could get interesting in a week or so.

O'Bryant's gone now- let's see them make another run.

I don't see how you can say it isn't happening unless something drastic happens. I would think that Alden would want another big money game. Work out the financials and there's a great series here. Before, it was always an issue with the head coaches at Mizzou, not Alden. And by the way, let's get over the Valley complex. Who in St. Louis is going to be pumped about a "rivalry" with Wichita State?! There's not enough to get excited about with the other two, either. I think these would be a nice non-conference games to have, but come on.

Well said, Ace. Mizzou needs to knock the ego down a notch. The final scores of those three games had a combined margin of 5. A game at the Dome, a sellout at Mizzou, a sellout at SLU. Who could forget the heartbreak when Stokes (who was 0 for 13 at the time) hit his first shot at the buzzer to beat SLU in the 2001-2001 season? These were amazing games, and then they vanished, thanks to that greasy Q and his excuses. Mizzou needs good publicity and to get its program back on track, and SLU needs any type of fan interest it can get. These games need to continue.

Moot? They just got a new coach! Norm tried to make it a moot point. Brad leaves a spot open for them every year, and there is an open line of communication. It's not a moot point. Why do people want to settle for the bottom half of the MVC? Is this yet another indicator that SLU fans are content with mediocrity?

I think "low end of the mid major spectrum" is pretty rough. Mid-majors are classified as such because they don't have the means to become true major programs. I think with the size of SLU's market and the school itself, it has potential to be a major program, and really should be. I would like to play MSU and SEMO every year, but those aren't the ones to get excited about. That, however, could be how Mizzou looks at SLU, and that's a shame. SLU can get back to major form, and can become a program like Xavier or Gonzaga (it only takes a few special players and a coach who stays put for a while).

Why Bradley? Who cares if that was our rival 30 years ago? There are plenty of schools nearby where basketball is the money sport. Bradley isn't in our conference or our state. Bradley should have a rivalry with Illinois St. going. They are barely 30 minutes away from each other. Mizzou should be our natural rival because we are the two biggest basketball programs in the state (despite MSU's recent successes), Mizzou is the biggest school, and SLU is in the biggest market. Plus, we're 90 minutes away from each other. Both schools have a lot to gain financially (sold out arenas no matter which town you play in) and from a recruiting standpoint. But, because Mizzou is too stubborn to play us, we'll have to accept that we don't have a real rival right now. Xavier and Dayton are the other logical choices, but who knows if we'll be in the same conference forever the way these things shake up. Finally, rivalries DO NOT have to be exclusive of one another. Sure, Mizzou has good ones with Illinois and KU, Xavier has Cincy, and Dayton and Xavier have each other. Why can't another meaningful game be allowed? Mizzou may be more excited for KU every year, but the in-state rivalries can't be tossed aside.

I agree with you that it isn't wise to exit early for the second round and non-guaranteed money. He could use some more seasoning, and a strong senior year could make him a first rounder and a lot more cash. But a strong couple weeks and a little taste of the league could make Ian go for it, especially after the way this season ended on such a sour note.

Word on the streets is that our man Ian looked very nice against the other bigs in the Toronto Raptors workout (http://www.nba.com/raptors/news/pressrelease_060526.html). The others were Eric Williams from Wake, Alex Loughton from Old Dominion, and Ryan Hollins from SLU, I mean UCLA. He'll have a chance to showcase his skills again in Orlando beginning tomorrow. 6/6/06 may indeed be an ominous date for the SLU faithful. I'm already beginning to reverse my optimism expressed earlier today in the "questions for 06-07" thread. If Ian truly impressed the Raptors and has a good week in Orlando, we can kiss the big Greek goodbye. If his skills continue to develop like they have in the past year and a half and he shows flashes of that, NBA scouts are going to see it. I'd have to think that a 6'11" kid with his skills can easily crack the second round, maybe relatively early on. We'll have to wait and see how this week goes, but I'm starting to get that sinking feeling that we SLU basketball fans are so used to by now.

I hope you're right. The money from the Greek leagues will be there after next season if the NBA isn't in the cards. I don't think Ian ever meant to go pro this year unless the league's desire for skilled bigs bumped him into the first round, which doesn't look to be the case. But participating in these camps and getting his name out there will get more scouts in the seats this coming season and a little respect from the refs- something he's never gotten.

I'm also happy to see some basketball being discussed here. Here's my take: 1.) Yes. That's what I'm leaning toward, anyway. I try not to get my hopes up too high because how often does SLU really catch a nice break? 2a.) GW will still be good, but not like this past year. XU will be tough, as will St. Joe's. I don't want to overlook Temple or Charlotte, but they both might have lost too much, and Dayton wasn't good enough last year (despite our bad games against them) for me to pick them among the tops. The good news is that all of these teams are very beatable. 2b.) No. Like I've said all along, JJ hasn't given anything in four years at SLU, so what makes people think that he will now? Don't blame Brad for this one- this kid just isn't the answer. Time to move on. 3.) KL is the natural leader. IV and TL are great, but not in the leadership roles- both of them should score as much or more than KL, though. 4.) These are all huge question marks. Obi is a lot different than Floyd in that Floyd was a spectacular athlete and Obi isn't. Hopefully, unlike Floyd, he can get healthy. The other two are freshmen- hopefully they fill their roles nicely, but I never count on it. 5.) BH can be a contributor. He has nice touch, good shot blocking skills, and will be hard to guard if he develops a little more. As always, his areas to work on will be strength and conditioning, agility, toughness- he's still got that young awkwardness to him. 6.) KL is very, very good and will keep getting better. He won't explode, but experience is going to make him even better. TL could be one of the hardest matchups in the A10 if he could shoot. Until then, he will be given room to shoot and sent to the free throw line. 7.) Lance Randall was one of the big connections with international recruiting, given his connections to European coaching. Brad likes the Euros, but I don't know how much he's looking there anymore, unless Ian's brother is that good. Enough to get us dancing? Ian has to come back, Tommie has to be more consistent, and the guys outside of the big three have to contribute, whether it means stepping up and being the man sometimes, or just filling roles every night. I think DB might be the guy to watch aside from IV, TL, or KL. He has the biggest upside and most athleticism. Luke HAS to hit open shots when he has them. Dwayne has to get back on track, find at least something of a jump shot, and make this team play up to his speed in transition. As a team, if we start to hit open shots, especially those 3's, we can beat anybody in the A10 on any night.

"Packer-like thinking" is an oxymoron. Packer doesn't have the ability to think rationally.

I never said that adding 16 teams would add sub-.500 teams. It is a ridiculous statement- one that I didn't make. Adding 16 teams would shove a lot of the smaller programs in the dance one round further out, and get rid of any Cinderella magic that brings in the added interest and money from fans. And the point I was making before is that the field will simply be watered down, not flooded with losing records. Some majors that barely break .500 and mid majors without enough big wins just don't deserve to get in, and these are the teams that will crack a field of 80. The field isn't the best 64 teams in the nation because of one point you made: the best team from low major conferences doesn't always win the conference tourney. I don't always agree with the automatic bids, and I don't know how much politics is a factor. Missouri State justly saw this year that more than RPI is factored into the decision. (They didn't beat anyone! They didn't lose any games they shouldn't have, but they didn't schedule any potential big wins).

Because those games, like NCAA tournament games, make money. But the field still shouldn't go beyond 64. This is the greatest sporting event in America, and there's no need to change it. The tournament should be hard to get into, and there will be snubs every year- that's life. They can't let everyone with a winning record into the dance. And enough boo-hoos about MSU and their high RPI not making it. They didn't deserve it any more than the last teams in this year. Also, what would happen to the NIT in this situation? It would literally have to take every remaining team with an above-.500 record and make an even less important tournament than it is now.

Anyone could say that about us SLU fans, too. It's good to see a little respect from them. Sure, it comes after a humbling year, but I'll never turn down any positive comments toward SLU basketball.

I never actually believed that we could get this thing going through the state legislature. That said, this still needs to be an annual rivalry. Just think: Xavier-Cincinnati, Marquette-Wisconsin, Gonzaga-Washington, and the list goes on. We put up with Norm Stewart's stubborn crap for years, then Q wouldn't keep it going after three close ones, but now it looks like Mizzou finally has a stand-up guy to see the value in a game like this.

I would persuade my family members and other SLU fans who are also registered voters to sign such a petition. What about an oustanding citizen like yourself?

How many signatures do we need on a petition to get a bill like this to the state senate?

I would rather have national programs, too, but when it comes to the buy-in games, I would rather replace those with regional games. I would never give up games with UNC, Gonzaga, and Iowa for Valley or Horizon League teams. But replacing Kennesaw State and other RPI-killing programs with regional teams makes sense to me, and that's what I was suggesting. I don't think that we'd see an instant boost in attendance with regional games, but I just want to see matchups that fans will have some interest in, one way or another. No one wants to watch Kennesaw State or Jackson State- those are the kinds of games that we should play regional teams instead.

It should, but come on, take off at lunch. I will be in the stands, and very vocal in my Billiken blue.

Is it on the historic registry? I've heard that it would most likely be torn down for a building that would be more useful to campus than an abandoned old gym. That's some prime campus real estate, and I'm sure Biondi has other ideas for it.

Brad has said that he is going to be a lot more selective in scheduling non-conference games. He's always wanted to play the toughest schedule possible, but wants to be more careful with the "buy-in" games, and eliminate the teams in the mid-200s and above. It's what the Valley did this past season, and it worked for them. Personally, I'd like to see the buy-in games be more in the high-100s to low-200s at the highest. This would make for a more challenging schedule (eliminating garbage like that Savannah St. game a couple years back) and obviously help the RPI. I'd also like to see more regionally-based games that could potentially create more interest in otherwise ignored games. I don't know what the RPIs of these schools are, but how about SEMO and UMKC as buy-ins, another Valley school or two to go along with MSU and SIUC, and then a school or two like Butler, UIC, or Valpo. Loyola this year was a good idea. This would make us more vulnerable to upsets, but would create a team ready for a big A-10 run. Plus, there's got to be enough alums of those schools in or around St. Louis to draw extra fans. The big one, though, is to get Mizzou on the schedule every year. The two biggest programs in the state facing each other is an automatic sellout every year, a lot of money and attention for both schools, and solid competition for both sides. We also played Illinois at the Dome back in the 90s, and drew about 39,000 fans. SLU doesn't carry quite the fanfare, but we need to get more rivalries and regional games to get the interest building again.

Why would we see a different JJ this year? We've seen the same JJ for four years already- nothing will change with him. I hope you're right, but every time he shows a nice move or play or something, it disappears.