RUBillsFan

Louisville really just plays as physical as the refs will allow (read: fouls multiple times on every single possession).

Apparently Dieng can just travel all he wants when he gets the ball inside.

I think you are right. The point about balancing classes is still valid, but having 3 bigs in the Glaze/Manning class wouldn't be ideal. I still like Djambo though.

Not sure if this has been posted yet or not but according to Timmerman on twitter Crews is scheduled to throw out the 1st pitch and the Bills will be honored as A-10 champs on Saturday at the Cardinals game. One would have to assume that Crews will be officially announced as the head coach by then. Heck it wouldn't be a bad idea to announce it at the game as that would generate a lot of publicity.

This is why I'd like to see the Bills get Djambo and Yacoubou. Djambo the top choice being a big and slotting into the McBroom class and Yacoubou gets the nod over the other guards because he seems to be more talented and fits into that class as well. I really like having the classes balanced. That way you avoid a big drop off when a bunch of guys graduate. Also, it seems like it would be difficult to recruit the year following a big class because some recruits would wonder where any playing time is going to come from until their senior year. Finally, as we saw with the 8 man class RM put together his 1st year, it is very rare to keep a bigger class together for 4 years because kids who don't end up getting playing time get frustrated and leave. I don't think SLU should settle for less talented players just to even out the classes, but in this case it seems to work perfectly as what looks like the 2 most talented players slot into the smallest class. Yacoubou not being a point guard doesn't worry me too much because we still have 3 (JJ, MM, & AB) for next year. As long as we get a good PG for 2014 we're fine.

I could be wrong, but I thought I read somewhere that the 1st semester is really all that counts for the one-and-done guys. Therefore, all they have to do is pass a few basic classes 1st semester (perhaps only 12 credit hours if they have already taken a summer class) and then all 2nd semester they are basically already pro players who just aren't being paid yet.

They can probably jump out of the gym with the best of them just like Horace Dixon.

Oregon's Daymean Dotson is 0-6 from the field on 0-3 from 3pt land. Against SLU he was 8-12 and 5-6. On the season he is shooting 44% and 33% on 3pts. His hot shooting is one of the main reasons SLU lost. Bummer.

Different article: http://www.stltoday.com/sports/college/slu/slu-has-ingredients-for-another-ncaa-trip/article_3594e273-8c41-53d4-bfeb-842f8dfee681.html My favorite part: Richard Chaifetz is the reason SLU is in good shape going forward no matter who the head coach is. He has raised the bar.

Very good game between Ohio St and Iowa St earlier. Aaron Craft has some huge balls to take (and nail) that shot at the end of the game. RIght now Khalif Wyatt is holding his own against IU. Wyatt 20 (the rest of Temple 6) and IU 24.

I'm uncertain about where I stand on the the head coach decision right now. With that said, anyone demanding that SLU hire a "better" or "bigger name" coach than Crews should shut their mouth and open up their wallet to donate to the SLU bball program. A big name coach isn't going to come to SLU unless he is getting paid.

Complaining about our Billiken's draw in the Midwest regional now is a bit like crying over split milk, but I can't help wondering how far we could have gone as the #4 seed in the West regional. Midwest Seed. Team (highest AP ranking during season/current kenpom rank): 1. Louisville (1/2) 2. Duke (1/6) 3. Michigan State (4/7) 4. SLU (13/19) 5. OK State (13/26) 6. Memphis (17/42) 7. Creighton (12/16) 8. Colorado St. (22/30) 9. Missouri (7/21) 10. Cincinnati (8/40) 11. St. Mary's (26/23) 12. Oregon (10/32) West Seed. Team (Highest AP ranking during season/current kenpom rank): 1. Gonzaga (1/5) 2. Ohio St. (3/4) 3. New Mexico (10/24) 4. Kansas St. (9/34) 5. Wisconsin (17/10) 6. Arizona (3/15) 7. Notre Dame (17/38) 8. Pittsburgh (16/11) 9. Wichita St. (15/20) 10. Iowa St. (36/33) 11. Belmont (31/51) 12. Mississippi (16/29) The only seed you can definitively say was better in the West was #6 Arizona/Memphis. All the rest are either a toss up or the Midwest wins easily. I included the highest AP poll because I think that shows how good a team can be when playing at their best. Clearly we ran into the Oregon team that was playing at a #10 level rather than the one that wasn't ranked. Midwest had 6 teams at one point ranked in the top 10 compared to 5 in the West, 8 top 15 vs 6 in West, 12 top 26 vs 10 in West. Hindsight is 20/20, but it would have been nice to have K State's spot in Kansas City and have a clear path to the Elite Eight. Oh well. Heck of a season. Go Bills! Loe, Glaze, Evans, Jett, McCall (Manning, Barnett, McBroom, Drew, Crawford) is a very good team for next year. Hard work over the summer and we can be in a similar spot next year hopefully with better luck.

Well... way to go out. This team had a fantastic season. They can be proud of the season they put together.

Right on cue Dwayne Evans is raped down low going for a rebound and then Dotson nails another deep 3.

Not that it matters because the Bills can't hit the broad side of a barn and Oregon can't miss, but SLU has picked up some cheap fouls. I hate that the refs usually try to keep the fouls pretty even. Bills have been getting the ball inside and driving to the hoop while Oregon has mostly been shooting from the outside (and hitting). Oregon has a few more fouls, but IMO it shouldn't even be close.

Dotson is 4/4 from 3. He is around a 30% shooter on the season. Ugh.

Oregon can't miss.

A10 related: St. Joes takes a hit for next year. CJ Aiken is going pro: http://cityofbasketballlove.com/2013/03/c-j-aiken-leaving-hawk-hill-going-pro/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

I think I read that LaSalle only earns 1 credit between the "1st" and "2nd" round games. Both they and Boise St. got credits for playing the "1st" round game, but LaSalle doesn't get another for playing the "2nd" round game against K-State. Therefore, the A-10 has 5 credits so far. Assuming LaSalle holds on to win against K-State, the A-10 will get an additional 5 for games played in the "3rd" round. However, I do not believe the A10 splits the money from the credit evenly. I think more of it goes to the team that earned the credit. There was a post about this a while back and it was something like 75% to the team that earns the credit and 25% to the rest of the league. Either way, more wins for the A10 is good for SLU (at least in the short term).

Its all about those NCAA units. Thanks to Butler and Temple for being so kind in nabbing the A10 a few extra before they bolt.

Tarheel, You are correct. Best Buy already was a corporate sponsor. I think they still have ads inside Chaifetz. I'm not sure if this had anything to do with the team picking their store to watch the selection show. I would assume it is just a coincidence.

Holy crap. They have 4 Canadians, 2 Frenchmen, a Croatian, and a South African guy on their team. Talk about international.

Sim Bhullar is from Toronto, Canada and is a freshman, but some have reported he went to prep school for a year. That would make him a sophomore age wise. Grandy is a sophomore from Toronto, Canada. I wonder if they played against each other in the past.

Not sure if this has been posted yet. A-10 champions shirts are now available: http://shop.slubillikens.com/COLLEGE_Saint_Louis_Billikens/Saint_Louis_Billikens_2013_Atlantic_10_Mens_Basketball_Champions_T-Shirt_-_Royal_Blue

Very cheap one on Ellis.