Aquinas

I agree on Elliot and I dont expect much of a contribution from Jacob's given his limited play to date. But Hankton can contribute enough minutes to keep Bess playing the 3 and give us a big who can hit FTs to help us close games out.

Its really ashamed that these 2 freshmen have been injured so much and missed a great opportunity to get significant minutes. Hopefully they can get up to speed quickly and help the team down the stretch. Hankton was just starting to show promise when he went down.

I like a combined 11 for 15 from the free throw line.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. The good and really great this season is Bess! His improved shooting over his SLU career is amazing and it is worth watching a Bill's game just to see him play. French rebounding is awesome, he is a man under the basket. Isabell is a magician at times with some of his miraculous layups. Thatch is already a defensive stud and has good form on his outside shot. Goodwin is the heart and soul of the team and seems to be getting back to his old self. Hankton has shown potential as a play maker. The bad. The loss of Santos was devastating to this team. Followed by injuries to Welmer, Hankton, Thor and Jacob's and sadly the loss or failure of Gordon. All of which has left us paper thin. The Ugly. Fast breaks that end in charges or turnovers. Isabell drives into the trees that often end with an opponent's basket. French free throws.

Very cool!

Tonight looks tough. We have done a good job of holding teams down that have one dominant scorer, we have not done nearly as well with teams that are balanced. A dinged up Bess diminishes, or takes away our best player on both sides of the ball. To have a chance, we need to have Bess at full speed, stay out of foul trouble, have some shots go down and avoid stupid turnovers.... piece of cake

The only bright spots I see, are that Goodwin and Wiley are playing better. Unfortunately seniors Isabel and Forman, just keep making really stupid plays at critical times. French is a stud, but looks like he needs to see a psychologist to work out his FT woes. He is starting to look like that catcher years ago, who couldn't throw the ball back to the pitcher.

I think some of these players ar still adjusting to playing as a team. Wiley while a senior hasn't played much duv 1 ball and I think has the best chance of breaking out. Isabell is still getting comfortable. Thatch keeps trying the 3, and they look good, but haven't gone in, but he is still a freshman. I am not predicting it will happen, but I think its possible.

We still have a chance to be a good team. The key is making 3s, that will force teams to cover our shooters and open the lanes. Bess has been reliable from long range, but we need more. Wiley would seem to have the most reasonable chance to do it. Isabell or Thatch could also get in a groove and change things dramatically. 3 additional 3s in a game would be the difference between slugging these games out for coin toss finishes and racking up wins. Once opponents have to cover the 3 point line, Gordon and French will have some fun.

That is very cool! I also think Ford does not get enough credit for coaching these young men to play extremely hard in times of adversity. You have to love players, and a team that plays with a lot of heart.

I think we are a team that can look really good when the 3s fall and really bad when they dont. Our paper thin depth will coast us anytime we get into foul trouble or pick up an injury. I think those factors make us really hard to predict.

Good podcast. Bernie is very complementary of Ford and the job he has done weaving this team together. Believes we are the only local team with q shot at the tournament. Mentions shortcomings with Mizzou and Illinois. Likes the way the Bill's tough out wins.

What is the story with Hankton?

Any free link for UMass game?

I think Gordon needs the prayers. It seems unlikely that quitting SLU will end well for him.