Heading into a critical week of hoops

[slu72]

3-2 in the conference, 15-4 overall. So far a nice resume. Great? Dance material resume? Not even close. This week, however, may tell us if we stand a decent chance of dancing come March. Obviously X is the biggie. A W in Cincinnati would be huge. X, coming off that beat down in Dayton, is gonna be fired up. The way to beat 'em is on the D side. Frustrate them on every possession. Make them work overtime to get their buckets. We're not gonna hold them in the 50s, but if we make every possession a dog fight, we could leave Cincy with a win. On the offensive side, BC has to be knocking down them chippies again. He seems to have lost that little spin move that was so effective for him in Nov. Find it, BC, find it. And FT's. Mizzou won yesterday because they made 10-12 FT's down the stretch. If we don't start making our FTs we're gonna struggle from here on out. See the Charlotte and Temple games for proof. The more important these games become, the value of making FT's goes up like the price of gold in a currency crisis.

UMass. Just have to find a way to win this. I don't know squat about UMass, except they weren't supposed to be much this year, but it's not the case. Same factors apply here as in the X game. If we do find a way to beat X, I just hope they don't get cocky or lazy and play an LMU type tired game. That friggin' game still haunts us. Let's not have a repeat in Amherst.

The really good thing about this season is we've been in every game right up until the end. No team has dominated us, but we need to pull out a close one and prove they can finish. Can't think of a better place than Cintas to finish the job.

[Taj79]

Going into Xavier after the beatdown they took at Dayton will not be good. They are still who I believe them to be .....in yesterday's loss, Lyons and Holloway scored 20 and 21 respectively, and dished out 11 more assists. I'm sure some of those assists included a few to each other but evn if not, that's responsibility for 63 of Xavier's 72 points.The other three starters combined for 15 points. So did the bench. However, if Matt Kavanaugh, the veritible definition of a "walking stiff" can score 20,Conklin should do just as well.

I also watched Umass take on Richmond on CBCCS. Umass was rather unimpressive but that was not the same Richmond team who was obviously "UP" when Temple came to town. Just another example of how hard it is to get kids to take each game consistently. Umass is athletic but unskilled. Chaz Williams, their 5'7" PG transfer from Hofstra is the guy who runs the show. Richmond was abused on the boards from what I saw and evidence by a 41 to 31 rebounding disparity. Richmond actually had more offensive rebounds (16 to 14) which means Umass is somewhat weak there. Umass was 4 of 13 from three so they are not going to shoot the lights out. They press to use their length andtry to get out and run but they are relatively young. If we impose our will, we win. Umass is 10 and 0 in Amherst but their best home opponent was Davidson. Umass is off all week; while we play at Xavier mid-week.

A split is a must.

[billiken_roy]

we win both this week, i'll drive the bandwagon. one win keeps our heads up. two losses imo would be devastating and likely put us in a no lose position the rest of the way.

that said, i thought x looked very very beatable yesterday. didnt think dayton was necessarily the winner as much as x was the big loser. we can beat them. .

[Schasz]

If we play the kind of defense we played at the start of this season we can beat any of the teams on the remainder of the schedule.

[moytoy12]

I remember an undermanned SLU team going into X last year and giving them all they could handle. Conk was a beast in that game and they had no answers for him. RM's game plan was a thing of beauty. I expect more of the same. I have a lot of faith in this group that is going to X.

[bonwich]

Pray for good weather.

[JMM28]

I remember an undermanned SLU team going into X last year and giving them all they could handle. Conk was a beast in that game and they had no answers for him. RM's game plan was a thing of beauty. I expect more of the same. I have a lot of faith in this group that is going to X.

With Gregory out of the conference, Rick needs a new fire hydrant to lift his leg on. Sounds like a perfect role for Mack.

[MB73]

I remember an undermanned SLU team going into X last year and giving them all they could handle. Conk was a beast in that game and they had no answers for him. RM's game plan was a thing of beauty. I expect more of the same. I have a lot of faith in this group that is going to X.

Its not just who you play, but when you play them. Last year Xavier was fat dumb and happy on a win streak and did not take us seriously. This year they are going to be riled up after that loss to Dayton and recognize SLU as a true threat. The knucklehead kids on Xavier are much more emotion driven than most, not the even keeled consistent type.

This does not bode well for us, I cannot see up pulling this off... Xavier will be a strong favorite.

I think optimal outcome for this road trip is to go 1-1 by beating U. Mass, which will be a challenge, too, but not nearly the challenge we face in Xavierland.

[AMDG]

2-0. must win both.

[Duff Man]

Xavier has not lost an A10 home game since 2/28/06. It's not a must win.

It's going to be 8 on 5...this will be tougher than @NM or vs Temple...it will take the best game we've played all year to pull it out.

UMass will be tough because it's such a quick turnaround travel wise, but Majerus should be able to coach circles around Kellogg.

[moytoy12]

Its not just who you play, but when you play them. Last year Xavier was fat dumb and happy on a win streak and did not take us seriously. This year they are going to be riled up after that loss to Dayton and recognize SLU as a true threat. The knucklehead kids on Xavier are much more emotion driven than most, not the even keeled consistent type.

This does not bode well for us, I cannot see up pulling this off... Xavier will be a strong favorite.

I think optimal outcome for this road trip is to go 1-1 by beating U. Mass, which will be a challenge, too, but not nearly the challenge we face in Xavierland.

I think there is some truth to what you say about last year. However, with a severe lack in talent/athleticism last year, we hung with them all game. Usually, when you are overlooked, you hang for a half, but the better team dominates the 2nd half. That didn't happen and a lot had to do with RM's game plan.

Emotion is a tricky thing, too little and you're flat. Too much and you're erratic. Just right, and you can be dominant (with the right talent).

After watching X v. UD, I wonder if we'll see more of JJ than KC? KC has played better in the last two games, but will he have the athleticism to hang with X? MM, KM and JJ might be our best bet during long stretches in the game.

[waldo027]

3-2 in the conference, 15-4 overall. So far a nice resume. Great? Dance material resume? Not even close. This week, however, may tell us if we stand a decent chance of dancing come March. Obviously X is the biggie. A W in Cincinnati would be huge. X, coming off that beat down in Dayton, is gonna be fired up. The way to beat 'em is on the D side. Frustrate them on every possession. Make them work overtime to get their buckets. We're not gonna hold them in the 50s, but if we make every possession a dog fight, we could leave Cincy with a win. On the offensive side, BC has to be knocking down them chippies again. He seems to have lost that little spin move that was so effective for him in Nov. Find it, BC, find it. And FT's. Mizzou won yesterday because they made 10-12 FT's down the stretch. If we don't start making our FTs we're gonna struggle from here on out. See the Charlotte and Temple games for proof. The more important these games become, the value of making FT's goes up like the price of gold in a currency crisis.

UMass. Just have to find a way to win this. I don't know squat about UMass, except they weren't supposed to be much this year, but it's not the case. Same factors apply here as in the X game. If we do find a way to beat X, I just hope they don't get cocky or lazy and play an LMU type tired game. That friggin' game still haunts us. Let's not have a repeat in Amherst.

The really good thing about this season is we've been in every game right up until the end. No team has dominated us, but we need to pull out a close one and prove they can finish. Can't think of a better place than Cintas to finish the job.

Judging from this post, you seem to think it would be a minor miracle if we won at X. They are good, but not that good. We are the better team. The only advantage they have is they're playing at home. They can be as "riled up" or as "pissed off" as they want, but that won't help them much if we're hitting our 3's and playing suffocating D. Let's pray we don't get homered, again.

[slufan13]

Its not just who you play, but when you play them. Last year Xavier was fat dumb and happy on a win streak and did not take us seriously. This year they are going to be riled up after that loss to Dayton and recognize SLU as a true threat. The knucklehead kids on Xavier are much more emotion driven than most, not the even keeled consistent type.

This does not bode well for us, I cannot see up pulling this off... Xavier will be a strong favorite.

I think optimal outcome for this road trip is to go 1-1 by beating U. Mass, which will be a challenge, too, but not nearly the challenge we face in Xavierland.

Last year they were coming off being upset at Charlotte.

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/team/schedule/_/id/2752/year/2011/xavier-musketeers

I do agree with you that Xavier is overly emotional and they'll be fired up for this game, but they aren't very mentally strong so if we can get off to a good start, we could get guys like Tu and Lyons to start throwing up bad shots.

I think we'll win by 3. Xavier is really really struggling down low right now and Conklin is due for a big game.

[moytoy12]

Last year they were coming off being upset at Charlotte.

http://espn.go.com/m...vier-musketeers

I do agree with you that Xavier is overly emotional and they'll be fired up for this game, but they aren't very mentally strong so if we can get off to a good start, we could get guys like Tu and Lyons to start throwing up bad shots.

I think we'll win by 3. Xavier is really really struggling down low right now and Conklin is due for a big game.

Ha. Nice find.

Also, X went 24-6 last year with a schedule that doesn't look too different than our schedule this year (from the eye test, our schedule this year is weaker), lost in the first round of the A-10 tourney and received a 6 seed.

[cheeseman]

Xavier has not lost an A10 home game since 2/28/06. It's not a must win.

It's going to be 8 on 5...this will be tougher than @NM or vs Temple...it will take the best game we've played all year to pull it out.

UMass will be tough because it's such a quick turnaround travel wise, but Majerus should be able to coach circles around Kellogg.

Can you say FL State.

[Billsrmajic]

Xavier has not lost an A10 home game since 2/28/06. It's not a must win.

It's going to be 8 on 5...this will be tougher than @NM or vs Temple...it will take the best game we've played all year to pull it out.

UMass will be tough because it's such a quick turnaround travel wise, but Majerus should be able to coach circles around Kellogg.

This week is the most difficult of the season. We have to travel to Ohio for a Wednesday game against a team that hasn't lost a home conference game in 5 years, go back to St. Louis, then travel to Mass for a Saturday game against a team that hasn't lost a home game this year and has a week to prepare for us (while Rick will only have two days, negating a huge advantage for the Bills when he has 4-5 days to prepare the team for a game.) A Billiken sweep is not out of the question, but highly improbable. Remember, we have won a grand total of two road games this year. For me, a split would be welcome.

[slu72]

I'd take a split right now and go nowhere near the road this week. X will be tough at home. But the Bills have the right game to take on the road. As someone, Jbizzle?, pointed out in another thread we are lousy hitting 3's on the road. Understandable with different sight lines and backgrounds, but still ours has been pathetic. We'd be undfeated if we'd shot 'em like we did in Anaheim. So, let's hit the 3s, get BC back to knocking down his bunnies, and start hitting some friggin' FT's.

[Box and Won]

Its not just who you play, but when you play them. Last year Xavier was fat dumb and happy on a win streak and did not take us seriously.

And it teh Billz were affected by teh time change!!!11!!!!

[JettFlight5]

1-1 minimum to keep the at-large hopes in decent shape. 2-0 is a big step forward.

[Taj79]

Last year's game and circumstances mean nothing. In the what-have-you-done-for-me-lately aspect, X is coming off a bad conference loss, to where they are dominant. What really bugs me is the Saturday game at Umass --- Umass is high off a road win at Richmond and has not lost at home either with a week to prepare. That'll be tough.

If we hit our threes ....... If we play our "D" ....... If Conklin returns to beast mode ........... really? Ya think? Of course we can beat just about anybody IF all things happen. That could be said about every team in the nation just about. Wiz has us favored by 2 -- the defending league champion, former #8 team in the country, coming off an embarrassing road loss to a disrepsected foe ............ I'll take Xavier.

Won $18.35 on a $20 bet in Veags on the Bills (-11) against Duquesne. Looks like I've lost my amatuer status in college basketball.

Big week nonetheless.

[Clock_Tower]

Wow. What happened to the confidence in our team? When did the A10 become the toughest conference in the college basketball? Did we forget that we do have to play conference road games this year? Two (2) road games this week and with the second team not playing on Wednesday - sure it will be tough - but doom and gloom? Still, I'd rather play X and UMass than _____ and _____ (insert your 2 of your top teams from your top conference here. It's all about matchups and head to head games on a given night, but on paper, the road game at Dayton now looks like a tougher game than this one coming at X.

And yes, no one wants to play, on the road, a quality and truly top ranked team, which became a bit complacent, and is now pissed off team coming off a rare loss. But is that really the case with X? X got beat bad at Dayton b/c Dayton showed they were the better team. Before X regains its confidence and corrects its many mistakes and weakness, this might be a great time to play X. X did not lose a tight one b/c they took the game for granted or b/c of a rare cold shooting night, etc. I watched some of the X and UD game as well. This year's X team is NOT one of the really good teams but still, beating them at their home will take a really strong effort from our team. UMass on the road? Sure. Not an easy one. But still, Top 30 teams and NCAA quality teams find a way to win these games.

And yes, a split is not the end of the season but, as mentioned, would not allow many further mistakes in the future.

[Taj79]

Clock -- disagree on doom and gloom connotation. Tough week to say the least compounded by an X loss and a Umass win with a week off to prepare and undefeated at home. Two games on the road where I am also still uneasy, the Charlotte game notwithstanding. Can we win both? Sure. Can we lose both? Sure.