Impressive Win

[SLU_Nick]

What an excellent showing tonight. What a nice run with 4 minutes left. This is what I thought the team would be this year. I think our team goes with Polk. He was really the man tonight. When Polk plays solid, we play solid. So speculation would say because Polk is improving, our record will improve. Profound I know. Danny Brown is going to be something special too. I am giddy when I think of the years to come.

[brehms13]

This game was ugly for the seniors, but good for the rest of the team.

Polk, Newbourne,Danny,Ian and Anthony all played well. I know the guys had a hard practice last night, with the long scrimmages, but hopefully they'll rest up and play well against East Carolina.

[AlumniFan]

Great win! Great finish. The last four minutes really showed great focus and determination. I get the feeling that this team has turned the corner. Great to see the younger players step up, especially Danny Brown with that killer block at the end. Polk, Brown, Lisch, Liddell, Husak, Ian, etc. I agree, the future is bright.

[davidnark]

Having a regular rotation of seven or eight players has made all of the difference in the world to this team. In coach's defense, it takes a while to figure out what you have with young guys like Brown, Polk, and Ian. The injury to Reggie and the uncertainty with Tom's situation certainly didn't help things. It is a shame that we didn't win half of those nailbiters early in the year.

Did anyone else catch Brad's postgame interview? He sounded as enthusiastic about the future as I have heard him all year. He specifically commented about the bright futures of Polk, Brown, and Ian.

I have one final comment. I paid a lot of attention to Danny Brown's defense in the second half of the game. IMO, his perimeter defense is head and shoulders better than everyone else on the team right now. He is fundamentally sound on the ball, and he does a fabulous job of using his length and athleticism to help off his man on picks and then quickly recover without giving up an open role. I saw him do it twice on one possession and again on the next possession. Danny also has shown a great ability to get to the hole on offense. When those runners in the lane start falling--and they will--he is going to be a great player on both sides of the ball.

[BleacherBum593]

I'd have to disagree with you on the game being ugly for the seniors. Reg stepped up when we needed it in the 2nd half and drilled a pair of 3's home. Izek also played well IMHO.

But the young-in's ARE the story of this one.

Great Team Effort From Everybody.

That my friends, constitutes a Steak- 2 In A Row.

I had a feeling that buzzer beater by Reggie on Wednesday would carry over and it did. I wouldn't be surprised if we ran off about 7 more in a row and go into Louisville at 12-12. Then, anything can happen.

[BleacherBum593]

Has to go to Ian Vouyoukas for his effort in the paint tonight.

That has to be his best game ever as a Billiken. (at least of all those that I have seen and I don't miss many). His inspired play against TCU's #12, completely shut down the inside for TCU and they were relegated to throwing up "bricks" from the outside. If I'm not mistaken they held TCU to their lowest FG% of the year tonight. And it all started with Ian's work on the inside.

[brehms13]

Yes they stepped up at the end and got the win and ultimately that's what matters, but I know that Reg and Izik could do better. I said the same thing to Reg tonight, he wen't scoreless too long, his frustration set in. I'm his worst critic and I call it like I see it, in this case hear it..

[Basketbill]

and his first three of the night, I think loosened everyone else up...oh and tell him he had position when they called him for the blocking foul......a horrible call.

[Basketbill]

David I was watching him too, he is sound on defense, athletic enough to make that fantastic block on Shropshire, and nimble enough to gather in AD low pass (needed to be that low to split the defenders) and finish on a breakaway. As Soderberg said it will be fun to have him for another 3.5 years.

[billiken_roy]

i think it was the best all around game by dwayne polk. especially on defense. even though santee had 17 points, he had to work hard for those points and imo was very ineffective.

dwayne also penetrated more and created better than he has throughout a whole game, and his shot looked real good. the one from the corner was huge.

danny brown also played very well. his block imo was the turning point of the game.

of course imo the negative was ian. he was back to the old ian tonite. no jumps, stupid dribbles under the basket. getting the ball knocked out of his hands. one step forward, one step back.

izik has definitely become a team leader though.

a good win for the billikens!

btw, i thought the band was exceptional tonite. great job band! you need to find a couple more that your l.s. can sing. vehicle sounds great though!

[billiken_roy]

the charge they called on reggie in the first half was horrible as well. very inconsistent reffing again. either call it close or let them fight. one way or the other.

[billiken_roy]

david, i too have been watching danny brown closer. i take back my comments from a few weeks ago when i questioned your comments about his athleticism. he is very athletic and gaining confidence every game. he is a player that should probably be starting. imo, he will supplant newborne before year end.

[billiken_roy]

the so miss game was ians game. imo he was not good tonite.

[Billikan]

Wow! Our young trio of Polk, IV and Brown played a fantastic game tonight. Polk, in particular, seemed to have a breakout game. His defense was excellent-he moved his feet as well as I have ever seen him- and he hit some huge shots on offense. He was careful with the ball but he pressed the action. Very impressive!

On the inside Ian played great. He was again battered and pushed but he held his ground and played very "big" in the middle. He is hustling and really gives it his all. As I have said since he arrived, I think he has the potential to be one of the best centers we have seen in 20 years. If you just count the way he has played in the last 3 games he is already in the top half in terms of playing like a true center.

Danny Brown had a defensive game for the ages. He was quick, tough and athletic in every defensive sequence. He never seems to tire and he gives his man fits. I remember that Shopshire has caused us a lot of trouble in the past but Danny really put the clamps on him. The block on his three point attempt after he had used a hard screen to get open was a thing of beauty.

I thought the second half of this game the Bills played one of the best defensive halves of basketball that I have ever seen. This was no cupcake. They are a high quality offensive team that has some quality wins, including a win over Texas Tech who routed Missouri at home. We held them to less than 20 points in the half until they hit about a 35 foot three pointer.

It is truly a shame that we did not play like this early in the season but in many ways it is understandable. The trio of stars in tonights game are two freshmen and a sophomore. It takes time for them to mature and for the coach to figure out the best rotation. Considering that some posters were thinking that we would never win another game just three weeks ago this turnaround is remarkable.

I am not so naive to believe that we are completely over the hump but this was a very impressive win over a good team.

[Billikan]

I have no idea why you have it in for Ian but when I read your post I thought we must have attended a different game. My son who played college ball leaned over to me tonight and said how impressed he was with Ian's hustle and his ability to do the little things that help a team win--like clog the middle on defense, rebound in traffic and continue to try to present himself in the low post which helps the outside guys.

Was he perfect? No--but he is still a young sophomore. However he is a true center who comes to play and he understands the game. He has a lot to learn and he will get better. But your never ending criticism of him is irritating to say the least. It's like when you said he was worthless earlier in year and I jumped on you. Give this kid a break. He has the potential to be a star in the future if he is given time to develop.

[tdog]

We are seeing yet another Brad Soderberg team improving over the course of the season. It seems that every year, his teams step up to the challenge of conference play. No one will be looking forward to playing the Billikens from here on out.

And I can't resist....if the Bills beat TCU, and TCU beat Texas Tech, then.......???????

[davidnark]

Ian had a few bad shots, but otherwise he played very well. His rebounding and defense was very good. Had TCU not played a pack zone for much of the game, he would have certainly had more offensive opportunities. I was impressed by his wonderful catch and finish on a bad pass by Izik late in the game. I thought he was a big key to this win.

A Shaq clone is certainly not going to be knocking on West Pine's door anytime soon, so Ian is a pretty good option for SLU at the center position right now.

[billiken_roy]

i just want him to jump higher than me. not bring the ball down. be able to get the ball to the back board in traffic. and block his man out for rebounds. besides that i thought he played fine.

you people have much lower standards than me i guess. while i agree he is the best we got, right now i bet he wouldnt play for mckendree college.

[slufanskip]

I didn't see the game ... but I have been calling for patience with both Ian and Bryce all year. I don't know how you can call 9 boards a horrible game. Yes Ian needs to continue to work on his offense but he is playing better defense and is one of the best rebounders we have had in a while and the stats over the last 6 or 7 games show that.

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[davidnark]

He rebounded, hustled, screened out, defended, and controlled the ball about as good as any center we have had in recent memory. He has done this just about every game since Tom was shelfed for the year. You must be watching a different player than the rest of us.

[billiken_roy]

i agree. we are obviously watching different games. he was very effective vs southern miss and their 5 guard offense. but last night, when faced with someone that could actually look in his eyes and weighed as much as him, it was a totally different story. he had at least 6 opportunities that he couldnt get a shot off form point blank range because he either brought the ball to the floor or wasnt strong enough to get the ball to the backboard while being closely guarded. granted he was being hacked, but a good college center (that is what you all are telling me, ian is playing good) gets that shot to the basket and at least half the time makes it and probably half of those are dunks.

his two shots from away from the basket were downright embarrassing, and in the first half alone he failed to help on drives to the basket that had gotten by either reggie or drejaj 4 times. he did garner 9 rebounds, which imo were mostly by default.

i agree he is the best option we have at center. however to label him as better than last year's version of frericks, or kenny brown, or even heinrich, is not reasonable. (which btw, my standards are that the performance level of heinrich, brown or frericks, none of three are acceptable if the billikens ever want to be a top 25 program) i believe ian has potential and can grow into the position. he might end up truly being the best billiken center ever. but for now, i will refrain from using "great" or even "good" when describing our center.

imo, we would be much more effective using johnson and izik as our primary inside players. and when we play teams with better inside players, i will be shocked if we dont assuming we are still in the thick of the conference race. but for now, i chalk up ian's minutes as an investment in the future. hopefully all the beatings he takes this season with the increased time will inspire him to finally devote himself to fitness and strength. maybe he can go visit jaspar johnson and find out what he did to make a noticeable difference.

[tseugnekillib]

broy, we all know that you are an emotional poster and take you are capable of takings some wild shots immediately after a game. However, to post that IV couldn't even start for McKendree is plan silly.

Last night, Coach Soderberg played Ian 36 minutes. If a SLU player is getting 36 minutes a game from Soderberg, that player is doing something right!

[SLUMS81]

I think part of the problem with our bigs scoring inside is that we have had no significant outside scoring all year. Opposing defenses can collapse on us in the middle just like we tried to do against Cincy.

In the Southern Miss game, we had an outside scoring presence and that freed-up Ian to score and rebound.

[Billikan]

This post proves with certainty your incredible bias against Ian. what you say is ridiculous.

Please note:

1. This team did not start playing competitively--with any good teams--until Ian became a starter and Tom was out.

2. Directly contrary to your statements, the opposing center last night was 6'9" tall, very strong and very athletic. He had ZERO points and only 6 rebounds.

3. Ian understands the game now better than Heinrich ever did. Heinrich was a joke as a sophomore--a big guy who could stumble on a moments notice and could not make a layup. One of the key plays in the game last night was the clever left handed layup that Ian made in traffic when the game was on the line. Kenny Brown or Heinrich could never have made that shot or move in their entire Billiken careers.

4. Ian clogs the lane and makes it difficult to make the entry pass--and he does it without fouling--a skill that Heinrich never learned.

5. He gets absolutely no help from the refs as he is pushed, shoved and hammered when he shoots the ball inside and yet he stays with it and does not complain or pout.

6. He has developed a very nice relationship with IO that has allowed IO to play better because he is now at the 4--his natural position.

7. No one would be in any way optimisitc that we would win any more games if it had not been for Ian's play.

8. He is rebounding very well in traffic and he is the first center in recent memory that actually rebounds out of his immediate area. Last night he had 2 rebounds wher the ball was a considerable distance away and he moved and got the ball.

9. Of course, he needs to get stronger. Of course, we want him to take the hit and make those shots inside. Of course he needs stronger hands and a more lean body. But just because he needs to improve in some areas does not mean that he is not "good" in your ridiculous assessment. He has played against some very good teams and held his own and helped the team be competitive and win some. He deserves a lot of credit--not the garbage that you are throwing his way. I understand that you have kids that play and you are a coach. I coached for 25 years and I sure hope you do not have this type of attitude when you coach young kids who need to improve. If you can't see what the players are doing well and be positive in your comments, even if they have flaws, then you are in the wrong position. I'll say it again--you have a bias against Ian that does not allow you to be objective. Give the kid a break.

[billiken_roy]

again, i am not saying he will never be good. i am saying he is not good now. if all of you consider what ian is now as good enough, then you should all not be upset we are 5-12 either. i personally am not happy to settle for that. i understand it is all we got, but that doesnt give me any reason to consider what is on the floor as "great" or even "good".