SLU_Nick Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 The thing was pulled off very well, and you could tell the players really appreciated the fan support. I think CL said there were over 900 people there. Definitely a good thing. Blue Crew was awesome. The intersquad scrimmage was intense for about 5 minutes and KL carried his team. Kid can shoot. TL and KL should both start the first game (even though they wont). BS told them to not play defense for the last 15 minutes, so it was just a dunkfest. I am not going to comment further on how anyone looked cause it was a joke for most of it. We were running though during the intense part of it. IV was making it up and down the court too. I will leave the rest of the analyzing to the others but I must say....after watching the team tonight, I have never been more optimistic about this season. I think others will post the same Nick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SLU_Nick Posted October 15, 2005 Author Share Posted October 15, 2005 bump Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guest Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 nm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thetorch Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 West Pine about half full, Good turnout especially from the students. More than I expected, definetly more than come to games. Excellent job Blue Crew. There can't be much analysis because the scrimmage was just a dunk contest for the majority of the time. The women played serious, seriously bad. They are in for another long year but Shimmy seems like a coach and motivator. Hopefully she can get this program turned around. Of course maybe I think too much of womens bball skills. The all pac 10 asst she has played poorly during the scrimmage when she filled in for the injured pg and then couldn't hit the side of a barn in the shootout. No real surprises from the men. Ian looks big and strong and in shape. Some real muscle tone and he has hit the tanning salon too or spent some time on the beach in Greece. He is a dominant presence in the low post and his ball control and passing skills are even better than last year. Looks like he can jump a little bit better too. He wasn't throwing up dipsy doos on his post moves, he was slamming. Polk same old, fast, decent handles, can't shoot. Liddell looked smooth, has good penetration skills and appeared to have a decent raport with Ian. Brown probably led the scrimmage in scoring, he hit shots inside and out. Drejaj same old same old, no outside shot, all penetration and some sloppy ball control. JJ and Vashun didn't really distinguish themselves. JJ can dunk though. Lisch shot well long range and mid range. Had some decent dribble moves. Obi is a big big body. He made a 3 and like to stick on the perimeter. We need Donnie Dobbs to come in a for a few practices and show Obi how to do some body luv. If he stands at the free throw line and backs his ass into ya you have your head under the basket. Husak was okay, hung on Ian and made a jumper. That is about it. I nominate the MC for tonight to take over for Guy Phillips. I guess he is in the blue crew, he did a good job. Oh if ya thought the dance team was big last year, you ain't seen nothin yet. Ladies I do like sort of that Romanesque figure on a female but ur on the dance team, lay off the cookies and ice cream during the season. They look good though, just ya know do a few situps or something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlumniFan Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 I was actually expecting more people there. The crowd was pretty into the whole thing, but I thought that after the soccer game was over the place would be 2/3rds full instead of one third. It was an entertaining event and if the team wins this year, I would expect next year's Billiken Madness to be a full house. Billikens.com received the biggest thank you of all from the Blue Crew Prez. That was pretty cool. As to the players, as I have often stated, I am not a basketball expert, but I will say that physically speaking, the team is full of athletic kids. In the old days we MAYBE had one guy who could dunk; now we have maybe one guy who can't. The dunk contest was a little embarrassing though because Polk, Liddell and JJ were trying to get too tricky and missed 85% of their dunks. The things that impressed me the most were Lisch's shooting, Liddell's ability to slash, and Ian's overall presence. Ian had a very confident look to him. I do not know how he will do against A-10 centers/forwards, but Husak is no match for Ian at all. By the way, there is no way Husak is 7'0 tall. Seriously, the kid has to be at least 7'2" or more. He is just freakin' huge. He walked by me coming off the court and it was like a joke the way he had to bend down and squeeze through the door. If he continues to improve - and he has definitely improved, he could be pretty decent in the future (how does this kid fit in ANY regular size car???). Obi does not look ready to play. The whole knee thing scares the hell out of me. I could see a redshirt happening, but that is just a casual observation. I am sure he is extremely talented, but he was definitely moving at about 70% speed if that much. The biggest surprise (I am interested in what board veterans have to say) was Danny Brown. The kid looks like he aged 10 years since last Spring and I mean that in a good way - he always looked so young and nervous before. He really has some hops and is much more athletic around the basket than I remember. Polk has more energy than just about anyone. He will be a team leader along with Drejaj. The team seemed really pumped up about the whole event. I think that anyone who attended this evening will be much more likely to come to a game now. Great job Blue Crew. You guys are really moving in the right direction. Keep up the good work!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crymdg2 Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 After watching the scrimmage I am pleading to you Brad, please go with Polk, Tommie, and Kevin at the guards. All three including Danny Brown were running every time and looked really in sync out there. Tommie looked really smooth, almost T-Mac like when it comes to seeming like he isn't trying. Danny Brown looked very comfortable out there he hit some nice shots. Did anyone else see after Justin Johnson drove baseline towards the end and ended it with an emphatic dunk? Only time I saw Soderberg clap during the scrimmage. Obviously Soderberg (and all of us) are praying that he brings that same intensity all the time. Ian was really calling for the ball and had some very nice moves and some nice dunks. He looks in good shape, has really changed his body from last year. Obi needs to redshirt I think. Nothing against his playing tonite, he played fine but it just seems like his explosiveness isn't there like he cannot go full speed or something. Finally, Kevin was Kevin there were no surprises there. Hit his first 4 shots I believe with three of them being behind the line. I am really excited about this group, I hope they can gel together and get out and run. If so this could turn into an exciting year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orange Julius Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 Just a few notes from tonight: 1. The women had a 90 minute practice before the Madness began in West Pine, that might have contributed to the look of the ladies. Shimmy is still the Queen of excitment, but give her a year or two to get some players in the house. 2. I talked to several players that SLU is recruiting and they were surprised by the turnout and excited to see the campus excitement. I talked to some ex Bills too and they are excited about the future and glad to see things being such a success. 3. Tonight was just a fun fun fun atmosphere and it was great for everyone involved. This was an excellent way to have a new beginning of sorts with the basketball programs, I just hope we continue to build on it. Practice is early so goodnight er um good morning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Box and Won Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 I had a great time at Billiken Madness, and I hope that the coaches and players liked it too. Good student turnout, especially considering that this is a first-time event. I thought the Blue Crew did a great job of pulling it off - you'd never guess that the whole thing was planned only a few short weeks ago! IV, aka "Big Sleepy," looked great - just like he does whenever he knows he's matched up against lesser competition. I think it's pretty clear that Lisch and Liddell will quickly become fan favorites. I think I saw Lisch's sister in the crowd, so I guess he probably had a lot of his family there. He looked great in the three-point contest, and Liddell was super-smooth. D. Brown was explosive and a lot of fun to watch. The kid who was the MC was excellent - lots of energy, funny, etc. He's a lot better than any of the people who've MCed the in-game promotions in recent years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billiken_roy Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 first and most deservedly, no one can thank or respect the job that the blue crew did last night enough. as brad said at the beginning of the night, last night was nothing until about 3 weeks ago. with that thought in mind, the night went extremely well. fantastic job. specific rambling thoughts: as stated by a few others, the kid that served as mc was very good. he kept the excitement running, he kept the night moving and just did a fantastic job. i too would endorse him for guy phillips job in a second. the cadence of the whole night was perfect. they went from one event to the other seemlessly. that only makes the "3 week" time frame all the more amazing. as to basketball: there is no doubt that this team has three standouts. liddell, lisch and vouyoukas. yeah, i said it. ian has apparently finally got it. this year even i notice the difference. he has obviously gotten into shape. he is more aggressive. he is stronger. he is the man in the middle. he will be the best center the billikens have ever had. i hope he continues to build on what is obviously the best summer of his life OFF THE COURT. he had one basket in the scrimmage where he got the ball about 5 feet from the basket and whirled and just slammed home a thunderous hooklike dunk. and the most impressive part of his night, he trailed on a number of polk and liddell's many fast breaks to clean up the mess and finish. that kind of hustle was never seen from ian before. to me was the most exciting part of the night, ian vouyoukas. as my son noted above, lisch was lisch. for those of you that have never seen him, that was pretty much what i have seen from kevin forever. he is just 100% all night, fearless, and a difference maker. keep in mind, lisch had husak, newborne, drejaj and obi and jacks as his teamates. i.e. the other team was stacked. guess which team won? it wasnt liddell and company. tommie liddell showed enough highlights to rev the crowd. he showed he indeed is the most talented player to grace saint louis university since the legend. his windmill dunk in the dunk contest was mcgradylike. and he had enough alley opp finishes in the scrimmage to bring back douglas memories. he and polk got out on the break a lot and just toyed with the defenders. however, he needs to turn that up all the time. too many times he disappeared. if he wants to be front and center, than do it all the time. one last liddell note, i'm sorry, but i agree with vtime. i'd give the keys to liddell as well. first off, he showed he does have the ball skills to run the show. second, what better way to get the ball to the best slasher on the team than to give it to him at the other end when the other team is running back on defense, and last, if he has the ball in his hands, he cant disappear. he has to stay focused. polk is fun. the kid is just having fun nonstop. his leaping ability is phenomenol. and that speed just kills. if the team does start running, we can finally see the skill that this kid brings to the table. that said, he shot terrible. i was sitting next to our long time nemisis, naticat and about half way into the scrimmage he asks who danny brown is. for good reason, danny brown was very good last night. as brad has stated on a number of occasions, it appears brown is the best all around athlete on the team and he was driving to the basket at will and filling the lane on the break very well. danny brown played well. justin johnson looked better than he has ever looked. he hustled, he rebounded. he was above the rim a lot. let's keep our fingers crossed. maybe that vast potential is about to be released. newborne shot very well in the three point contest. form was just perfect. and he rebounded for the undermanned white team. he wont be the star, but he can fill the spot for the team. i feel a lot better about our power forward position after last night. obi is huge. however, as stated above, i too would like to see him work a little harder on the inside. someone needs to tell obi that we got plenty of wings that can do the job outside. we need a relentless rebounder and inside defender. at this point, while you can see the bigtime potential, i have to assume that the knee is no where close to being ready. either that, or he wasnt very motivated last night. but we saw glimpses of unbelievable potential. soderberg introduced him as the "the big O" and made a circle over his head with his arms. i cant wait for the crowd to be doing the same. husak looked improved. but we better pray ian stays healthy and out of foul trouble. bryce doesnt appear ready to take over the middle yet. drejaj was introduced by coach soderberg as "the billikens first player coach". while drejaj did not play badly, in fact he made a number of very good drives to the basket and played his normal harrassing defense, anyone that cant see that the likes of lisch, liddell, and brown need to be in the game before him are kidding themselves. assuming we get maximum effort out of our guards, drejaj cant play with those guys imo. it is my belief that anthony's job should be to back up polk. period. that isnt a knock on drejaj. it is a comment on the way coach soderberg has been able to bring in some very talented kids these last two years. luke meyer was there, but apparently still recovering from his injury as he did not even dress. as to the women, i feel sorry for shimmy. she has a roster of guards that apparently cant shoot. that scrimmage was just painful to watch. no one shot well. but shimmy has so much energy. i believe in her. let's give her the support she needs and watch her turn it around in a couple of years. a big key was sitting in the stands watching her big brother play. so we know help is on the way. once again, great job blue crew! let's hope the athletic dept now sees the possibilities and doesnt drop the ball in the future. with some big time dollars behind it, it is easy to see this can really be a special nite. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGoat Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 The dimissal of Krystle Hatton from the team probably does not help matters talent wise either. Although she was a role player, Coach Gray could probably use all the talent she can get right now. I'm sure the fact that she is gone from the team speaks volumes as to what she must have done to put herself in that position. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGoat Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 no paper coverage on the event. I guess our record and play will truly have to determine the amount of press coverage we are to recieve. Sad that such a special and unheard of event in recent years 'round these parts goes unreported. Would have also been cool to get 590 in on the action as they are the "New flagship station for SLU Sports." However, great job to the BlueCrew and all it's organizers as they were behind the eight ball from the beginning and apparently did a phenomenal job! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slu101 Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 The last midnight madness had a few more folks - but there was a lot more to cheer about - after a dismal season last year - I thought the night was fun - and pretty energetic! I took my wife and two kids and met with my brother and his family and had a pretty good time - i think next year can go no where but up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tseugnekillib Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 broy, for your sins of IV denial, your penance is to say three Our Fathers and three Hail Marys. Your sins are now forgiven. Go in peace and sin no more! And please broy, if you see that stubborn BAUMAN out on the playground tell him he needs to get in here! (roy, I find it interesting to watch how the body of a 17yr old 6-11 / 270 pound "kid" matures over just two years. Picture a 26-27 year old IV. I can only assume he will be playing for Euros or US$s down the road.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schasz Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 is that Coach Soderberg was right on when he said that he would be one of the best big men in the history of SLU. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slufanskip Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 I really like the way Ian passes the ball. He seems to have a very good sense of the court and what is happening around him. He kicks the ball out to the open man well. He had an awesome no look bounce pass to DB slashing to the basket. The good thing for Ian will be that if our perimiter guys can knock down the 3 ... opponnents will have to be very careful when they double Ian. Official Billikens.com sponsor of H. Waldman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alameda bob Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 who won the shootout between the coaches? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluecrewprez Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 Soderberg & Grunk - I think the score was like 25 to 14? Thanks again to everyone who came and supported us! It was a great time and a big success--especially when you take into account the fact that we only started planning 3 weeks ago...Imagine what next year is going to be like when we start planning in JUNE! Both the guys and girls were so excited and pumped people came and they really really enjoyed getting to show-off a bit (if you don't count the missed dunks). As I said in a different post, billikens.com got the biggest thank you because you deserved the biggest thank you. I truly appreciate everything you guys did to help us out. Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billiken_roy Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 any psuedo promises from the athletic dept that next year they get more involved financially to help? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluecrewprez Posted October 15, 2005 Share Posted October 15, 2005 Yes. Since the beginning they have told us they will be doing more financially with the event and with planning it as well...but I will make sure that I still have final say over everything, since it is a Blue Crew event first and foremost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BleacherBum593 Posted October 16, 2005 Share Posted October 16, 2005 Sounds like a great night of fun for all that attended. Hopefully, you can build on this one and make next years event even bigger. bluecrewprez - were you able to cover all your expenses? If not, let us know. I'm sure we can ante up some more. Now that you've done a remarkable job in year 1, any ideal's on how to improve it for next year? If you can give us an ideal on how much money you'll need, maybe we can hold a few functions during the year to help raise the funds that you need for Billiken Madness II. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BleacherBum593 Posted October 16, 2005 Share Posted October 16, 2005 BRoy - Welcome over to Skip's side. Maybe he'll share his PastaHouse Bread Sticks with you this year Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BleacherBum593 Posted October 16, 2005 Share Posted October 16, 2005 Hopefully the 3's will go down this year. If it does, that'll open the middle for the big guy and he won't be facing the double-triple teams as the opposition collapse's in on him. What I want to see this year from the big guy is the quick outlet pass on D rebounds. That could be the key for the whole year. Run and gun with Tommie, Dwayne & Kevin. Skip - It's going to be an exciting year at our end of the court! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slufanskip Posted October 16, 2005 Share Posted October 16, 2005 Regardless of how much we run the majority of points will come out of a half court set. What I saw out of Ian was the fact that helooked to move the ball quickly ... something that rarely happenned last year. Just the fact that defenses will know that if they collapse he will find the open man will help. Of course if we can't knock down the shots, they will collapse on him regardless. I also liked the way we cut to the basket off feeds to him. Again something that rarely happenned last year. Official Billikens.com sponsor of H. Waldman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheltiedave Posted October 16, 2005 Share Posted October 16, 2005 All in all, it was a good event. As far as press coverage, 550AM just had Brad on at about 11:25 as we were driving to church. I would have listened to the conversation, but wife was talking about lip gloss and makeup, so I had to choose between listening to the important stuff and ask her to be quiet for a minute, or be a good husband and turn off the radio. All I can say is I wonder what Brad had to say... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slufanskip Posted October 16, 2005 Share Posted October 16, 2005 bad decision Official Billikens.com sponsor of H. Waldman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.