The View from Row 2 .... (long)

[Taj79]

.... at Tom Gola Arena was pretty good and the atmosphere was typical Philly college stuff. I thought the Drejaj "family" was pretty loud what with us chanting "defense, defense" the whole game. La Salle's kids are pretty tame as far as college basketball fans go. Our group numered maybe 30 to 35 and we were jsut as loud as the home group.

Some roundabout notes .... whoever said Linda Bruno needs to find some decent A10 refs was right on. Look at the three names in the boxscore .... we do NOT want these guys again. EVER> At about the forur minute point of the first half, one ref blows his whistle and calls the third foul on wahtever their center's name was .... #21. Its a non-shooting foul and we go to TV break when Steve Smith, who has no fouls at this point, tells the ref, no, that was my foul. THEY CHANGED IT! A minute later, #21 gets his third foul ... it would have been his fourth. The only reason it mattered was that he was athletic enough to bother Ian a pretty good deal. He has less offesnive range than Pops. The second hack playing the center position, Mike St. John, was out in warmups throwing down slams on the layup drill. He lasted maybe five minutes trying to cover Ian before he fouled out. Later, they called a third foul on Smith. By the time we got to the line, the announcer was changing it to #3. When Liddell picked up his fourth, Brad did his usual pirouette, but then turned in astonishment to Grunk and I could hear him say "when did he get four fouls?" Oh well....

La Salle was a one man team and we were not going to deny Smith his Senior Night. He was pretty damn good. But La Salle is a one man team. Yeah, yeah I know two other guys got double digits but it is all Smith. I can only wonder what La Salle would have had if they had kept Gary Neal on that team. Neal was accused of the rape and left to come back home to Towson with Fat Pat. Either they would have been unbeatable or there wouldn't have been enough ball to share. Who really knows.

In antoher post, broy says that JJ and VN were servicable today. Sitting where I was, JJ, VN and even Luke Meyer did all that they could on Mr. Smith. There was not a drop off in defensive intensity from any of them. Even Ian got him for one series and got a hand in his face but did not stop the ball from going in. What I don't get is how come the hacks on that team can get it in to their interior stud and yet, somehow, we cannot. Its not like Smith has any help.

The problem with sitting in the second row is that you can't get a birds-eye view of what's a top level view. I knew something was going on against us on the offensive end but couldn't see it until you all said a triangle and two with the other three guys zoning Ian. That makes sense .... all the cutting AD adn KL were doing was not freeing them and Ian was smothered .... granted, I thought he fired some up with no finesse or touch .... but he did what he could. But JJ and VN and DP and Luke were sometimes unguarded ... and you have to take and make those shots. Not that they didn't but I thought they could have popped a whole lot more .... I think La Salle thought to make them beat them and there was some hesitancy to shoot that I think is the fear of the quick hook. But they all tried and did well today in my book. Luke is overmatched but I think he'd be hell on wheels if he covered someone his own size.

At one point, nobody could seem to shoot. KL was having a hard time getting open. Same too with Drejaj. That took our only outside threats out of the game. Luke missed his only attempt. DP's two jumpers had horrible spin. I think JJ is fearful to shoot now. Danny Brown was maybe 50/50. VN did very well in my book and maybe should have taken more. But what can you do?

I'm going back to something someone had heartburn with me earlier this week but it is true ... we choked agaisnt Dayton. It was all there for the taking ... we win that one and we finish second based on how the whole week played out. We could write today off to one that didn't matter and it would not be a two game losing streak going into Ohio. I calle dit .. all we had to do was beat a league also-ran in our home den on senior night. No oen person choked, Saint Louis University choked. What we get is what we get as we head into Ohio.

The team left the floor with some down heads. I yelled at Ian, Kevin and Tommie ... called them all by name, got each's attention as they went by. I said the same thing .... it don't mean nothing, forget about it, it all starts in Cincinnati. Ian and Kevin looked at me ... I'd bet both thought I was a kook until they say the Billiken hat. Tommie nodded.

I think they know what they have to do and that there is no real margin for error. I don't know if they can do it but I'll be there and cheer them on. To whomever said this team was a year to a year-and-half ahead of schedule, I think I'll agree. But they can't take it easy. No such thing in Billikenland.

Side notes: I think the entire Drejaj family was there. Ba-da-bing are they loud. I said heloo to Mrs. Drejaj and asked if she was Anthony's sister. Man that always works. Also, Chris Heinrich's mom was there. Chris is using his German dual citizenship to play for money in Italy as a German (rules on so many US players per team). He's doing okay .. he says he's poor, mom says otherwise. She did say that she would have loved to have Chris play for Brad as opposed to Cahrley. At least Brad can coach. Her words, not mine.

[wexpradio]

I was impressed by the crowd turnout. Dayton, Temple, and St Louis were the teams that brought the most fans and it's unusual because Dayton and St. Louis aren't exactly daytrips. Did you all fly or charter a bus? How did you post so fast, do you post from the road?

Props. Mad props.

Anyhow, I being a La Salle fan understand your assessment that without Smith we would be below .500. However, our role players step up at critical times. Sherman Diaz was in his first or second start of the year, and he posted up about 8 of our first 12 pts or so, which provided us the spark we often lack early. Also Lewis #21 (while he did have foul trouble) has become a free throw machine - he used to struggle more so offensively last year) and our soph sniper Darnell Harris - maybe would have scored 15 but you guys catch him on an off night.

[huzzah]

I love this post. Thanks for your insights and including the remarks of Heinrich's mom.

[VTIME]

that initial post was long. Please paraphrase, its all over the place.

[Taj79]

You know me by now Vee .... so don't read it.

Besides, you want to come down on my head, fine. Its your right. If that's the case, though, how about not copying the entire post of whomever you're reading and reposting it before you come up with your one-line answer.

Its an information post ... which I think allows me more room. Opinion posts, like this one, are usually shorter.

[TheGoat]

nm

[Taj79]

.... there was no bus trip but I don't know how we got as many there as we did. I live in Baltimore so the trips to GeeDub, La Salle, St. Joes, Temple and Richmond are all doable. The crowd in the stands that was most loudest was led by the Drejaj family from New Jersey. Tony's mom (she called him Tony not Anthony) said it was about an hour and half for them and a no-brainer. Chris Heinrich's mom, Chris was a freshman with Larry Hughes, still lives in the greater Philly area so she came as well.

La Salle's got a pretty tough locale as far as the campus is concerned. I took my 15-year-old daughter and she took one look at Philly and La Salle's location and said no way. There are even bars on the courtyards leading into dorm and apartment areas. Jeez! Thank god it was daylight or I would have been much more nervous. The rusted out water heater sitting on the curb leading up to Tom Gola Arena pretty much sums it up.

We left there at right after the game and traffic down Broad Street and on the Roosevelt, I-76 adn I-95 was much easier than our approach along the same routes so we go home to just north of Balitmore before 6 pm. It would have been longer but the kid didn't want to stop and eat.

I grew up in NE Penna. As a grade school kid, late 60's, there was a La Salle team that, once the NCAAs were over, came up and scrimmage at my high-school to be. I think tht was a team that was pretty good and might ahve gone pretty far in the NCAAs that year. The star was a black forward with a big Afro ... I thin his name was Billy something. La Salle was once on my list of college to go to but I never explored it much. If the campus I saw yesterday is actually better than in the mid-70s YIKES!!!! Never saw it before yesterday though.

I am guessing the surplus of basketball talent int he Philly area has managed to sustain La Salle as best as possible over the years. But I thought its quaint Tom Gola arena and the fans present were very close to the "old guard" of fans populating the SLU stands.

broy ... that silver-haired female alumni was there with the white-haired escort/husband that we see at tourney games and is the rumored Baby Blues killer. Whats she doing in Philly?

[Taj79]

... will respond.

[Taj79]

.. this morning. Will get back to you later today.

[Box and Won]

Thanks, Taj - good stuff. Jeff Harris was at the game too. Highmark interviewed him at halftime, he said that he and his wife live in Jersey and he works for a division of Enterprise. I think he said he has three kids now.

[bonwich]

...also said that he, Donnie Dobbs, Carlos McCauley and I believe one other ex-Billiken all live very close to each other. Jeff is VP of a subsidiary of Enterprise.

[Taj79]

(nm)

[jjray]

>...also said that he, Donnie Dobbs, Carlos McCauley and I

>believe one other ex-Billiken all live very close to each

>other. Jeff is VP of a subsidiary of Enterprise.

Thanks for passing this info along. I've always been a fan of Jeff's (the heart of a lion). It's good see that life after basketball has been good to him.

[MusicCityBilliken]

Jeff was also one of my favorites. One always knew if he approached life the way he played ball, he'd be a success.

[Box and Won]

I graduated the same year as JH, and he's already a VP? I need to start spending more hours at the office.

[courtside]

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/preps/baske...ame-brawl_x.htm

[TheGoat]

nm

[Taj79]

.... knowing some of the traditions and rivalries that exist within Philadelphia High School ball and its legendary history, coupled with the attitude of today's public, I do not find this surprising. I could see a headline like this coming out of Baltimore, Chicago, DC, Memphis and tons of other places.

I know its stereotypical and probably bad, but that section of Philly looked like a war zone. Driving up the Roosevelt, taking Broad Street north (Broad Street south is home of the notorious Broad Street Bullies of the early 70's and I thought the projects down there used to be bad!), backstreeting it over to La Salle and then parking and walking through row homes with bars on just about every window ... its no wonder folks can't get out when a fire starts. And I don't know where the schools in this article are from but all in all, I don't find it that surprising.

I have to admit that I felt quite comfortable Saturday afternoon with the Drejaj family nearby.

[courtside]

Taj,

It was the Catholic Finals. Neumann was an all boys school and it combined a couple of years ago with the all girls shcool...and is located on 10th street South Philly. Roman, an all boys school is in City Center...on Broad Street.

The Neumann kid hit the game winner at buzzer and sprinted toward the Roman section...who had been taunting him all game with Flava Flav pix and signs saying he resembled the rapper etc...buzzer game, hotly contested, two rivals...fans went on court...led by this player by the other team's section...fans in stands throew stuff as the player taunted them....it escalated...etc...

It easily could happen anywhere else in the other mentioned places.