Dec. 2, 2007

THIS WEEK: The Saint Louis men's basketball team (6-3) travels to Boston College on Tuesday, Dec. 4, for a 6 p.m. (CT) tip. The Billikens begin a four-game homestand when they welcome Sam Houston State on Saturday, Dec. 8, for a 7 p.m. game at Scottrade Center.

LAST WEEK: The Billikens edged Long Beach State 52-48 on Saturday afternoon. Luke Meyer hit two free throws with 1.6 seconds left to seal the victory. Last Wednesday, Kent State shot a blazing 72.7 percent in the first half en route to an 81-40 win over the Bills.

ABOUT BOSTON COLLEGE: The Eagles are 5-1, including a 76-72 win over Atlantic 10 member Rhode Island, but are coming off an overtime loss to Providence on Saturday. Tyrese Rice is pouring in 23.4 ppg and has handed out 34 assists in just five games. Shamari Spears averages a double-double at 14.4 ppg and 11.0 rpg. Through six games, the Eagles are averaging 75.0 ppg while giving up 68.2 ppg. The Eagles are shooting 44.0 percent from the field, 34.2 percent from 3-point range and 65.8 percent from the line. Head coach Al Skinner is 201-121 at BC, 339-247 overall.

THE BOSTON COLLEGE SERIES: This will be the first meeting between the schools.

HOMECOMING: The Boston College game will be a homecoming for assistant coach Paul Biancardi. He is a Boston native who attended Pope John XXIII High School and Salem State College. Biancardi was an assistant coach at BC from 1990 to 1997.

ABOUT SAM HOUSTON STATE: The Bearkats have roared out to a 6-0 start, including a win over Texas Tech. SHSU plays Texas Lutheran on Tuesday evening. Shamir McDaniel leads the Bearkats in scoring at 12.5 ppg, and Ryan Bright averages a double-double at 12.3 ppg and 12.2 rpg. The Bearkats are averaging 76.3 ppg and allowing only 56.3 ppg this season. SHSU shoots 46.6 percent from the field, 33.3 percent from beyond the arc and 67.2 percent from the line. Head coach Bob Marlin is 164-103 in nine years at SHSU, 287-138 in 14 seasons overall.

THE SAM HOUSTON STATE SERIES: The Billikens won the only previous meeting 65-48 on Dec. 18, 1995.

HEAD COACH Rick Majerus: Rick Majerus was introduced as the 24th coach of the Billiken men's basketball program on April 30, 2007. He has a 21-year career mark of 428-150 and has never had a losing season. Majerus has taken 11 teams to the NCAA Tournament and four to the NIT. Entering the 2007-08 season, his .742 career winning percentage ranks seventh among active Division I coaches.

ON THE AIRWAVES: Billiken basketball can be heard on 590 AM The Fan and 100.7 FM. Bob Ramsey returns for his 22nd season as the voice of the Billikens. Earl Austin, Jr. is in his 17th season as a member of the broadcast team.

TV TIME: The SLU department of athletics announced that 13 Billiken men's games will be available to fans in the St. Louis television market this season. The Billikens are scheduled for six appearances on national television, including three games on CSTV and three on the ESPN family of networks. Locally, CW11/KPLR will air six games, three of which are being produced by CSTV Regional, in the metro St. Louis area. The next game slated for TV broadcast is on Saturday, Dec. 15, when the Billikens host Southern Illinois on ESPNU.

CHAIFETZ ARENA: The new Chaifetz (SHAY-fetz) Arena is slated to open in April 2008. The arena will have a seating capacity of 10,600 and is being built on the SLU campus along Laclede Avenue west of Compton Avenue. It will function as a true multi-purpose campus events center, hosting a myriad of SLU events, including men's and women's basketball, volleyball, commencement, cultural events, conferences and conventions. The arena will house the department of athletics offices as well as a practice facility for the basketball and volleyball teams.

HOME COOKING: The Billikens have won 11 straight home games, the longest stretch since claiming 14 straight at home from Jan. 7, 1995, through Dec. 30, 1995. The last time the Billikens dropped a home game was against Duquesne on Jan. 6, 2007.

SCORING DEFENSE: The Billikens rank second in the Atlantic 10 Conference in scoring defense. SLU is allowing only 59.8 points per game, trailing only Xavier at 59.1 ppg.

HALFTIME ADJUSTMENTS: The Billikens have shot better from the field in the second half than they have in the first half in all nine games this season. While shooting 43.0 percent in the first half, the Billikens are scorching the nets with 54.3 percent shooting in the second half. From 3-point range, SLU is hitting 24.5 percent (12-of-49) in the first half, compared to 44.8 percent (30-of-67) in the second half. Not surprisingly, the Billikens are averaging only 25.1 points in the first 20 minutes of games and are notching 37.4 points after intermission.

SAGARIN RATINGS: In Jeff Sagarin's ratings as of December 2, Saint Louis was #105. The rest of the A-10 was as follows: #10 Xavier, #62 Rhode Island, #67 Dayton, #70 Massachusetts, #77 Saint Joseph's, #82 Duquesne, #97 Temple, #101 George Washington, #116 Charlotte, #150 Fordham, #217 Richmond, #236 La Salle and #262 St. Bonaventure.

PRESEASON AWARDS: In voting by the A-10 coaches and media, Tommie Liddell III and Kevin Lisch were named to the preseason All-Conference second team. In addition, Lisch was selected to the All-Defensive team. The Billikens were picked to finish fifth in the preseason poll.

BROWNIES: Senior guard Danny Brown (Houston, Texas / Alief Elsik) sank a 3-pointer and handed out three assists against Long Beach State ... after missing the first seven games of the season due to a knee injury, he made his first appearance at Kent State and played 19 minutes.

SHOCK THE MONKEY: Senior center Bryce Husak (Mt. Vernon, Iowa / Mt. Vernon) scored six points and grabbed four rebounds against Long Beach State ... finished with three points at Kent State.

JUMPING JACKS: Junior guard Peyton Jacks (Dallas, Texas / Jesuit Prep) had one free throw and a steal in the Kent State game.

THE TACKLE: Sophomore guard Mike Jones (St. Louis, Mo. / Trinity Catholic) made an appearance at Kent State.

GRASSY KNOLL: Sophomore forward Adam Knollmeyer (Linn, Mo. / Linn) hit 2-of-4 shots against Kent State with one offensive rebound.

THREE STICKS: Junior guard Tommie Liddell III (East St. Louis, Ill. / Hargrave Military Acad.) is averaging 10.2 ppg ... scored seven points, had two offensive rebounds and two assists against Long Beach State.

SWISH LISCH: Junior guard Kevin Lisch (Belleville, Ill. / Althoff) leads the team in scoring at 14.3 ppg and in assists with 31 ... got into early foul trouble against Long Beach State and finished with eight points ... had a streak of scoring in double figures end at 20 games when he posted eight points at Kent State.

COOL HAND LUKE: Senior forward Luke Meyer (Washington, Mo. / St. Francis Borgia) tallied eight points, including the game-clinching free throws with 1.6 seconds left, and led the team with six rebounds against Long Beach State ... scored four points and tied for the team lead with four rebounds at Kent State.

NO SLOW POKE: Senior guard Dwayne Polk (St. Louis, Mo. / Vashon) hit 3-of-4 shots against Long Beach State and finished with seven points, three assists and two steals.

EBB AND FLOW: Junior forward Barry Eberhardt (Inkster, Mich. / Coffeyville C.C.) led the team with nine points and added five rebounds in the Long Beach State game ... finished with four points and four rebounds at Kent State.

WHAT THE ECK?: Freshman guard Paul Eckerle (Washington, Mo. / St. Francis Borgia) scored four points with three assists in the Long Beach State contest ... sank a career-best four field goals en route to eight points at Kent State.

GOOD A.M.: Freshman forward Anthony Mitchell (East St. Louis, Ill. / East St. Louis) had one rebound and one assist at Kent State.

BUILT FORD TOUGH: Freshman forward Marcus Relphorde (Homewood, Ill. / American Christian [Pa.]) scored two points at Kent State.

Printer-friendly format	Email this article