In a season filled with ups and downs, the Saint Louis University Billikens have at least done one thing consistently: They always give the country’s top teams a run for their money.
Tuesday night was no different as the Billikens pressured the Cincinnati Bearcats until the game’s final moments when the Bearcats pulled away for a 67-53 victory at the Shoemaker Center.
The Billikens, 11-14 overall and 5-7 in Conference USA, stifled the Bearcats’ potent offensive attack in the first half. But Cincinnati, never to be outdone, completely shut down the Billikens’ offensive weapons and led 31-21 at the half.
A rejuvenated SLU squad took the court in the second half, however. The Billikens took over quickly to score the first eight points of the half and cut the Bearcats, lead to 31-29. The Billikens’ Marque Perry, who was forced to sit out most of the first half due to foul trouble, ignited a fire under his teammates, scoring his first of a team-high 15 points during the run.
Cincinnati adjusted to the Billikens’ second half intensity as they went on a 14-4 run of their own with just six minutes remaining in the contest. Jason Maxiell was responsible for six of the 14 Cincinnati points. Bearcat guard Steve Logan converted a pivotal three-point-play during the run, which put the Bearcats up 52-39.
Their lead would continue, as the Billikens’ offense couldn’t get into any sort of rhythm. The Bearcats’ man-to-man defense proved to be too much for the young Billiken players as Steve Logan and friends forced the Bills to choke up 23 turnovers. This carelessness with the ball didn’t please SLU coach Lorenzo Romar,
“Cincinnati may be the best defensive team in the country. They did a good job pressuring us tonight,” Romar said. “You can’t play against a first-place team on the road and have 23 turnovers. We’d have had to shoot 60 percent from the field to overcome that.”
One positive note that came from Tuesday night’s loss came in the most-unsuspecting department. The Billikens outrebounded the Bearcats 30-26.
Rebounding had been the Billikens’ Achilles’ Heel all season, but SLU, led by Kenny Brown’s seven, dominated the boards against the high powered Bearcats.
Few rebounds came off of Logan’s shots, however. The senior sensation posted a game high 21-points as the Bearcats handed the Bills their 11-straight loss at the Shoemaker Center.
The bright-eyed Billikens were hoping to put together the same effort they showed in their Jan. 22 contest at the Savvis Center where the Perry-less Billikens nearly pulled off an upset of the Bearcats.
Even with Perry the Bearcats proved too difficult for SLU.
Tuesday’s loss snapped an important two-game winning streak for the Billikens. After defeating Louisville on Feb. 5, the Billikens returned home to the friendly confines of the Savvis Center on Saturday. The Bills thwarted the Charlotte 49ers 73-54 in a solid SLU performance on their home court.
The backcourt tandem of Perry and junior Drew Diener punished Charlotte all game long. Diener posted a career and game-high 22 points as Perry followed with 18 of his own.
After a slow start, the Bills started to feel their rhythm as Perry scored SLU’s first seven points. Diener the took over, making 6-of-7 shots and 5-of-6 three pointers.
Diener posted 17 first-half points as the Bills shot 58 percent from the field as they enjoyed a 35-25 lead. No matter how impressive the offense was, it was the defense that Romar credits for the victory.
“We’ve worked hard over the last few weeks to improve defensively, and that was our best defensive effort of the season,” Romar said. “Any time that you can hold an explosive team like Charlotte to 54 points, that’s a pretty good effort.”
Charlotte’s frustration was evident in head coach Bobby Lutz. He was ousted with 19:44 remaining in the second half.
According to crew chief John Higgins in a written statement to SLU’s sports information director, Lutz was given a warning in the first half and umpire Tom Maurer gave him two consecutive technical fouls. The first was for “questioning a no-call on a travel,” according to Higgins.
The second was given when Lutz told Tom Maumner “he would never work for me or Conference USA again,” according to Higgins.
The Billikens will return once again to the Savvis Center to face Georgia Tech this Saturday, Feb. 16 at noon. The game against the Yellow Jackets, which is the team’s final nonconference game, begins the Billikens’ final home stretch.
