Rick Majerus and his Saint Louis University Billikens are sending a loud message to the Atlantic 10 Conference and the world of NCAA Men’s Basketball: hear us roar. The squad has won five straight conference matches to advance to 17-8, 8-3 in A-10 play, bolstering their hopes for a bid to the NCAA Tournament.
On Wed. Feb. 17, SLU took down a struggling Rhode Island 62-57 in front of 7,257 raucous fans. The victory comes on the heels of a dramatic and emotional 68-65 double-overtime downing of the Dayton Fliers on Sat., Feb. 13, at Chaifetz Arena, where they are 14-1 this season. The Billikens are on their longest winning streak since 2002-03, when SLU took eight in a row.
“I don’t think we want to cultivate [coming from behind] as an ability … it was a nice win,” Majerus said. “The guys showed the heart of a race horse tonight. I want them to celebrate the moment. I want them to enjoy this win.”
It’s been an impressive winning streak for the young Billikens. In the last four contests, SLU has had to resurge from double-digit deficits to claim a win. But with the wins, the Bills are entrenched in a struggle for A-10 Conference dominance; five teams are vying for the top spot with only 1.5 points separating #1 seed, and ranked, Richmond from #5 SLU.
Against the Rhode Island Rams, Kwamain Mitchell led SLU with 13 points, while Kyle Cassity popped in 11 points, and Christian Salecich and Willie Reed each collected 10 points. Mitchell scored 11 of his 13 in the second half; he also took a team high 11 free throws.
The game started well for SLU before Akeem Richmond knocked in three straight three pointers to put the Rams up by as much as 12 in the first half. With just over four minutes left in the half, Rhode Island led 19-30. SLU, led by Justin Jordan, hit six free throws and shut down URI to cut the Rams lead to six at the half. Surprisingly, the Billikens outshot Rhode Island 45 percent to 34.3 percent; but the Rams hit five threes to keep the lead.
The Rams put up five to start the second half before the Billikens roared to life. Cody Ellis hit a three with 11:13 to go, to put SLU up by one 42-41. Both teams would tussle for the lead with neither gaining a solid advantage. The squads tied three times over a four minute period.
“I feel like our defense is especially what helped us win the game,” Cassity said. “A big play I remember is when Ellis hit the three from the corner to put us up one. That put everyone back into it, the team, and the fans. That’s probably the biggest play of the game.”
The game was briefly interrupted when a fan tossed an empty cup onto the court. The Billikens were warned that, should an object find its way onto the court again, they would receive a technical foul. The incident led to an awkward announcement over the public address system by Majerus, who threatened to forfeit the game in the case of another interruption. After the game, the head coach said he was simply concerned with fan safety.
Down 51-49 with 6:12 to play, SLU used an 11-0 run to seal the victory. The Billiken defense held the Rams to just six points over six minutes in the back half of the second half. Richmond hit a three with 16 seconds left to play to bring the Rams within five but URI lacked the time to make a run on the Bills. SLU shot 52.4 percent from the floor (22 for 42), with Cassity going five for six from the field.
The Billikens continue to show tremendous growth on the court. The team, which is now 8-3 since Ellis joined the team, has exceeded expectations of every standard. Majerus has been emphatic in his praise for Mitchell’s offense and, in particular, the rebirth of Cassity. No. 23 has increasingly found success off the dribble against his defender and leads SLU in minutes on the court.
“Kyle is playing like the player I thought he could be when I recruited him,” Majerus said. “He’s really cerebral. He sees the game; he’d be a phenomenal coach. He is very, very astute. He understands time, score, and spatial relationships, and he understands the other players.”
The Billikens hope to continue the growing and winning on Saturday when they travel to Massachusetts. They return home next Wed., Feb. 24, for the “Billiken White Out” against Xavier University. Both games will help determine whether SLU will be in contention for a NCAA or NIT bid.
