SLU vs. La Salle
The Billikens take on the La Salle Explorers in the first round of the Atlantic 10 Men’s Basketball Tournament this weekend in Atlantic City. LaSalle holds the 7-seed in the A-10 tournament and beat 10-seed Richmond on Tuesday night, 80-72, to earn a trip to New Jersey. The game will be televised on CBS Sports Network at 5:30 p.m. central time.
First Meeting: Saint Louis University won the teams’ only meeting this year, 59-51 in Philadelphia on Feb. 11.
Why SLU will win
SLU won the only regular season matchup between these two teams and did it on LaSalle’s home court. Not only did SLU win the game, but they won just about every significant statistical category (rebounds, points in the paint, turnovers, steals, second chance points, bench points). That’s just a sign of a better team. Four different Billikens scored in double digits that day, led by Dwayne Evans’ 16 points and 13 rebounds (both were team highs). It’s fair to say the Billikens won four the five matchups on the court that day.
Why La Salle will win
The Explorers are one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the country, shooting 40.4 percent (No. 7 nationally). Ramon Galloway and Sam Mills both shoot better than 40 percent from downtown, and if either of them gets hot, it could be a long night for the Billikens. Earl Pettis is the points leader for La Salle, averaging 15.2 per game. But SLU kept all three of them under 10 points in their regular season matchup. The most trouble came from Jerrell Wright, the 6-foot-8 freshman who put up 18 against the Bills that afternoon. Another big night for Wright could spell trouble for SLU.
Key Factor: Perimeter Defense
SLU must hold La Salle’s 3-point shooting to a minimum, just as they did in last month’s matchup. The Explorers have too many weapons from beyond the arc (four different players shooting 40 percent or better) to let them loose. The good news is that this has been one of SLU’s strengths all season. Kwamain Mitchell, Mike McCall and Jordair Jett have proven their ability to lock down the perimeter and will need to continue that on Friday.
Key Matchup: Rob Loe vs. Jerrell Wright
Wright went off for one of his best nights of the season last month against SLU, leading his team with 18 points and nine rebounds. For a team with such a strong outside game, letting Wright get going on the post is a dangerous proposition for the Bills. Loe must contain the big man and will likely need help from Cory Remekun off the bench. Winning this matchup could be huge for the Billikens.
What it means
For SLU, a win would push their NCAA Tournament likelihood from 80 percent to 95 percent. A 25-win record would be the best in two decades for Saint Louis University, and good enough to call ourselves a “lock” for the tournament. With a win, SLU would advance to the A-10 semi-finals to take on the winner of 3-seed Xavier and 6-seed Dayton. A loss would hurt SLU’s tournament chances, and make Selection Sunday a very stressful day for Billikens fans. It would certainly not kill tournament hopes, but would almost undoubtedly make SLU a double-digit seed.
