Brian TedderThe Massachusetts men’s basketball team couldn’t schedule two consecutive opponents more contrasting than Thursday’s matchup against Duquesne and the upcoming road tilt against Saint Louis tomorrow afternoon.
The speed, tempo, offensive and defensive schemes (and just about everything else) will be the complete opposite of what it was Thursday – the Minutemen just hope the result stays the same.
UMass (14-6, 3-3 Atlantic 10) recorded a much-needed victory over the Dukes in Pittsburgh, Pa., Thursday night, 94-80, stopping a two-game conference losing streak and improving its postseason credentials. A loss against the struggling Billikens (11-9, 2-4 A-10) would set the Minutemen back, essentially negating the key win over Duquesne.
“It was big,” said UMass forward Tony Gaffney after the victory. “We were coming off two losses and saw this as a must-win game. We were not leaving here without a win. As a team we did a lot of soul-searching. If we play as well as we can, we’re one of the best teams in this league.”
The Dukes play a similar style of offense as the Minutemen, constantly pushing the ball up the court and trying to run the other team out of the gym. Saint Louis will walk the ball up the court in an attempt to severely slow the game down – preferring to limit possessions and win games with its defense. How UMass handles the seismic shift in opponent strategy will likely be the determining factor.
The Billikens have played well at home this season, winning eight of their 11 games at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Mo. SLU is led by legendary coach Rick Majerus, who is in his first year with the program. In his 17 years as a head coach, he has not suffered one losing season.
Saint Louis has received considerable attention for the first time in years, but for the wrong reasons. They infamously lost to conference foe George Washington Jan. 10, scoring an Division I record-low for points in a game since the shot clock was instituted in college basketball for the 1985-86 season.
The Billikens shot 14.6 percent from the field (7-of-48), hit one of their 19 shots from the perimeter and scored seven points in the first half. SLU has scored 40 or fewer points in a game four times this season. It scored 39 in a loss to Boston College, a team the Minutemen defeated earlier in the season.
Saint Louis’ play has improved lately, as it beat La Salle, a good Rhode Island team and came close to both Temple and Dayton – losing to each team in overtime. But the Billikens stumbled again in their last game, losing to Dayton for the second time, scoring just 36 points in the process.
But most of the attention for SLU has been off the court – focused on coach Majerus for his off-the-court views.
On the court, the Billikens are a tough team to figure out. They lead the 14 teams in the Atlantic 10 in scoring defense (59 points allowed per game), but rank last in steals (3.7 per game), blocked shots (2.5 per game) and rank eighth in opponents field goal percentage (42.4).
Offensively they average a conference-low 57.6 points per game; almost five full points fewer than Charlotte, which ranks in 13th. Their 29.3 rebounds per game also rank last in the conference, but the points scored and rebound totals are a bit skewed because possessions are at a premium when SLU plays.
Saint Louis features a rather small lineup, playing mostly three guards. It has justone center listed on the roster, Bryce Husak, but he doesn’t start and averages under 20 minutes per game.
SLU has two players averaging over double figures, junior guards Tommie Liddell III (11.9) and Kevin Lisch (13.4). The third guard in the regular starting lineup, Dwayne Polk, averages just 2.4 points per game and is shooting 29.1 percent from the field and 19.2 from the perimeter.
Eli Rosenswaike can be reached at [email protected].
