More disheartening than the loss, even more disheartening that the dearth of nachos, was the shortening of the bench. Once leading the country in Bench Minutes — ahead of even vaunted Kentucky and their Two Platoon — we have now slipped to #3 overall.
| School | Bench Minutes | Rank | Experience | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose St | 49.1% | 1 | 1.20 | 309 |
| Southern Utah | 47.5% | 2 | 1.13 | 319 |
| SLU | 45.8% | 3 | 0.98 | 336 |
| Jackson St | 44.9% | 4 | 1.48 | 244 |
| Kentucky | 44.9% | 5 | 0.82 | 345 |
Lineups
Starters:
- Austin McBroom
- Ash Yacoubou
- Davell Roby
- Milik Yarbrough
- John Manning
Minutes Leaders:
- Yacoubou (36)
- McBroom (33)
- Yarbrough (24)
- Roby (23)
- Manning (22)
Yawn. First time this season the Starters (brought to you as always by Starting is for High School(tm)) were also the Minutes Leaders. We do not have a window into the mind of Jim Crews, but these numbers tell us that the Safecracker is tired. Tired of the constant subbing. Tired of the mismatched puzzle pieces. Tired of the mistakes that come with learning.
SLU Player Stats
(Definitions at bottom of post)
- McBroom brings Shooting and Stability. His early threes made it seem for a short while that SLU might hang around long enough to make it interesting.
- Ash brings Toughness. On a day when the bigs were completely overmatched inside he got on the glass at both ends. However, on this day that Toughness spilled over into Frustration as Yacoubou got into it with a few of the Vandy players as the game got out of hand. Perhaps that Frustration contributed to an abysmal day at the foul line (0-5 after coming into the game 71% for the season).
- Yarbrough brings Offense. He is comfortable with the ball more than he is solid with it, and willing to both face up and post. Scratching out 13 points against a very large opponent (Vandy is #17 in Effective Height) shows what he can do. Yarbrough commands a double-team, and surrounding him with Spacing and Shooters is the basis of an effective offense.
- Roby brings Defense. Active hands, quick feet, and a willingness to stick his nose in it are his defining qualities. Until we can count numbers like One-Man Traps, Passes Swatted Into Stands, and Balls Bounced Off Opponent Forcing Turnover, the box scores are not going to give Roby his due.
- Manning brings Length and Positioning. Simply put, of all the bigs he is the one who is most often in the right place at the right time. It is a stretch to call him a Rim Protector, but the Senior’s weakside help and rotations on defense are generally good.
On the offensive end, Manning had a lot of room to maneuver as Vanderbilt quickly recognized much of the SLU offense was going to run through Yarbrough and swung the attention his way. But our Pick and Rolls were all Pick and no Roll, Manning is not a great candidate for Pick and Pop, and we are not swinging the ball fast enough to the weakside to exploit the overloads. All in good time.
Summary
The non-conference season closes — along with 2014 — in a sobering fashion. The Billikens looked rusty and uncertain where the Commodores looked together and imposing. The personalities and strongest qualities of the starters seem to be revealed, but what we don’t know about the Bench remains voluminous. As the conference season begins Saturday vs Rhode Island at Chaifetz, it appears unlikely SLU will be able to take advantage of a relative down year for the Atlantic 10. My hope for 2015 is Enlightened Experimentation in the spirit of the full court press Coach Crews called for late in Wednesday’s game. Invest in Education in 2015 and we will watch it pay off in the years to come.
![A Saint Louis University basketball player jumps for a basket during SLU's game against Wichita. (28 February 1959) [Photo by Boleslaus Lukaszewski, Original number PHO 1.462a.11]](https://i0.wp.com/whatsabilliken.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Saint_Louis_University_Billikens_vs_Wichita_State_University_Shockers.jpg?resize=1038%2C576&ssl=1)
