A quick question for Atlantic 10 basketball fans: What team is the hottest in the conference right now?
You really know your A-10 hoops if you had the answer on your fingertips. It is not Dayton, not Saint Joseph?s and not Xavier, the three teams fighting for the league lead.
The squad with the longest active winning streak is the one that will visit the Ryan Center Saturday for a 2 o?clock contest against URI -- Saint Louis.
The Billikens have quietly won four in a row to get to 6-4 in A-10 play, 15-9 overall. They have done it in what is perfect style for the A-10 this season, an overtime win over Duquesne and a triple-overtime thriller at Richmond sandwiched between more comfortable victories over Fordham and Charlotte.
With a heavily re-worked team under second-year coach Rick Majerus, Saint Louis has become a real factor in the league race, even if many people might not have noticed.
``They?re good. They?re more athletic and more physical than they were last year with the new players they have,?? said URI coach Jim Baron. ``They still have those two seniors, (Tommie) Liddell and (Kevin) Lisch, who are as good as any pair of guards in the league. We know they?re good.??
Since URI comes in pretty hot itself _ it has won five of its last six to get to 17-8, 6-4 in the conference_ it makes for a nice match on Hall of Fame weekend in Kingston. The Rams enshrined five new members of their hall at a dinner Friday night and will honor the five at halftime Saturday.
They are volleyball great Jessinca Salmans, baseball-football star Tony Hill and three former basketball standouts, Phil Kydd, Cuttino Mobley and Dayna Smith. Mobley, recently retired from the NBA, will be making one of his first trips back to school since graduating a decade ago.
They will see a URI team that will be out to equal the most victories the team has had since moving to the Ryan Center seven years ago. The Rams come in 10-1 in their home building. Four previous times, including last year, they won 11 at Ryan Center.
If they are going to get their 11th Saturday, they almost certainly are going to have to do it in a different style game than most of the others. The Rams lead the A-10, and are seventh in the nation, in scoring, at 81.1. Saint Louis will not want to dance that dance with the Rams.
The Billikens hang their hat on patterned offense and stout defense. They come in allowing 59.1 a game, in a virtual tie with Dayton for the A-10 lead and 17th in the nation. URI already knows how Saint Louis plays defense under Majerus. The Rams went to Saint Louis last season, were held to 34 percent shooting from the field, and were beaten, 68-61.
The tenacity of the Billikens has come out during their winning streak. Since dropping a 47-46 decision at Dayton, the Billikens have fallen behind by at least seven points in each of their last four starts. Yet they have rallied to win every one.
Lisch and Liddell have led a team that also includes three freshmen starters, Kwamain Mitchell at the point and forwards Brian Conklin and Willie Reed. Still, the best match of the day figures to be the one pitting two guys who are academic all-stars as well as their team?s leading scorer. Lisch, like URI?s Jimmy Baron, recently has been selected to his all-district team as a CoSIDA/ ESPN the Magazine all-academic choice.
Lisch also has scored more than 1,500 career points. He was an all A-10 defensive team choice last season and is one of the favorites for A-10 defensive player of the year this season. His sister, Theresa, is the leading scorer for the SLU women?s team and also a Dean?s List student.
Their father, Rusty, was a quarterback at Notre Dame. He was beaten out for the starting job for most of his career by a guy named Joe Montana, but was good enough to go on to play five years in the NFL. Kevin Lisch has been a started for Saint Louis his entire career.
``He?s the epitome of an academic All-American,?? Majerus said of Lisch on this week?s A-10 conference call. ``He?s almost too good to be true. . . It?s been a privilege for me to be able to coach him.??
Baron comes in off his season-high 28-point performance Wednesday against St. Bonaventure, so his match with Lisch figures to be a good one, as does the game itself.
You really know your A-10 hoops if you had the answer on your fingertips. It is not Dayton, not Saint Joseph?s and not Xavier, the three teams fighting for the league lead.
The squad with the longest active winning streak is the one that will visit the Ryan Center Saturday for a 2 o?clock contest against URI -- Saint Louis.
The Billikens have quietly won four in a row to get to 6-4 in A-10 play, 15-9 overall. They have done it in what is perfect style for the A-10 this season, an overtime win over Duquesne and a triple-overtime thriller at Richmond sandwiched between more comfortable victories over Fordham and Charlotte.
With a heavily re-worked team under second-year coach Rick Majerus, Saint Louis has become a real factor in the league race, even if many people might not have noticed.
``They?re good. They?re more athletic and more physical than they were last year with the new players they have,?? said URI coach Jim Baron. ``They still have those two seniors, (Tommie) Liddell and (Kevin) Lisch, who are as good as any pair of guards in the league. We know they?re good.??
Since URI comes in pretty hot itself _ it has won five of its last six to get to 17-8, 6-4 in the conference_ it makes for a nice match on Hall of Fame weekend in Kingston. The Rams enshrined five new members of their hall at a dinner Friday night and will honor the five at halftime Saturday.
They are volleyball great Jessinca Salmans, baseball-football star Tony Hill and three former basketball standouts, Phil Kydd, Cuttino Mobley and Dayna Smith. Mobley, recently retired from the NBA, will be making one of his first trips back to school since graduating a decade ago.
They will see a URI team that will be out to equal the most victories the team has had since moving to the Ryan Center seven years ago. The Rams come in 10-1 in their home building. Four previous times, including last year, they won 11 at Ryan Center.
If they are going to get their 11th Saturday, they almost certainly are going to have to do it in a different style game than most of the others. The Rams lead the A-10, and are seventh in the nation, in scoring, at 81.1. Saint Louis will not want to dance that dance with the Rams.
The Billikens hang their hat on patterned offense and stout defense. They come in allowing 59.1 a game, in a virtual tie with Dayton for the A-10 lead and 17th in the nation. URI already knows how Saint Louis plays defense under Majerus. The Rams went to Saint Louis last season, were held to 34 percent shooting from the field, and were beaten, 68-61.
The tenacity of the Billikens has come out during their winning streak. Since dropping a 47-46 decision at Dayton, the Billikens have fallen behind by at least seven points in each of their last four starts. Yet they have rallied to win every one.
Lisch and Liddell have led a team that also includes three freshmen starters, Kwamain Mitchell at the point and forwards Brian Conklin and Willie Reed. Still, the best match of the day figures to be the one pitting two guys who are academic all-stars as well as their team?s leading scorer. Lisch, like URI?s Jimmy Baron, recently has been selected to his all-district team as a CoSIDA/ ESPN the Magazine all-academic choice.
Lisch also has scored more than 1,500 career points. He was an all A-10 defensive team choice last season and is one of the favorites for A-10 defensive player of the year this season. His sister, Theresa, is the leading scorer for the SLU women?s team and also a Dean?s List student.
Their father, Rusty, was a quarterback at Notre Dame. He was beaten out for the starting job for most of his career by a guy named Joe Montana, but was good enough to go on to play five years in the NFL. Kevin Lisch has been a started for Saint Louis his entire career.
``He?s the epitome of an academic All-American,?? Majerus said of Lisch on this week?s A-10 conference call. ``He?s almost too good to be true. . . It?s been a privilege for me to be able to coach him.??
Baron comes in off his season-high 28-point performance Wednesday against St. Bonaventure, so his match with Lisch figures to be a good one, as does the game itself.
