(Courtesy Saint Louis Athletics)
SETTING THE SCENE
No. 8 Saint Louis (25-3, 12-1 Atlantic 10) travels to Richmond, Va., to take on the VCU Rams Saturday evening. Tipoff from the Siegel Center is scheduled for 5 p.m. (CT). It is the Billikens’ first trip to VCU for an A-10 matchup.
FOLLOWING THE ACTION
Saturday’s game will be televised on ESPN2, with Marc Kestecher and Fran Fraschilla on the call. It will be streamed online on Watch ESPN here: http://espn.go.com/watchespn/index/_/id/1656063/Mens-College-Basketball-St.-Louis-vs-VCU. The game also airs on 101 ESPN in St. Louis. As always, Billiken Hall of Famer Bob Ramsey will provide the play-by-play, while St. Louis American sports editor Earl Austin Jr. handles the analysis.
BILLIKEN NOTABLES
• Saint Louis, coming off its first loss in 88 days, looks to get back on track Saturday at VCU. The Billikens saw their 19-game winning streak come to an end Thursday night in a 71-64 loss to Duquesne.
• The Billikens, ranked No. 8 in the USA Today coaches’ poll and No. 10 in the AP top 25, are 25-3 overall, the best record in school history through 28 games. Saint Louis remains in first place in the Atlantic 10 Conference with a 12-1 record.
• With a win in any of their three remaining regular-season games, the Billikens would clinch at least a share of the A-10 regular-season title and the No. 1 seed in the A-10 Championship in Brooklyn.
• Saint Louis is one of two schools (the other being undefeated Wichita State) in the country with an undefeated road record (10-0). Conversely, VCU has yet to lose a game on its home court (13-0).
• Five Billikens average 8.1 ppg or more. Senior forward Dwayne Evans (14.2 ppg), senior guard Jordair Jett (13.8 ppg) and senior forward Rob Loe (10.3 ppg) score in double figures. Senior guard Mike McCall Jr. contributes 9.5 ppg, and sophomore guard Austin McBroom averages 8.1 ppg.
• Senior guard Jordair Jett, the reigning A-10 Player of the Week, is fourth in the A-10 in scoring in league play, averaging 17.5 ppg. Jett is third in the league with 4.9 assists per game. Jett has earned A-10 POW a school-record four times this season.
• The Billikens lead the A-10 and are 12th nationally in scoring defense, yielding 60.2 ppg. Saint Louis entered the week leading the nation in 3-point field-goal percentage defense (.266), though Duquesne shot a whopping 53.3 percent from long range against the Bills on Thursday. Through games of Thursday, Feb. 27, SLU is fourth in KenPom.com’s adjusted defensive efficiency.
• SLU hosts the Dayton Flyers Wednesday, March 5, at Chaifetz Arena for Senior Night. Game time is scheduled for 8 p.m. The Billikens conclude the regular season Sunday, March 9, at UMass in a 1 p.m. (CT) tip.
For complete Billiken Game Notes, click here.
