Hoping to gain some momentum heading to Brooklyn , it turned out to be a struggle for the Bonnies all afternoon. Saint Louis defeated St.Bonaventure 73-65, a disappointing 73-65 Senior Day setback. Saturday’s game at the Reilly Center saw the Billikens improve to 12-19 (5-13) while the Bonnies dropped to 18-12 (9-9).
Possessions: 66- a more deliberate tempo with transition on opportunity.
Offensive efficiency: Saint Louis 111, St. Bona 98
Numbers: (Four Factors in bold)
| St. Bona | Saint Louis | |
| eFG Pct. | 47 | 54 |
| FT Rate | 38 | 21 |
| OREB Pct. | 18 | 39 |
| TO Rate | 14 | 21 |
| 2pt FG% | 47 | 55 |
| 3pt FG% | 32 | 36 |
| FT% | 62 | 83 |
| 3pt FGA/FGA | 46 | 43 |
Ball Control Index:
St. Bona 1.78
Saint Louis 1.43
Bonnies started slow, scoring seven points in the game’s initial 10 minutes. It was a recurring dilemma of perimeter attempts (maybe too many) not falling, allowing the opposition to get good looks and Chad Venning in foul trouble.
Saint Louis, despite not getting a single point from their main threat Gibson Jimerson, led 26-21 at the break. Travis Ford’s group started the second half strong with a 17-11 run over the first five-plus minutes. That put the visitor’s advantage at 43-32.
“Give Saint Louis credit,” Bona coach Mark Schmidt said. “The first 15 minutes we didn’t have it. We couldn’t get loose balls, we were just slow to react.”
The duration of the half saw the teams make their respective runs. The Bonnies never could secure a lead which might have altered the game’s momentum. With just over four minutes left Mika Adams-Woods scored on a layup to make it a one possession game. Following a media time out, Jimerson drained a three to push the Billiken lead back to six. The Bonnies would not get closer.
“We could not get the lead,” Schmidt lamented. “Whenever we would break through they would hit a big three.”
Rebounding, a problem of late, was another sore spot for the Bonnies. Saint Louis won the battle of the boards 43-26, 12 -7 on the offensive end. Billikens used that rebounding prowess to secure a 21-9 edge in second chance points.
“Rebounding really killed us,” Schmidt said. “Saint Louis came in -3 in rebounding and outrebounded us by 17, which led to those second chance points.”
Kenpom.com MVP:Terrence Hargrove. The 6’5” senior paced the Billikens with 17 points, adding nine rebounds.
Beside Hargrove, Jimerson and Larry Hughes were the other Saint Louis double figure scorers with 15 points each. Moses Flowers was the Bonnies only other player to hit doubles with 15.
“Jimerson is a terrific player,” Schmidt said. “We held him to 3 of 11 from three but Hargrove really hurt us.”
Notes: Honored on Senior Day were fifth-year seniors Daryl Banks III, Moses Flowers , Mika Adams-Woods and Charles Pride. Traditional seniors Chad Venning and Anthony Belardinelli were also honored. The ceremony strangely enough was conducted post game. Feeling here is the ceremony should have been pre-game to better honor the outgoing seniors.
Clan Medley of Saint Louis led all rebounders with 10, four on the offensive end. Barry Evans was Bona’s leading rebounder with six. Evans also added a season-high nine points in 19 minutes of action. With Venning in foul trouble and Noel Brown limited to 11 minutes due to a sore ankle, Evans saw some time at the five position. “If there was a positive, Barry was a positive,” Schmidt said.
Bonnies were on the short end of a 32-26 total of points in the paint. They did lead 15-10 in points off turnovers.
A10 Tournament: Saint Louis enters the tournament having won two of their last three. The two wins, against Rhode Island and Bona, were both on the road. Billikens will face Rhode Island in the 4:30 game in the opening round on Tuesday.
Bonnies are venturing to Brooklyn on the heels of a two game losing streak. The setbacks came against the 14th (George Washington) and 15th (Saint Louis) place teams in the final standings. Bonnies are in Wednesday’s 5:00 contest facing the winner of LaSalle-George Washington.
“It (A10 Tournament) is a whole new season. We can beat anybody and can lose to anybody. If you play well you win and if you don’t play well you lose.” – Mark Schmidt
