FBCB: Storming Back

[Dekanth]

2004, Jamaica, Queens, NY

It was a national powerhouse. It was a packed Garden. It was Chris Mullin. It was Mark Jackson. It was 526. It was Lou Carnesecca. It was those lucky sweaters. It was Malik Sealy! It was the St. John's RedMen!

Now, it's a different story. It is last place. It is Fran Fraschilla. It is Mike Jarvis. It is Felipe Lopez. It is Omar Cooke. It is Jayson Williams. It is Ron Artest. It is Erick Barkley. It is not even qualifying for the league tounament held on their own floor. It is scandal and strip clubs. It is the St. John's Red Storm.


I was born and raised in the city and have lived here every day of my life. I think you have to in order to really love and understand St. John's basketball. Mike Jarvis never got it. He has the biggest group of talented players to choose from in the city, but no, he wanted to do it his own way. He wanted to recruit nationally. He wanted to go up against Duke and Arizona and Kentucky. It was insane. Jarvis didn't go to the NYC gyms or camps. St. John's lived off of getting the local kid who wanted to stay home to play for the Storm. Maybe he refused to suck up to the local high school coaches. The thing that killed him though was the fact he saw St. John's as a stepping stone to a bigger and better job. What he failed to realize is that if you were a real New York guy, there was no better job than head coach of St. John's.



I know the landscape. I love the landscape, and I love St. John's athletics. I grew up down the street from Tom Konchalski. They say Tom knows everything about every city baller age 15 and older. My dad was friends with Bob Oliva, coach of Christ the King. It was in my blood, I grew up with it. St. John's was the mecca. I tried to play ball, but I was too short and too slow and had an awkward jump shot. Instead, I learned everything I could and finally found a job as a JV coach, then eventually a head coach in some rinky dink town named Saugerties, outside of Albany. I proved myself there and following the dismissal of Jarvis, I was hired as the head coach of St. John's University. Only 35 years old, but they must have known I had what it takes. I had that desire to bring the Johnnies back to the top of the nation. It can be done. They say we should go to the MAAC. They say without D1 football we cannot compete. Reverand Harrington knowns better and more importantly, I know better.

[Dekanth]

Author's notes: As the title says, this is a dynasty using the text sim FBCB. I finally feel I understand the nuances of the game and I am ready to take it to the public. :) The story is fictional, obviously, but the names and the backround of the program are as real and close to reality as I can manage. Somebody released a 2004-2005 roster set for the game, so we will go with that, be damned the real 2004 season. Who wanted to see the Tarheels win it anyway? The only problem with these rosters is that nobody on any team is on scholarship. It makes for all out recruiting hell the first few seasons. I'll deal with it since The Johhnies have a higher prestige than they should in this game. The difficulty in recruiting should level it out to make this a challenge, but not an excercise in futility. Hope you, the reader, enjoys.

[Dekanth]

Top Priorities

The first thing I need to do is put together a coaching staff. Top priority is a guy who can help me regain control of recruiting the top players in the city. The school has given me a big budget for my staff, but I am going to spend it very careful, putting most of the resources into a recruiter.

I land a young hot-shot recruiter, Garfield Steele, 25 years old. He is rated 72 in recruiting. I paud nearly $200,000 for him and he was only my second choice, but I hope his skills will grow with some experience out on the streets and in the high school gyms.

My scout is 56 year old Von Morris. He has seen it all in his 30 plus years being involved in college basketball. He is rated 65 in scouting and should help me get a solid grip on what our players are capable of.

Harvey Burnette is my right hand man on the bench and in practice. He will help me design our game plans. He is a defensive guru, rated 71, but still can help us on the offensive side, rated 41. He is 37 years old and I see us working together for a while and building this program up.



Next up is putting together a schedule. The plan is to play a bunch of area schools and set up about 4 home and home series with some marqee names in other conferences. We get to work contacting lots of schools and put together the following schedule:


St. John's 2004 Season Schedule

Date Opponent Result Record
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
11/15/04 Binghamton (0-0)
11/19/04 Long Island (0-0)
11/24/04 Colgate (0-0)
11/28/04 Buffalo (0-0)
12/02/04 at UNLV (0-0)
12/06/04 at Georgia (0-0)
12/10/04 North Carolina State (0-0)
12/14/04 Penn State (0-0)
12/18/04 at Fairleigh Dickinson (0-0)
12/22/04 Hartford (0-0)
12/27/04 Niagara (0-0)
12/31/04 Albany (0-0)
01/05/05 West Virginia (0-0)
01/08/05 at Syracuse (0-0)
01/12/05 at Notre Dame (0-0)
01/15/05 at Virginia Tech (0-0)
01/19/05 at Miami (0-0)
01/26/05 at Providence (0-0)
01/29/05 Miami (0-0)
02/02/05 Virginia Tech (0-0)
02/05/05 Villanova (0-0)
02/09/05 Providence (0-0)
02/12/05 at Boston College (0-0)
02/16/05 Boston College (0-0)
02/19/05 Connecticut (0-0)
02/23/05 Seton Hall (0-0)
02/27/05 Maryland (0-0)
03/02/05 at Villanova (0-0)
03/05/05 at Connecticut (0-0)


UNLV, Georgia, Penn State and NC State are the four home and home series we set up. We also got a big time home game with Maryland in late February. The rest of the schedule our of conference is mostly weak division 1 schools. Our Big East schedule should provide plenty of challenge.

[Dekanth]

Off Season Recruiting Period

We hit the state of New York hard, targeting the top 14 players from the state, but we received little positive reaction from them. Most of them fell off our list by early August, so we had to turn our attention elsewhere if we wanted to bring in a nice class with our 3 scholarships. While getting shut out of New York is going to hurt, I know we are building towards the future there. We do land a nice pair of players though, a center and a PG.


RECRUIT DETAILS

#31 C Carter Stratton
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Height: 6' 9"
Weight: 224
High School: Conner High School
Hometown: Hebron, KY
GPA: 2.68
Test Score: 1140
Rating: ***

Attributes:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Type INS JPS FTS 3PS HND PAS ORB DRB PSD PRD STL BLK PFS QKN STR JMP STA
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Current: 53 40 25 0 15 28 64 27 33 4 23 30 15 14 79 23 31
Potential: B C C F D D B B D F C A

Season Stats:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PTS OREB REB AST TOS A/T STL BLK PFS
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
20.0 3.6 7.0 1.2 2.8 0.42 1.3 1.1 4.1

Shooting Averages:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FGM FGA FG% FTM FTA FT% 3PM 3PA 3P%
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9.0 15.1 .596 2.0 3.8 .520 0.0 0.0 .000

Recruiting Notes:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Qualified: Yes
Committed to St. John's
Rankings: #47 C, Southeast Region #50 Overall, Southeast Region #11 C
High School Awards: All-State
Top 5 Schools: *St. John's, Indiana, Cincinnati, Maryland, Kentucky



Carter is putting up 20 ppg right now along with 7 rebounds. His defense is a concern, obviously, but we really like what he can bring to the floor on offense.






RECRUIT DETAILS

#0 PG Marty Quattlebaum
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 183
High School: Fitch Senior High School
Hometown: Groton, CT
GPA: 2.70
Test Score: 1070
Rating: ***

Attributes:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Type INS JPS FTS 3PS HND PAS ORB DRB PSD PRD STL BLK PFS QKN STR JMP STA
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Current: 42 19 59 70 55 25 19 17 23 51 34 43 89 99 29 59 42
Potential: B B B B B D D F D C C C

Season Stats:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PTS OREB REB AST TOS A/T STL BLK PFS
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
13.2 1.3 3.4 3.0 2.2 1.36 1.9 1.2 1.6

Shooting Averages:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FGM FGA FG% FTM FTA FT% 3PM 3PA 3P%
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.1 13.6 .373 2.1 2.7 .792 1.0 4.4 .227

Recruiting Notes:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Qualified: Yes
Committed to St. John's
Rankings: #43 PG, East Region #42 Overall, East Region #11 PG
High School Awards: All-State
Top 5 Schools: *St. John's, Providence, Massachusetts, Boston College, Connecticut


We pick up a somewhat local recruit from neighboring Connecticut. We feel Marty can be a vwery versatile offensive weapon for us. His defense should be solid. He may end up playing the SG spot for us if he developes as expected.

[Dekanth]

2004-2005 Preseason Poll


Top 25 Poll

# School FPV Record Points Previous
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. North Carolina (72) 0-0 1800 NR
2. Connecticut 0-0 1723 NR
3. Maryland 0-0 1652 NR
4. Iowa 0-0 1572 NR
5. Michigan State 0-0 1496 NR
6. Wake Forest 0-0 1437 NR
7. Arkansas 0-0 1334 NR
8. Kansas 0-0 1291 NR
9. Oklahoma 0-0 1253 NR
10. Kentucky 0-0 1131 NR
11. Texas 0-0 1016 NR
12. Colorado 0-0 1008 NR
13. Louisville 0-0 951 NR
14. Illinois 0-0 883 NR
15. Florida 0-0 772 NR
16. Pittsburgh 0-0 771 NR
17. Duke 0-0 640 NR
18. Oregon 0-0 567 NR
19. Arizona 0-0 476 NR
20. Memphis 0-0 362 NR
21. Cincinnati 0-0 285 NR
22. Louisiana State 0-0 250 NR
23. California 0-0 231 NR
24. Georgia Tech 0-0 210 NR
25. Fresno State 0-0 78 NR

Others Receiving Votes:
Mississippi State 0-0 75
Bradley 0-0 33
Oklahoma State 0-0 33
Providence 0-0 26
Southern California 0-0 12
Texas Christian 0-0 10
Alabama 0-0 7
Notre Dame 0-0 6
Kent State 0-0 3
Stanford 0-0 3
UCLA 0-0 2
Arizona State 0-0 1


Breaking down some of the top teams in the country this year.

1)North Carolina. They deserve the top preseason ranking. Felton, McCants, Williams, May...the list goes on and on. If they don't make the Final Four, at least, it will be a huge disappointment for the Tarheels.

2)Uconn. They will match up with anyone in the paint with Josh Boone and Charlie Villanueva. Super-frosh Rudy Gay may be the key to the Huskies season.

3)Maryland. Caner-Medley and John Gilchrist will have to carry this team offensively if they are going to live up to the preseason hype.

4)Iowa. A surprise in the top 5, but a great inside-outside combination of Greg Brunner and Adam Haluska can be dangerous. Throw in Jeff Horner and this team can make some noise.

5)Michigan State. Paul Davis is the key to this team having success this year.

6)Wake Forest. Chris Paul is the leader of this ACC team with high hopes of reaching the Final Four.



We'll check out the top 5 in the future polls and break down the teams in more detail.

[Dekanth]

Article from The Torch, St. John's Student Newspaper

The 2004-2005 Men's Basketball season is just around the corner and the team has a new look this year. New head coach, Dek, has taken over the reigns of our Red Storm. Last year was a disappointment, but the new coach has fans of the team talking abou the future of this program. Mike Jarvis did not leave the cupboard empty and Dek will have some good players to work with this year. Here is a look at the roster and our expected lineup.


C Mohammed Diakite, Senior. Diakite is the only true center on the team. His skills are limited, but he is a hard worker in the paint. He provides the Storm with a legitimate shot blocker. He can help out on offense, but if he averages 10 points a game, the coaches will be pleasantly surprised.

PF Lamont Hamilton, Sophomore. A local kid who is going to be counted on to carry this team most of the season. Training camp reports say that Lamont has really stepped up his game as he transitions to his second year. This is a kid who can play with the best PF's in the Big East. Coach Dek needs him to play focused each and every night.

PF Ryan Williams, Junior. Another hometown kid, right from Queens. Expect a three man roation in the paint between Diakite, Hamilton and Williams. He is a little short at 6'5”, but he is going to have to step up in order for the Storm to stay competative in the paint.

SF Rodney Epperson, Junior. Epperson is a key player on this year's team. He provides a pretty good threat on the wing. If he could learnt to step back and hit the three ball, he would be a big threat.

SF Phil Missere, Senior. Phil plays more like a PF instead of a true wing player. Phil should see some time off the bench, but if he has to be counted on for a lot of minutes, the team could be in trouble.

SG Leshard Duran, Senior. Duran might be used to give the starters a blow here and there, but for the most part he should be watching from the bench.

PG Daryl Hill, Junior. Another kid from Queens, he is going to have to carry the scoring load for this team in addition to Hamilton. A point guard in name only, he looks to shoot first and pass second, if at all.

PG Eugene Lawrence, Freshman. Eugene steps in as a freshman and will immediately be needed to help run this team from the point. He has the talent, but we don't know how developed it is yet.

PG Devin Mayo, Sophomore. Devin can be matched up with the other teams best guard and be expected to limit his success, but he doesn't bring much else to the table to warrant much playing time.

PG Nygel Roach, Junior. Nygel is a similar player to Mayo, both of which will see a few minutes, but should not be counted on for much.



Probable starting lineup:

C Mohammed Diakite
PF Lamont Hamilton
SF Rodney Epperson
SG Daryll Hill
PG Eugene Lawrence

[Dekanth]

Coach's Report

Midnight madness is long gone. Long days of practice are over. My nerves are on edge as I prepare to take the court for the first time as the Head Coach of St. John's. Wow, it sounds strange just saying that. We scheduled 4 home games to open our season and I fully expect to go 4-0 to open things up. This will give our guys confidence and hopefully give our fans something to talk about. Binghampton, LIU, Colgate and Buffalo, those are our first 4 opponents.

Lamont Hamilton, just a sophomore, but mature beyond his years was made our team captain. We have just 1 senior in the starting lineup and we are putting a true freshman into the starting point guard spot. There will be growing pains, but I am hoping this move will pay off in the next 4 years.



Binghamton (0-0) at St. John's (0-0)

We don't know anything about these guys yet, it is the first game for them as well. Defensively, they look decent on the perimeter, but Hamilton should really be able to do some damage in the paint. Their PG, Andre Heard might be their biggest threat, but I have confidence in Eugene to come through, despite this being his very first collegiate game.


St. John's 79, Binghamton 54

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Binghamton (0-1):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Nick Billings C 28 0-4 2-2 3 7 1 4 2
Joe White PF 31 2-5 2-2 0 3 1 3 6
Alex Adediran SF 27 2-9 0-0 1 5 1 4 4
Troy Hailey SG 33 3-8 4-5 1 2 1 3 12
Andre Heard PG 35 6-15 7-7 0 3 1 1 19
S. Hermenier SF 27 2-4 0-0 1 3 0 5 4
Mike Gordon SG 12 2-6 2-2 0 0 1 1 6
Jordan Fithian C 7 0-0 1-2 0 0 0 1 1

Turnovers: 20 (N.Billings 3, J.White 2, A.Adediran 3,
T.Hailey 3, A.Heard 7, S.Hermenier 1, M.Gordon 1)
Blocked Shots: 1 (S.Hermenier 1)
Steals: 7 (N.Billings 2, J.White 1, T.Hailey 1, A.Heard
2, M.Gordon 1)
3P FGs: 2-10 (J.White 0-1, T.Hailey 2-3, A.Heard 0-3,
S.Hermenier 0-1, M.Gordon 0-2)

St. John's (1-0):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 28 1-4 1-4 2 8 0 3 3
Lamont Hamilton PF 30 6-13 3-5 2 11 3 4 15
Rodney Epperson SF 34 4-9 7-10 4 7 1 2 15
Daryll Hill SG 34 5-11 3-3 1 4 1 2 16
Eugene Lawrence PG 26 7-10 2-2 1 1 6 4 17
Phil Missere C 22 1-2 2-2 0 8 0 2 4
Ryan Williams PF 7 1-1 0-0 0 0 0 2 2
Devin Mayo PG 14 3-3 1-1 2 2 3 0 7
Lashard Duran PG 2 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0
Nygel Roach PG 3 0-0 0-0 0 0 1 0 0

Turnovers: 20 (M.Diakite 2, L.Hamilton 3, R.Epperson 5,
D.Hill 5, E.Lawrence 2, P.Missere 3)
Blocked Shots: 6 (M.Diakite 2, L.Hamilton 1, R.Epperson
1, P.Missere 1, R.Williams 1)
Steals: 11 (R.Epperson 1, D.Hill 3, E.Lawrence 6,
P.Missere 1)
3P FGs: 4-10 (R.Epperson 0-1, D.Hill 3-6, E.Lawrence
1-3)

Player of Game: PG Eugene Lawrence (STJN)

Game Summary:

Game Stats BINGH STJN
Halftime Score 26 39
FGM-FGA 17-51 28-53
FG% .333 .528
FTM-FTA 18-20 19-27
FT% .900 .704
3PM-3PA 2-10 4-10
3P% .200 .400
Rebounds 23 41
Assists 6 15
Steals 7 11
Blocks 1 6
Turnovers 20 20
Team Fouls 22 19


Well, I am 1-0 in my coaching career. Feels great, but I am happy for my guys. They won pretty easily today. As expected, Andre Heard gave us some problems, but we had too much fire power for Binghamton to handle. Four of our players scored in double figures, led by our fabulous freshman, Eugene Lawrence. He was named the game's MVP. Hamilton was very solid, scoring 15 and hauling in 11 rebounds. I'll take those numbers from him each and every game.

[Dekanth]

November 19, 2004

Long Island University (0-0) at St. John's Red Storm (1-0)

I don't see much on their roster to concern myself with. They have a couple decent players for a Northeast Conference team, but if we play even an aveage game, we should beat them by at least 10.


St. John's 99, Long Island 61

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Long Island (0-1):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
P. Morkeliunas C 28 4-11 4-4 2 4 0 4 12
Derek Bell PF 25 7-11 4-4 1 2 1 4 18
Esa Maki-Tulokas SF 21 2-9 0-0 1 3 0 4 5
Randy Jones SG 29 2-3 1-1 0 2 3 4 6
James Williams PG 28 3-12 0-0 0 3 5 4 7
Kellen Allen PF 20 0-2 2-2 0 7 1 1 2
Dennis Toledo C 13 0-1 0-2 1 6 2 1 0
Aubin Scott SF 30 5-13 1-2 2 7 0 2 11
Albert Forbes SF 3 0-2 0-0 0 0 0 0 0
Evan Meekins PG 5 0-0 0-0 0 0 1 0 0

Turnovers: 23 (P.Morkeliunas 3, D.Bell 2,
E.Maki-Tulokas 5, R.Jones 2, J.Williams 7, A.Scott 3,
E.Meekins 1)
Blocked Shots: 2 (D.Toledo 2)
Steals: 6 (P.Morkeliunas 1, E.Maki-Tulokas 1, R.Jones
1, J.Williams 2, A.Scott 1)
3P FGs: 3-16 (P.Morkeliunas 0-2, E.Maki-Tulokas 1-5,
R.Jones 1-2, J.Williams 1-5, A.Scott 0-2)

St. John's (2-0):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 27 2-4 1-2 2 15 1 3 5
Lamont Hamilton PF 34 6-9 14-17 2 10 4 2 26
Rodney Epperson SF 32 6-15 5-5 0 5 0 2 17
Daryll Hill SG 34 10-16 2-2 3 7 5 1 26
Eugene Lawrence PG 33 0-6 2-2 0 1 4 3 2
Phil Missere C 16 1-2 4-4 0 2 2 2 6
Ryan Williams SF 11 3-5 2-2 3 5 0 3 8
Devin Mayo PG 7 1-3 1-2 0 0 1 0 3
Lashard Duran SG 4 1-2 0-0 0 0 1 0 2
Nygel Roach SG 2 2-3 0-0 0 0 0 0 4

Turnovers: 15 (L.Hamilton 3, R.Epperson 3, D.Hill 2,
E.Lawrence 6, P.Missere 1)
Blocked Shots: 6 (M.Diakite 3, L.Hamilton 1, P.Missere
2)
Steals: 12 (L.Hamilton 1, R.Epperson 1, E.Lawrence 6,
P.Missere 1, L.Duran 2, N.Roach 1)
3P FGs: 4-13 (R.Epperson 0-1, D.Hill 4-7, E.Lawrence
0-4, R.Williams 0-1)

Player of Game: PF Lamont Hamilton (STJN)

Game Summary:

Game Stats LNGIS STJN
Halftime Score 43 55
FGM-FGA 23-64 32-65
FG% .359 .492
FTM-FTA 12-15 31-36
FT% .800 .861
3PM-3PA 3-16 4-13
3P% .188 .308
Rebounds 34 45
Assists 13 18
Steals 6 12
Blocks 2 6
Turnovers 23 15
Team Fouls 24 16


They hung somewhat close in the first half, but we just wore them down in the second half and ran away with the victory. Hill and Hamilton really shone through, scoring 26 points each. Lawrence struggled in his second game, only recording 2 points and 4 assists and going 0 for 6 from the floor. He did have 6 steals though, in a nice defensive effort.

[Dekanth]

November 24, 2004

Colgate (0-3) at St. John's Red Storm (2-0)

Colgate has given up 322 points in just 3 games. Their defense is non-existant. Their PG, Jon Simon is their biggest threat it seems, as he is averaging 22 points per game early on in the season. Lawrence should be able to handle him though and I expect big games out of Hill and Hamilton again.



St. John's 93, Colgate 79

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Colgate (0-4):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Alex Woodhouse C 28 4-8 0-0 1 5 0 4 8
Andrew Zidar PF 29 1-5 2-2 0 4 5 4 4
Jon Foss SF 26 2-6 2-2 0 3 1 4 6
Alvin Reed SG 32 5-6 1-2 1 2 1 0 14
Jon Simon PG 33 8-11 6-6 1 4 5 4 25
Marc Daniels C 23 5-9 0-3 1 7 2 3 10
Keith Williams SG 15 2-8 1-2 0 1 2 3 5
Dan Gentile SF 14 2-9 0-0 2 2 1 0 4
Kyle Roemer PG 1 1-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 3

Turnovers: 22 (A.Woodhouse 2, A.Zidar 3, J.Foss 3,
A.Reed 2, J.Simon 6, M.Daniels 3, K.Williams 3)
Blocked Shots: 0
Steals: 9 (A.Zidar 3, A.Reed 1, J.Simon 1, M.Daniels 1,
K.Williams 1, D.Gentile 2)
3P FGs: 7-13 (A.Zidar 0-1, J.Foss 0-1, A.Reed 3-4,
J.Simon 3-5, D.Gentile 0-1, K.Roemer 1-1)

St. John's (3-0):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 26 3-6 0-0 0 7 1 1 6
Lamont Hamilton PF 34 7-11 8-12 5 11 1 1 22
Rodney Epperson SF 32 4-12 8-8 0 5 3 2 16
Daryll Hill SG 26 2-7 6-6 0 2 2 4 11
Eugene Lawrence PG 27 4-5 2-2 0 1 3 4 10
Phil Missere C 20 2-3 3-3 2 7 0 0 7
Ryan Williams PF 9 1-2 0-0 1 2 0 1 2
Devin Mayo SG 15 5-7 0-0 0 1 2 2 10
Lashard Duran PG 9 3-4 3-4 1 3 2 1 9
Nygel Roach SG 3 0-2 0-0 0 0 0 0 0

Turnovers: 22 (M.Diakite 2, L.Hamilton 5, R.Epperson 5,
D.Hill 2, E.Lawrence 2, P.Missere 3, D.Mayo 3)
Blocked Shots: 5 (M.Diakite 2, L.Hamilton 1, R.Epperson
2)
Steals: 5 (D.Hill 1, E.Lawrence 2, D.Mayo 2)
3P FGs: 1-7 (R.Epperson 0-2, D.Hill 1-4, E.Lawrence 0-1)

Player of Game: PF Lamont Hamilton (STJN)

Game Summary:

Game Stats COLG STJN
Halftime Score 42 55
FGM-FGA 30-63 31-59
FG% .476 .525
FTM-FTA 12-17 30-35
FT% .706 .857
3PM-3PA 7-13 1-7
3P% .538 .143
Rebounds 28 39
Assists 17 14
Steals 9 5
Blocks 0 5
Turnovers 22 22
Team Fouls 22 16


Well, 93 points is the lowest they allowed this year and Jon Simon did increase his scoring average by pouring in 25, but we had little problems, even though our 2 guards were in foul trouble for most of the game. Hamilton carried us with 22 points and Epperson helped out with 16 of his own.

[Dekanth]

November 28, 2004

Buffalo (4-0) at St. John's (3-0)

Buffalo has had a nice start to their season, but their record is a bit deceiving. Their opponents combined record is 1-8. Their offense is very balanced though, with 5 players averaging over 10 points a game and another 2 players over 9 points. Their perimeter defense looks pretty good, which means that Hamilton will be counted on to eat them up in the paint.



St. John's 92, Buffalo 66

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Buffalo (4-1):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Yassin Idbihi C 12 4-6 0-0 1 3 0 4 10
Mark Bortz PF 16 1-7 1-2 0 2 0 4 3
Daniel Gilbert SF 19 4-9 0-0 0 1 0 4 9
Calvin Cage SG 32 0-3 4-4 1 2 3 2 4
Turner Battle PG 31 4-5 7-8 2 4 8 4 16
Parnell Smith C 24 2-3 3-3 0 2 0 5 7
Mario Jordan SF 22 0-4 1-2 1 5 2 5 1
Jason Bird SG 13 4-4 2-2 1 1 0 1 12
R. Middleton PG 21 0-9 0-0 1 2 2 4 0
Wallace Hall PG 10 1-2 2-2 0 0 0 0 4

Turnovers: 16 (M.Bortz 3, D.Gilbert 2, C.Cage 1,
P.Smith 1, M.Jordan 3, J.Bird 1, R.Middleton 2, W.Hall
3)
Blocked Shots: 3 (M.Bortz 3)
Steals: 6 (M.Bortz 1, D.Gilbert 1, T.Battle 1, M.Jordan
1, J.Bird 1, R.Middleton 1)
3P FGs: 6-16 (Y.Idbihi 2-3, D.Gilbert 1-3, C.Cage 0-1,
T.Battle 1-1, M.Jordan 0-1, J.Bird 2-2, R.Middleton
0-4, W.Hall 0-1)

St. John's (4-0):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 28 0-3 4-6 2 6 3 2 4
Lamont Hamilton PF 33 3-6 3-3 1 8 1 4 9
Rodney Epperson SF 33 7-11 13-14 2 8 1 4 27
Daryll Hill SG 35 6-13 5-5 2 5 2 1 18
Eugene Lawrence PG 34 4-9 11-12 2 3 5 2 21
Phil Missere C 18 3-3 1-2 2 5 1 2 7
Ryan Williams PF 9 0-0 1-2 2 4 0 2 1
Devin Mayo SG 7 1-3 0-2 0 0 0 1 2
Lashard Duran PG 4 0-0 3-4 0 0 1 0 3

Turnovers: 16 (M.Diakite 4, L.Hamilton 5, R.Epperson 1,
D.Hill 3, E.Lawrence 2, R.Williams 1)
Blocked Shots: 7 (M.Diakite 2, L.Hamilton 3, D.Hill 1,
P.Missere 1)
Steals: 7 (M.Diakite 1, R.Epperson 2, D.Hill 1,
E.Lawrence 2, P.Missere 1)
3P FGs: 3-9 (R.Epperson 0-1, D.Hill 1-4, E.Lawrence 2-4)

Player of Game: SF Rodney Epperson (STJN)

Game Summary:

Game Stats BUFF STJN
Halftime Score 31 53
FGM-FGA 20-52 24-48
FG% .385 .500
FTM-FTA 20-23 41-50
FT% .870 .820
3PM-3PA 6-16 3-9
3P% .375 .333
Rebounds 22 39
Assists 15 14
Steals 6 7
Blocks 3 7
Turnovers 16 16
Team Fouls 33 18


Hamilton did not play his best game out there and was held to only 9 points through 33 minutes. Lawrence and Epperson stepped up against the good perimeter defense of Buffalo and combined for 48 of our points though. Hill added in 18 and we run our record to 4-0 before we hit the meat of our OOC schedule.

[Dekanth]

It looks like our quick 4-0 start convinced one more recruit to sign on the dotted line. PG Reginald Glover is from Lancaster, NY. We are really loaded up on guards for the next couple of seasons. Although most of them are point guards by name, a couple, at least, are capable of playing the 2 guard spot. We will focus our recruiting towards the bigger guys next season.


RECRUIT DETAILS

#54 PG Reginald Glover
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Height: 6' 3"
Weight: 212
High School: Lancaster High School
Hometown: Lancaster, NY
GPA: 2.36
Test Score: 970
Rating: ***

Attributes:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Type INS JPS FTS 3PS HND PAS ORB DRB PSD PRD STL BLK PFS QKN STR JMP STA
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Current: 38 34 52 43 36 32 24 12 40 34 19 42 26 92 38 46 38
Potential: B C B A B D D D C C D C

Season Stats:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PTS OREB REB AST TOS A/T STL BLK PFS
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7.4 1.3 3.3 3.9 2.4 1.63 1.7 1.4 2.5

Shooting Averages:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FGM FGA FG% FTM FTA FT% 3PM 3PA 3P%
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.4 9.8 .347 0.4 0.8 .533 0.2 2.3 .087

Recruiting Notes:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Qualified: Yes
Committed to St. John's
Rankings: #31 PG, East Region #33 Overall, East Region #9 PG
High School Awards: None
Top 5 Schools: *St. John's, Connecticut, Seton Hall, Massachusetts, St. Bonaventure

[Dekanth]

December 2, 2004

St. John's (4-0) at UNLV (3-1)

The Rebels are the first big challenge of the season for us, and to make matters worse, it is on the road. UNLV has a great PF by the name of Odartey Blankson. He is averaging 23 points per game and is going to match up with Hamilton. This should be a huge battle and could determine the outcome of the game. I would have to give the edge here to the Senior from UNLV. Romel Beck is a very good SG for the Rebels as well and he is averaging 16.8 ppg. Their defense has some cracks in the armor, particularly on the perimeter.



UNLV 93, St. John's 88

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
St. John's (4-1):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 25 4-6 0-0 1 7 1 3 8
Lamont Hamilton PF 33 8-16 7-11 3 7 2 2 24
Rodney Epperson SF 33 7-16 5-5 2 6 2 3 19
Daryll Hill SG 34 8-14 0-0 0 1 2 2 17
Eugene Lawrence PG 21 0-3 2-2 0 2 4 5 2
Phil Missere C 20 3-5 6-6 2 6 5 4 12
Ryan Williams PF 9 1-2 0-0 3 3 0 2 2
Devin Mayo PG 18 1-6 0-0 0 0 3 0 2
Lashard Duran PG 7 1-1 0-1 0 0 2 0 2

Turnovers: 10 (M.Diakite 2, L.Hamilton 1, R.Epperson 1,
D.Hill 5, E.Lawrence 1)
Blocked Shots: 3 (M.Diakite 2, L.Hamilton 1)
Steals: 6 (M.Diakite 1, L.Hamilton 1, D.Hill 2,
R.Williams 1, L.Duran 1)
3P FGs: 2-8 (L.Hamilton 1-1, R.Epperson 0-2, D.Hill
1-2, E.Lawrence 0-2, P.Missere 0-1)

UNLV (4-1):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Joel Anthony C 29 5-9 1-2 2 7 3 1 11
Louis Amundson PF 25 2-2 0-2 2 7 1 4 4
Odartey Blankson SF 32 9-16 8-8 1 5 2 3 27
Romel Beck SG 31 6-7 2-2 1 6 2 2 16
Michael Umeh PG 32 7-13 2-2 0 2 4 2 21
Dustin Villepigue PF 23 0-3 1-2 0 7 2 5 1
Ricky Morgan PG 8 1-3 2-2 0 0 0 0 4
Curtis Terry SF 9 3-4 0-0 1 2 0 0 7
Jerel Blassingame SG 11 0-1 2-2 0 0 2 1 2

Turnovers: 18 (L.Amundson 2, O.Blankson 7, R.Beck 4,
M.Umeh 2, D.Villepigue 2, R.Morgan 1)
Blocked Shots: 1 (L.Amundson 1)
Steals: 2 (M.Umeh 1, J.Blassingame 1)
3P FGs: 9-16 (O.Blankson 1-1, R.Beck 2-3, M.Umeh 5-9,
R.Morgan 0-1, C.Terry 1-1, J.Blassingame 0-1)

Player of Game: PG Michael Umeh (UNLV)

Game Summary:

Game Stats STJN UNLV
Halftime Score 40 40
FGM-FGA 33-69 33-58
FG% .478 .569
FTM-FTA 20-25 18-22
FT% .800 .818
3PM-3PA 2-8 9-16
3P% .250 .563
Rebounds 32 36
Assists 21 16
Steals 6 2
Blocks 3 1
Turnovers 10 18
Team Fouls 21 18


UNLV threw us for a loop and put Blankson in as the starting SF instead of his natural position of PF. He burned us for a game high 27 points. Hamilton was able to dominate on the inside with the weaker defender on him and he scored 24, but we fell short after playing to a tie game at the half. The difference was our freshman point guard scoring only 2 points and limited to 22 minutes with foul problems before he finally fouled out of the game.

[Dekanth]

December 6, 2004

St. John's (4-1) at #24 Georgia (3-0)

It is tough to win on the road against a team from a power conference, but I think we have a shot today. If we are to pull out the win, it won't be from the outside, as their perimeter defense is top notch. Their weakness is their defense in the paint. That means Hamilton needs to have a huge game, and our guards cannot give the game away. Their PG, Levi Stukes is leading the team with a 21.0 ppg average. Their C, Dave Bliss, a true freshman is at 17.7 ppg and has 7.7 rpg to go along with that.



Georgia 92, St. John's 79

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
St. John's (4-2):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 24 2-3 2-2 1 5 1 1 6
Lamont Hamilton PF 33 3-9 9-9 2 7 2 5 15
Rodney Epperson SF 34 6-11 10-10 1 5 1 3 23
Daryll Hill SG 33 5-10 0-0 0 1 1 3 12
Eugene Lawrence PG 27 2-7 1-1 0 0 4 5 6
Phil Missere C 21 4-7 2-2 0 3 2 1 10
Ryan Williams PF 8 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 1 0
Devin Mayo PG 11 0-3 0-0 0 0 1 4 0
Lashard Duran SG 6 1-1 3-5 0 2 0 0 5
Nygel Roach PG 4 0-0 2-2 0 0 1 1 2

Turnovers: 17 (M.Diakite 5, R.Epperson 2, D.Hill 2,
E.Lawrence 3, P.Missere 1, R.Williams 1, D.Mayo 2,
N.Roach 1)
Blocked Shots: 1 (M.Diakite 1)
Steals: 6 (R.Epperson 1, D.Hill 1, E.Lawrence 2,
P.Missere 2)
3P FGs: 4-11 (R.Epperson 1-3, D.Hill 2-4, E.Lawrence
1-4)

Georgia (4-0):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Dave Bliss C 30 4-8 7-8 3 12 3 3 15
Younes Idrissi PF 31 2-6 2-2 3 5 2 3 6
Corey Gibbs SF 20 2-7 1-2 0 0 0 4 5
Levi Stukes SG 35 9-14 4-4 4 5 2 1 24
Sundiata Gaines PG 33 7-14 4-6 0 4 1 2 23
Joey Waldrop C 12 1-2 0-0 1 7 1 4 2
Steve Newman SF 17 1-4 0-0 1 2 0 3 2
Channing Toney SF 14 3-6 2-2 1 2 1 1 9
Jay McAuley PG 7 0-0 6-6 0 1 2 1 6

Turnovers: 15 (D.Bliss 3, Y.Idrissi 2, C.Gibbs 1,
L.Stukes 3, S.Gaines 4, J.Waldrop 1, S.Newman 1)
Blocked Shots: 4 (Y.Idrissi 4)
Steals: 9 (Y.Idrissi 3, C.Gibbs 1, L.Stukes 1, S.Gaines
4)
3P FGs: 8-18 (L.Stukes 2-6, S.Gaines 5-7, S.Newman 0-3,
C.Toney 1-2)

Player of Game: PG Levi Stukes (GA)

Game Summary:

Game Stats STJN GA
Halftime Score 45 51
FGM-FGA 23-51 29-61
FG% .451 .475
FTM-FTA 29-31 26-30
FT% .935 .867
3PM-3PA 4-11 8-18
3P% .364 .444
Rebounds 23 38
Assists 13 12
Steals 6 9
Blocks 1 4
Turnovers 17 15
Team Fouls 24 22


We fell behind early, tried to make up some ground, but just let it get out of hand in the last 10 minutes. Hamilton was in foul trouble all night, and although he played 33 minutes, he was tentative on most possessions. Their starting guards torched us for a combined 47 points and that is the whole story.

[Dekanth]

December 10, 2004

#19 North Carolina State (5-0) at St. John's (4-2)

NC State is similar to Georgia, but with better athletes, I think. Their defense in the paint is a weakness that I feel we can exploit, but we didn't get it done against Georgia. This one being at home should help us. Julius Hodge is their main man, and his is averaging a team high 18 points per game. PF Andrew Brackman is close behind at 17.2. They have 2 other players averaging around 11 a game. If Hamilton can play his A game, this could be the marquee OOC win we need.



St. John's 73, North Carolina State 68

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
North Carolina State (5-1):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Jordan Collins C 30 2-8 2-2 1 6 1 2 7
Andrew Brackman PF 32 3-5 0-0 2 6 0 3 6
Gavin Grant SF 19 1-2 0-0 0 3 2 5 3
Tony Bethel SG 35 5-9 1-1 1 4 3 2 13
Julius Hodge PG 35 7-14 1-2 2 7 6 2 15
Levi Watkins PF 14 0-3 7-8 0 1 0 3 7
Cameron Bennerman PG 14 2-5 5-6 0 2 0 1 10
Ilian Evtimov SF 21 2-9 2-2 0 0 2 2 7

Turnovers: 15 (J.Collins 2, A.Brackman 3, G.Grant 2,
T.Bethel 2, J.Hodge 1, C.Bennerman 3, I.Evtimov 2)
Blocked Shots: 6 (J.Collins 4, A.Brackman 2)
Steals: 7 (J.Collins 1, G.Grant 1, J.Hodge 2, I.Evtimov
3)
3P FGs: 6-21 (J.Collins 1-3, G.Grant 1-1, T.Bethel 2-5,
J.Hodge 0-3, C.Bennerman 1-4, I.Evtimov 1-5)

St. John's (5-2):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 27 2-7 4-6 1 11 3 3 8
Lamont Hamilton PF 34 5-11 8-10 7 12 2 3 18
Rodney Epperson SF 31 3-7 6-6 2 6 0 0 12
Daryll Hill SG 32 3-4 7-8 0 1 2 3 13
Eugene Lawrence PG 34 3-15 2-2 2 3 2 3 9
Phil Missere C 19 2-3 0-0 0 4 1 2 4
Ryan Williams PF 9 0-1 0-0 0 2 0 0 0
Devin Mayo SG 8 3-3 1-1 0 1 0 1 7
Lashard Duran PG 1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 3 0
Nygel Roach PG 6 1-3 0-0 0 1 0 0 2

Turnovers: 16 (L.Hamilton 3, R.Epperson 1, D.Hill 3,
E.Lawrence 6, P.Missere 1, R.Williams 1, N.Roach 1)
Blocked Shots: 3 (M.Diakite 2, P.Missere 1)
Steals: 5 (L.Hamilton 2, R.Epperson 1, D.Hill 1,
E.Lawrence 1)
3P FGs: 1-10 (D.Hill 0-1, E.Lawrence 1-8, R.Williams
0-1)

Player of Game: PF Lamont Hamilton (STJN)

Game Summary:

Game Stats NC ST STJN
Halftime Score 37 41
FGM-FGA 22-55 22-54
FG% .400 .407
FTM-FTA 18-21 28-33
FT% .857 .848
3PM-3PA 6-21 1-10
3P% .286 .100
Rebounds 29 41
Assists 14 10
Steals 7 5
Blocks 6 3
Turnovers 15 16
Team Fouls 20 18


Now that is what I am talking about! Hamilton was the man out there today with 18 points and 12 big rebounds. Epperson and Hill used their experience and played under control. Lawrence put up too many shots that didn't go in but it didn't kill us tonight. We limited Hodge and shut down Brackman to take the big win over a very good ACC team.

[Dekanth]

December 14, 2004

Penn State (5-2) at. St. John's (5-2)

Penn State is coming off a 4 point win against former #1, and currently #2 Maryland. PG Travis Parker, wjho we expect to play the SF position, is leading their team with 22.4 ppg, so trying to slow him down will be our top priority. Aaron Johnson will probably match up with Hamilton and he is a good defender. Hamilton is going to have to work for his points. In all honesty, this is not a great matchup for us, but with the game being played on our home court and a solid game from our guards, we can pull this one out.



St. John's 107, Penn State 83

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Penn State (5-3):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Kevin Fellows C 25 1-4 0-0 0 6 1 4 2
Aaron Johnson PF 32 9-15 5-7 2 7 1 4 23
Travis Parker SF 30 6-14 5-5 3 6 2 4 19
Geary Claxton SG 26 3-8 2-2 3 6 3 1 9
Mike Walker PG 23 2-2 0-0 0 1 6 1 5
Brandon Hassell PF 7 1-4 5-6 0 1 0 3 7
Jason McDougald C 22 1-4 1-1 1 3 0 3 3
Ben Luber PG 17 3-4 0-0 0 0 2 0 7
Marlon Smith SG 16 2-5 2-2 0 2 1 2 6
Bobbie Jones PF 1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0
Jamaal Tate SF 2 0-2 2-2 0 0 0 2 2

Turnovers: 23 (K.Fellows 1, A.Johnson 4, T.Parker 2,
G.Claxton 5, M.Walker 3, J.McDougald 1, B.Luber 5,
M.Smith 2)
Blocked Shots: 5 (A.Johnson 2, G.Claxton 2, J.McDougald
1)
Steals: 9 (K.Fellows 1, A.Johnson 1, T.Parker 3,
G.Claxton 3, M.Smith 1)
3P FGs: 5-10 (T.Parker 2-7, G.Claxton 1-1, M.Walker
1-1, B.Luber 1-1)

St. John's (6-2):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 26 5-7 2-4 1 6 0 2 12
Lamont Hamilton PF 33 4-10 9-10 2 9 1 3 17
Rodney Epperson SF 32 6-13 3-4 5 8 4 3 15
Daryll Hill SG 35 8-17 2-2 0 3 3 3 19
Eugene Lawrence PG 35 8-9 6-7 1 3 9 3 25
Phil Missere C 17 3-5 2-2 1 5 0 2 8
Ryan Williams SF 11 0-5 5-6 2 4 0 2 5
Devin Mayo SG 6 2-2 0-0 0 2 2 1 4
Lashard Duran PG 4 1-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 2
Nygel Roach PG 1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0

Turnovers: 14 (M.Diakite 1, L.Hamilton 3, R.Epperson 3,
D.Hill 5, E.Lawrence 2)
Blocked Shots: 6 (M.Diakite 3, L.Hamilton 1, R.Epperson
1, P.Missere 1)
Steals: 12 (D.Hill 5, E.Lawrence 7)
3P FGs: 4-9 (R.Epperson 0-1, D.Hill 1-3, E.Lawrence
3-4, R.Williams 0-1)

Player of Game: PG Eugene Lawrence (STJN)

Game Summary:

Game Stats PA ST STJN
Halftime Score 49 66
FGM-FGA 28-62 37-69
FG% .452 .536
FTM-FTA 22-25 29-35
FT% .880 .829
3PM-3PA 5-10 4-9
3P% .500 .444
Rebounds 32 40
Assists 16 19
Steals 9 12
Blocks 5 6
Turnovers 23 14
Team Fouls 24 19


I have to say that this was our best single game performance to date. Johnson and Parker got their points, but Eugene Lawrence, our freshman was unstoppable tonight. He went 8 for 9 from the field, only missing on one of his 4 three point attempts. He led all scorers with 25 points, and our entire starting 5 cracked double digits in scoring. Lawrence also dished out 8 assists to go along with his 25 points.

[Dekanth]

December 18, 2004

St. John's (6-2) at Fairleigh Dickinson (5-3)

Despite their record, this should be an easy win for us, even on the road. Their only legit player is PF Gordon Klaiber, but Hamilton should be able to have his way with him. They only beat 1 team with a winning record and that was Monmouth.



St. John's 92, Fairleigh Dickinson 90

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
St. John's (7-2):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 27 2-3 1-2 1 6 0 4 5
Lamont Hamilton PF 35 10-15 7-8 1 12 3 3 27
Rodney Epperson SF 30 3-13 2-2 1 5 3 3 8
Daryll Hill SG 35 6-12 11-12 3 6 7 1 23
Eugene Lawrence PG 16 3-7 0-0 0 0 3 5 7
Phil Missere C 17 3-3 2-2 0 2 1 2 8
Ryan Williams PF 11 2-5 0-0 0 2 0 1 4
Devin Mayo PG 20 4-8 2-2 2 5 1 1 10
Lashard Duran PG 5 0-1 0-0 0 1 0 0 0
Nygel Roach SG 3 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 0 0

Turnovers: 13 (M.Diakite 4, L.Hamilton 3, R.Epperson 2,
D.Hill 1, E.Lawrence 1, P.Missere 1, L.Duran 1)
Blocked Shots: 7 (M.Diakite 1, L.Hamilton 4, P.Missere
1, R.Williams 1)
Steals: 6 (R.Epperson 3, E.Lawrence 1, P.Missere 1,
D.Mayo 1)
3P FGs: 1-8 (D.Hill 0-4, E.Lawrence 1-4)

Fairleigh Dickinson (5-4):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Andrea Crosariol C 21 3-5 3-4 2 13 3 4 9
Gordon Klaiber PF 36 5-20 8-9 2 9 2 3 18
Michael Peeples SF 29 1-4 1-2 3 7 3 2 3
Mensah Peterson SG 25 2-3 4-4 0 1 0 4 10
Tamien Trent PG 33 8-14 3-4 1 3 12 3 20
Andre Harris C 17 3-6 3-4 1 1 0 4 9
Chad Timberlake SG 24 7-12 2-2 1 2 0 2 20
Bernal Murray PG 8 0-2 1-2 1 2 1 3 1
Gadi Buch C 6 0-2 0-0 0 1 0 1 0

Turnovers: 11 (A.Crosariol 3, G.Klaiber 2, M.Peeples 1,
T.Trent 4, B.Murray 1)
Blocked Shots: 4 (A.Crosariol 1, G.Klaiber 2, A.Harris
1)
Steals: 5 (A.Crosariol 1, G.Klaiber 1, T.Trent 2,
C.Timberlake 1)
3P FGs: 7-16 (M.Peeples 0-1, M.Peterson 2-2, T.Trent
1-4, C.Timberlake 4-6, B.Murray 0-1, G.Buch 0-2)

Player of Game: PF Lamont Hamilton (STJN)

Game Summary:

Game Stats STJN FADK
Halftime Score 51 45
FGM-FGA 33-67 29-68
FG% .493 .426
FTM-FTA 25-28 25-31
FT% .893 .806
3PM-3PA 1-8 7-16
3P% .125 .438
Rebounds 40 39
Assists 19 21
Steals 6 5
Blocks 7 4
Turnovers 13 11
Team Fouls 20 26



This team stuck around and stuck around and finally tied the game with 19 seconds left to play. With the score knotted 90-90, we take possession. With time running down, we feed the ball to Epperson who drives baseline, hangs a floater as time expires and watches it go in for the 92-90 victory. A very tough game and I have to give FDU all the credit in the world, but I am proud of my guys for grinding this one out.

[Dekanth]

December 22, 2004

Hartford (5-5) at St. John's (7-2)

Hartford runs a 4 guard set and has one good one in Aaron Cook, who is averaging 26.5 points per game. Still, he has played very bad competition and I have all the confidence in the world in our guards being able to hold him in check. Epperson, and Hamilton should be able to eat this team up.



St. John's 89, Hartford 42

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hartford (5-6):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Tony Lalor C 25 1-5 0-0 3 5 2 5 2
Bernard Lowndes PF 29 0-7 1-2 1 3 1 3 1
D. Rembert SF 21 3-8 8-9 0 4 0 5 14
Charles Ford SG 35 1-10 0-0 0 4 1 2 2
Aaron Cook PG 17 1-5 4-4 1 3 0 4 6
Trevor Goode PF 19 1-4 0-0 1 5 0 3 2
R. 'Bo' Taylor Jr.SF 14 2-4 4-4 3 3 0 1 8
Sean Regan SF 11 2-4 0-2 1 2 0 2 4
Brian Glowiak PG 28 1-2 1-4 1 3 3 3 3

Turnovers: 26 (T.Lalor 4, B.Lowndes 1, D.Rembert 1,
C.Ford 3, A.Cook 8, R.'Bo' Taylor Jr. 3, S.Regan 1,
B.Glowiak 5)
Blocked Shots: 0
Steals: 5 (T.Lalor 3, C.Ford 2)
3P FGs: 0-5 (D.Rembert 0-2, C.Ford 0-2, R.'Bo' Taylor
Jr. 0-1)

St. John's (8-2):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 26 3-6 0-0 1 6 2 3 6
Lamont Hamilton PF 34 3-10 9-10 2 8 1 2 15
Rodney Epperson SF 26 6-13 6-6 4 9 0 5 19
Daryll Hill SG 35 6-8 7-7 1 2 0 3 20
Eugene Lawrence PG 33 2-7 8-9 2 5 4 2 13
Phil Missere SF 23 2-5 5-6 1 7 1 3 9
Ryan Williams PF 11 0-2 1-2 2 5 3 1 1
Devin Mayo PG 8 1-2 0-0 0 1 2 2 2
Lashard Duran SG 3 1-2 2-2 0 0 0 0 4
Nygel Roach PG 1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0

Turnovers: 15 (M.Diakite 2, L.Hamilton 2, R.Epperson 1,
D.Hill 7, E.Lawrence 3)
Blocked Shots: 10 (M.Diakite 1, L.Hamilton 4,
R.Epperson 1, P.Missere 4)
Steals: 13 (L.Hamilton 4, R.Epperson 2, D.Hill 4,
E.Lawrence 2, P.Missere 1)
3P FGs: 3-6 (R.Epperson 1-1, D.Hill 1-2, E.Lawrence 1-3)

Player of Game: PF Lamont Hamilton (STJN)

Game Summary:

Game Stats HRTFD STJN
Halftime Score 21 52
FGM-FGA 12-49 24-55
FG% .245 .436
FTM-FTA 18-25 38-42
FT% .720 .905
3PM-3PA 0-5 3-6
3P% .000 .500
Rebounds 32 43
Assists 7 13
Steals 5 13
Blocks 0 10
Turnovers 26 15
Team Fouls 28 21


The game was over at the half, where we took a 52-21 lead into the lockerrooms. Hill and Epperson led our team with 20 and 19 points respectively. We totally outclassed and outmanned Hartford, which we should be doing year in and year out.

[Dekanth]

December 27, 2004

Niagara (7-1) at St. John's (8-2)

This Niagara team can play. Their only loss comes to Maryland. They have a senior PF by the name of Juan Mendez who can flat out play with anyone in the country. He is averaging 29.4 points per game along with 11.5 rebounds. Hamilton vs. Mendez should be quite the matchup. They also have a couple of nice shooters from the outside, but overall their defense is pretty weak. Playing at home, we should be able to explot their defense and win this game.




St. John's 89, Niagara 63

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Niagara (7-2):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
James Mathis C 27 0-2 0-0 0 3 0 4 0
Juan Mendez PF 35 12-21 9-10 1 9 2 3 33
J.R Duffey SF 32 2-9 0-0 2 4 1 4 5
David Brooks SG 27 3-8 2-3 1 5 2 4 9
Alvin Cruz PG 35 1-6 0-0 0 1 4 2 2
Lorenzo Miles SG 18 2-5 2-2 1 1 2 3 8
Vojtech Sedlacek C 13 2-4 2-2 0 3 2 1 6
Richard Mayes C 10 0-1 0-2 1 3 2 1 0
Charron Fisher SF 4 0-1 0-0 0 0 1 0 0

Turnovers: 21 (J.Mendez 3, J.Duffey 3, D.Brooks 4,
A.Cruz 7, V.Sedlacek 2, R.Mayes 2)
Blocked Shots: 1 (V.Sedlacek 1)
Steals: 3 (J.Mendez 1, D.Brooks 1, R.Mayes 1)
3P FGs: 4-15 (J.Duffey 1-5, D.Brooks 1-3, A.Cruz 0-3,
L.Miles 2-3, R.Mayes 0-1)

St. John's (9-2):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 26 2-5 4-6 3 10 3 2 8
Lamont Hamilton PF 24 11-13 4-4 5 7 1 5 26
Rodney Epperson SF 33 5-13 4-4 6 11 4 1 14
Daryll Hill SG 24 6-11 4-6 0 3 4 4 16
Eugene Lawrence PG 33 5-13 2-4 1 4 3 3 14
Phil Missere C 16 2-3 2-2 0 2 0 4 6
Ryan Williams PF 22 1-4 3-6 2 8 1 1 5
Devin Mayo SG 16 0-3 0-0 0 2 0 1 0
Lashard Duran PG 6 0-3 0-0 1 1 1 1 0

Turnovers: 14 (M.Diakite 5, R.Epperson 1, D.Hill 3,
E.Lawrence 3, R.Williams 1, L.Duran 1)
Blocked Shots: 6 (M.Diakite 3, R.Epperson 2, E.Lawrence
1)
Steals: 9 (L.Hamilton 1, R.Epperson 1, D.Hill 2,
E.Lawrence 4, P.Missere 1)
3P FGs: 2-12 (D.Hill 0-3, E.Lawrence 2-7, R.Williams
0-2)

Player of Game: PF Lamont Hamilton (STJN)

Game Summary:

Game Stats NIAGA STJN
Halftime Score 42 40
FGM-FGA 22-57 32-68
FG% .386 .471
FTM-FTA 15-19 23-32
FT% .789 .719
3PM-3PA 4-15 2-12
3P% .267 .167
Rebounds 29 48
Assists 16 17
Steals 3 9
Blocks 1 6
Turnovers 21 14
Team Fouls 22 22



Mendez vs. Hamilton was everything we expected and more. While Mendez outscored Hamilton, he also went 12 for 21 while Hamilton was a much more productive 11 for 13. The difference, obviously, is that Niagara had nobody else who could put the ball int eh bucket. Epperson, Hill and Lawrence all scored in double figures and we were able to come back from a 2 point halftime defecit to wear them down and take the 26 point victory.

[Dekanth]

December 31, 2004

Albany (6-6) at St. John's (9-2)

This is our final game beore our Big East schedule begins, and we should go to 10-2 after today. There is nobody on their team who can match up with any of our players. This should be a blowout.




St. John's 81, Albany 59

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Albany (6-7):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Kirsten Zoellner C 31 4-5 7-8 2 6 4 0 15
Brent Wilson PF 33 2-3 2-3 0 7 2 4 6
Levi Levine SF 25 3-7 2-2 0 6 2 2 10
Jamar Wilson SG 34 3-7 2-2 0 4 5 3 9
Jon Iati PG 35 3-16 0-0 0 2 2 2 7
A. St. Hillaire SF 15 3-4 0-0 0 1 1 3 6
Kevin Kessel C 9 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 0 0
Chris Wyatt PF 7 1-1 0-0 0 1 0 2 2
Lucious Jordan SG 10 2-3 0-0 0 0 1 0 4

Turnovers: 28 (K.Zoellner 3, B.Wilson 1, L.Levine 5,
J.Wilson 10, J.Iati 6, A.St. Hillaire 1, K.Kessel 1,
C.Wyatt 1)
Blocked Shots: 0
Steals: 9 (B.Wilson 2, L.Levine 1, J.Wilson 3, J.Iati
1, L.Jordan 2)
3P FGs: 4-15 (L.Levine 2-3, J.Wilson 1-3, J.Iati 1-9)

St. John's (10-2):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 26 6-8 2-2 2 9 3 0 14
Lamont Hamilton PF 26 6-15 6-9 5 7 1 5 18
Rodney Epperson SF 33 6-14 4-4 2 4 2 2 16
Daryll Hill SG 35 3-7 3-3 0 5 1 1 10
Eugene Lawrence PG 35 6-12 0-0 1 4 7 3 14
Phil Missere C 22 2-3 0-1 1 2 1 3 4
Ryan Williams PF 13 0-2 1-2 0 3 1 0 1
Devin Mayo SG 5 1-2 0-0 0 0 0 1 2
Lashard Duran PG 3 1-2 0-0 0 1 0 0 2
Nygel Roach PG 2 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0

Turnovers: 17 (L.Hamilton 2, R.Epperson 2, D.Hill 5,
E.Lawrence 5, L.Duran 1, N.Roach 2)
Blocked Shots: 2 (L.Hamilton 1, P.Missere 1)
Steals: 10 (L.Hamilton 1, R.Epperson 3, D.Hill 2,
E.Lawrence 3, R.Williams 1)
3P FGs: 3-11 (R.Epperson 0-2, D.Hill 1-4, E.Lawrence
2-4, R.Williams 0-1)

Player of Game: C Mohammed Diakite (STJN)

Game Summary:

Game Stats ALBNY STJN
Halftime Score 30 41
FGM-FGA 21-47 31-65
FG% .447 .477
FTM-FTA 13-15 16-21
FT% .867 .762
3PM-3PA 4-15 3-11
3P% .267 .273
Rebounds 27 35
Assists 17 16
Steals 9 10
Blocks 0 2
Turnovers 28 17
Team Fouls 16 15


As expected, this was little more than a warm up game for our guys. All of our starters scored in double figures and we have good confidence going for the Big East teams who we will start facing starting next week.

[Balldog]

Good read, you are making me want to start up a dynasty of my own using real players.

[Dekanth]

Good read, you are making me want to start up a dynasty of my own using real players.

Thanks for reading along. The real rosters that are out there have some issues, but they are decent enough to use.

[Dekanth]

January 5, 2005

West Virginia (9-2) at St. John's (10-2)

A couple of days before this game we were informed that our back PF, Ryan Williams was suspended for a month due to academic problems. This hurts the team as he is the only other PF or C on the team besides our starters. He was our bench for the post positions. Senior SF Phil Messere will have to fill the role as best he can and our starters will have to play lots of minutes.

As for the Mountaineers, they have a real solid club, but they did not challenge themselves in the earyl season. The toughest team they played was Penn State. They alos have losses to Southern Utah and Kent State. They play solid defense though and Kevin Pittsnogle is a matchup nightmare. The guy is 7 feet tall and plays like a SG. He is their leading scorer at 19 points per game. D'or Fischer and Mike Gansey are both averaging over 10 per game as well.



St. John's 82, West Virginia 73

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
West Virginia (9-3):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
D'or Fischer C 33 6-10 5-6 0 4 2 4 17
Luke Bonner PF 23 1-3 0-0 4 10 4 4 2
Kevin Pittsnogle SF 30 7-16 2-4 1 7 2 2 18
Mike Gansey SG 30 3-7 3-4 0 3 3 2 11
Darris Nichols PG 24 2-5 0-0 0 0 3 2 5
Joe Herber SF 15 2-2 3-4 0 1 1 3 7
Brad Byerson PF 18 0-1 0-2 0 2 1 3 0
Patrick Beilein SG 10 2-3 1-1 0 1 0 1 5
J.D. Collins PG 16 3-5 0-1 0 1 1 0 8
Tyrone Sally PF 1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0

Turnovers: 19 (D.Fischer 3, K.Pittsnogle 6, M.Gansey 1,
D.Nichols 3, J.Herber 1, B.Byerson 1, P.Beilein 1,
J.Collins 3)
Blocked Shots: 5 (D.Fischer 3, L.Bonner 1, K.Pittsnogle
1)
Steals: 9 (D.Fischer 1, L.Bonner 1, M.Gansey 3,
J.Herber 1, P.Beilein 1, J.Collins 2)
3P FGs: 7-20 (L.Bonner 0-1, K.Pittsnogle 2-6, M.Gansey
2-6, D.Nichols 1-3, P.Beilein 0-1, J.Collins 2-3)

St. John's (11-2):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 29 2-6 1-2 2 7 1 3 5
Lamont Hamilton PF 33 2-7 10-14 5 12 3 1 14
Rodney Epperson SF 26 5-10 1-1 2 6 6 4 11
Daryll Hill SG 26 6-12 5-6 3 4 1 3 19
Eugene Lawrence PG 33 3-11 0-0 0 2 3 3 7
Phil Missere C 21 4-8 2-3 3 6 1 2 10
Devin Mayo SG 10 2-4 0-0 0 2 1 0 4
Lashard Duran SF 16 2-4 4-4 1 1 0 2 8
Nygel Roach SG 6 2-3 0-0 0 1 0 0 4

Turnovers: 16 (M.Diakite 4, L.Hamilton 3, R.Epperson 1,
D.Hill 2, E.Lawrence 4, L.Duran 1, N.Roach 1)
Blocked Shots: 0
Steals: 9 (M.Diakite 1, L.Hamilton 1, D.Hill 2,
E.Lawrence 4, D.Mayo 1)
3P FGs: 3-10 (R.Epperson 0-1, D.Hill 2-3, E.Lawrence
1-6)

Player of Game: PG Daryll Hill (STJN)

Game Summary:

Game Stats WVU STJN
Halftime Score 45 49
FGM-FGA 26-52 28-65
FG% .500 .431
FTM-FTA 14-22 23-30
FT% .636 .767
3PM-3PA 7-20 3-10
3P% .350 .300
Rebounds 29 41
Assists 17 16
Steals 9 9
Blocks 5 0
Turnovers 19 16
Team Fouls 21 18


We controlled the game for the most part, and held Pittsnogle in check for the most part. He got his points, but we didn't let him go off on us, and the rest of their players were not capable of carrying the team. Hill was our leading scorer with 19 and you have to admire the work Hamilton does in the paint, as he recorded a double double.

[Dekanth]

January 8, 2005

St. John's (11-2) at #10 Syracuse (13-1)

We travel up to the Carrier Dome for a big showdown to see who is the best basketball team in the state of New York. The Orange still have a few leftovers from their Title run a few years back, namely Hakim Warrick. Warrick is averaging 23.7 points per game. They also have Gerry McNamara as an outside threat. Add to the mix outstanding 'glue-guy' Josh Pace and we are in for a huge challenge on the road.



Syracuse 101, St. John's 80

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
St. John's (11-3):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 28 3-10 4-5 1 2 1 2 10
Lamont Hamilton PF 29 6-12 8-8 4 11 4 5 20
Rodney Epperson SF 34 4-12 10-10 2 5 3 4 18
Daryll Hill SG 34 4-8 3-4 0 1 2 2 13
Eugene Lawrence PG 34 4-7 1-2 0 2 7 3 9
Phil Missere C 25 2-6 2-2 1 6 2 5 6
Devin Mayo SG 6 0-0 0-1 0 0 0 1 0
Lashard Duran SF 7 2-2 0-0 0 3 0 2 4
Nygel Roach SG 4 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0

Turnovers: 21 (M.Diakite 1, L.Hamilton 1, R.Epperson 3,
D.Hill 6, E.Lawrence 7, P.Missere 1, L.Duran 2)
Blocked Shots: 7 (M.Diakite 2, L.Hamilton 1, P.Missere
4)
Steals: 3 (D.Hill 2, P.Missere 1)
3P FGs: 2-6 (R.Epperson 0-1, D.Hill 2-3, E.Lawrence 0-2)

Syracuse (14-1):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Craig Forth C 16 2-5 3-6 3 5 0 4 7
Hakim Warrick PF 17 7-11 9-10 2 5 3 4 23
Josh Pace SF 35 5-6 4-6 2 3 5 3 14
Josh Wright SG 20 5-8 0-0 0 3 3 5 10
Gerry McNamara PG 35 5-7 4-4 0 3 5 2 15
Darryl Watkins C 27 6-7 2-2 0 8 0 2 14
Terrence Roberts PF 20 3-10 4-5 2 3 1 2 10
Billy Edelin SG 20 3-8 1-2 1 3 3 0 7
Logan Gabriel PG 5 0-0 0-0 0 0 1 0 0
Demetris Nichols PF 5 0-0 1-2 0 2 0 0 1

Turnovers: 16 (H.Warrick 3, J.Wright 1, G.McNamara 5,
D.Watkins 2, T.Roberts 3, L.Gabriel 2)
Blocked Shots: 5 (C.Forth 1, D.Watkins 4)
Steals: 14 (C.Forth 1, J.Pace 3, J.Wright 4, G.McNamara
2, T.Roberts 2, B.Edelin 2)
3P FGs: 1-2 (G.McNamara 1-2)

Player of Game: SG Josh Pace (SYR)

Game Summary:

Game Stats STJN SYR
Halftime Score 38 53
FGM-FGA 25-57 36-62
FG% .439 .581
FTM-FTA 28-32 28-37
FT% .875 .757
3PM-3PA 2-6 1-2
3P% .333 .500
Rebounds 30 35
Assists 19 21
Steals 3 14
Blocks 7 5
Turnovers 21 16
Team Fouls 24 22


Totally outclassed here today, and really not much of a surprise. There is still a huge gap between the top Big East teams and us. Hamilton showed he can play with the best of them and just about matched Hakim Warrick, but Syracuse just has way too many weapons.

[Dekanth]

Current Top 25 Poll


Top 25 Poll

# School FPV Record Points Previous
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Maryland (54) 14-2 1782 1
2. Notre Dame (18) 16-1 1725 2
3. Kentucky 13-2 1611 4
4. Syracuse 14-1 1469 10
5. Cincinnati 14-2 1459 5
6. Arkansas 10-3 1456 9
7. Florida 13-3 1330 11
8. Wake Forest 12-3 1289 3
9. North Carolina 11-4 1243 15
10. Michigan State 12-3 1238 12
11. Stanford 12-1 1224 6
12. Louisville 14-1 967 17
13. Kansas 11-4 882 8
14. Connecticut 8-6 876 21
15. Georgia Tech 11-1 771 19
16. Iowa 9-5 601 23
17. Memphis 11-2 583 13
18. Illinois 10-5 506 16
19. Miami 11-4 471 18
20. Louisiana State 11-3 439 22
21. Colorado 12-1 423 7
22. Oklahoma 9-6 415 25
23. Tennessee 12-3 335 NR
24. Duke 12-3 164 14
25. Arizona 10-6 83 NR

Others Receiving Votes:
Rutgers 11-2 49
UCLA 11-5 6
North Carolina State 10-3 3



I think you have to be a little surprised at some of the teams in the top 10.

1)Maryland. They are taking on everyone and coming away winners this year. Already they have beaten BC, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame, Indiana, Illinois, Uconn and Wake Forest. Their defense is just stellar, they are ranked 16th in the nation. They are 2nd in blocks and 9th in steals. Offensively, they just don't really scare you though. Nik Caner-Medley is their leading scorer at 18.0 per game. Chris McCray is at 16.9 and John Gilchrist is at 13.4.



2)Notre Dame. They have not played the most challenging schedule, but they are getting the job done. They are ranked in the top 20 in total offense and defense. Sophomore SG Colin Falls is lighting it up with a 23.5 ppg average. Chris Quinn, Torin Francis and Chris Thomas all are averaging over 10 points per game.

[Dekanth]

Continue to look at the top teams in the nation in early January.

3)Kentucky. Kentucky is always top 5, aren't they? This toried program is havinga nother great year. They are ranked #2 in the nation in scoring defense. Kelenna Azubuike leads the team in scoring with 23.5 points per game. Patrick Sparks, chuck Hayes and Rajon Rondo are all in double figures as well.


4)Syracuse. We know this team all to well. Hakim Warrick, Gerry McNamara and The Carrier Dome. They are going to have a fun season up there this year.



5)Cincinnati. They have the #7 scoring defense in the nation. They beat Wake Forest and Kentucky on back to back games, then went into Cameron and beat Duke on their home floor this year. 4 players are averaging double digits in scoring, led by Jason Maxiell with 16.4 and Eric Hicks at 15.9.



6)Arkansas. This is a little deceiving. The best teams they have played account for all their losses. I don't think we will see them up here in a month from now. They have 3 guys on academic suspension this month and will be playing 8 guys total for the next month. Ronnie Brewer is leading this team with a 20.8 scoring average.



7)Florida. They have back to back wins over Illinois and North Carolina as of late, which propels them into the top 10. Anthony Roberson and Matt Walsh are both averaging just over 19 points a game. Their defense is ranked 24th in the nation.


8)Wake Forest. They have a top 6 defense. They have a great center in Eric Williams, who is averaging 23.3 ppg and 8 rebounds. They have a stellar PG in Chris Paul. Junior Justin Gray can stroke it from the outside as well. Despite the #8 ranking, you have to have this team going to the Final Four this year.


9)North Carolina. Defensively, they struggle a bit, ranked only 57 in the nation. Offensively they are also not clicking yet. The team has loads of talent though. Sean May and Rashad McCants are both averaging over 20 per game. You know the cast by now: Williams, Williams, Felton and Scott along with McCants and May. You have to expect them to get it together and make a big run this year.


10)Michigan State. A solid defense and anice one-two punch with Alan Anderson and Paul Davis. Maurice Ager is also a lethal scorer.

[Dekanth]

January 12, 2005

St. John's (11-3) at #2 Notre Dame (16-1)

The Big East league offices sure didn't do us any favors, scheduling Syracuse and Notre Dame, back to back and both on the road. See above for a team breakdown on them. We have little chance at pulling the big time upset.



Notre Dame 88, St. John's 55

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
St. John's (11-4):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 27 0-4 0-0 2 4 0 4 0
Lamont Hamilton PF 20 0-5 0-0 1 5 1 4 0
Rodney Epperson SF 34 5-19 3-4 2 5 0 3 14
Daryll Hill SG 34 2-10 1-2 1 3 2 2 6
Eugene Lawrence PG 35 4-6 6-6 1 4 2 2 15
Phil Missere C 23 3-4 2-4 1 1 0 4 8
Devin Mayo SG 10 3-6 0-0 0 1 1 4 6
Lashard Duran PF 16 3-7 0-1 3 6 1 4 6
Nygel Roach PG 1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0

Turnovers: 13 (M.Diakite 1, L.Hamilton 1, D.Hill 1,
E.Lawrence 9, D.Mayo 1)
Blocked Shots: 3 (M.Diakite 3)
Steals: 6 (R.Epperson 2, D.Hill 1, E.Lawrence 1,
P.Missere 1, L.Duran 1)
3P FGs: 3-9 (L.Hamilton 0-1, R.Epperson 1-2, D.Hill
1-3, E.Lawrence 1-3)

Notre Dame (17-1):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Dennis Latimore C 32 1-3 5-6 3 14 0 2 7
Torin Francis PF 27 0-2 5-6 1 10 1 4 5
Colin Falls SF 35 8-13 12-12 0 2 1 4 34
Chris Quinn SG 35 6-13 2-2 1 4 5 3 15
Chris Thomas PG 35 3-9 2-2 3 4 2 2 10
Rick Cornett PF 18 3-4 2-2 1 5 1 2 8
Jordan Cornette C 8 1-2 2-2 0 3 1 0 4
Russell Carter PG 10 0-2 5-6 0 0 1 2 5

Turnovers: 16 (D.Latimore 1, T.Francis 1, C.Falls 2,
C.Thomas 5, R.Cornett 2, J.Cornette 1, R.Carter 4)
Blocked Shots: 8 (D.Latimore 2, T.Francis 3, C.Quinn 1,
R.Cornett 2)
Steals: 6 (C.Falls 1, C.Quinn 3, C.Thomas 1, R.Carter 1)
3P FGs: 9-26 (C.Falls 6-11, C.Quinn 1-7, C.Thomas 2-5,
J.Cornette 0-1, R.Carter 0-2)

Player of Game: SG Colin Falls (ND)

Game Summary:

Game Stats STJN ND
Halftime Score 31 39
FGM-FGA 20-61 22-48
FG% .328 .458
FTM-FTA 12-17 35-38
FT% .706 .921
3PM-3PA 3-9 9-26
3P% .333 .346
Rebounds 29 42
Assists 7 12
Steals 6 6
Blocks 3 8
Turnovers 13 16
Team Fouls 27 19


This is embarrasing. Diakite and Hamilton put up goose-eggs. Colin Falls goes off for 34 points. End of story.

[Dekanth]

January 15, 2005

St. John's (11-4) at Virginia Tech (8-4)

Here are the games on the road that we have to win to start gaining some respect around this league. These guys plays a pretty strong perimeter defense and they play a 4 guard lineup. It is in the paint where we should gain an advantage. Look for Hamilton to come back strong from his oh-fer night. We need him tonight.



Virginia Tech 79, St. John's 75

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
St. John's (11-5):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 24 3-4 0-0 0 3 3 5 6
Lamont Hamilton PF 35 7-13 5-5 2 5 2 1 19
Rodney Epperson SF 30 6-11 2-3 1 6 0 5 14
Daryll Hill SG 35 6-13 0-0 0 2 4 4 13
Eugene Lawrence PG 34 2-5 2-2 0 5 4 3 6
Phil Missere C 12 3-3 2-2 1 2 0 5 9
Devin Mayo SG 9 0-1 0-0 0 2 0 1 0
Lashard Duran SF 16 3-3 2-2 1 2 0 4 8
Nygel Roach SF 5 0-2 0-0 0 2 1 0 0

Turnovers: 22 (M.Diakite 1, L.Hamilton 2, R.Epperson 5,
D.Hill 5, E.Lawrence 5, P.Missere 2, L.Duran 1,
N.Roach 1)
Blocked Shots: 1 (L.Hamilton 1)
Steals: 10 (M.Diakite 2, R.Epperson 2, D.Hill 3,
E.Lawrence 2, D.Mayo 1)
3P FGs: 2-9 (L.Hamilton 0-1, D.Hill 1-4, E.Lawrence
0-2, P.Missere 1-1, N.Roach 0-1)

Virginia Tech (9-4):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Deron Washington C 34 4-4 5-10 0 8 1 3 13
Coleman Collins PF 35 1-2 2-2 0 2 0 2 4
Carlos Dixon SF 31 4-9 4-5 1 4 3 3 15
Zabian Dowdell SG 15 2-3 2-2 0 0 0 5 7
Jamon Gordon PG 40 4-12 15-17 3 5 6 2 24
Robert Krabbendam C 11 1-2 0-0 0 1 0 0 2
W. Witherspoon SF 9 0-1 0-0 0 1 0 1 0
Shawn Harris SG 25 4-7 6-8 0 3 1 0 14

Turnovers: 21 (D.Washington 4, C.Collins 1, C.Dixon 2,
Z.Dowdell 2, J.Gordon 5, W.Witherspoon 2, S.Harris 5)
Blocked Shots: 1 (C.Collins 1)
Steals: 11 (D.Washington 1, C.Collins 2, C.Dixon 3,
J.Gordon 2, S.Harris 3)
3P FGs: 5-15 (C.Dixon 3-7, Z.Dowdell 1-1, J.Gordon 1-6,
S.Harris 0-1)

Player of Game: PG Jamon Gordon (VATC)

Game Summary:

Game Stats STJN VATC
Halftime Score 40 34
FGM-FGA 30-55 20-40
FG% .545 .500
FTM-FTA 13-14 34-44
FT% .929 .773
3PM-3PA 2-9 5-15
3P% .222 .333
Rebounds 29 24
Assists 14 11
Steals 10 11
Blocks 1 1
Turnovers 22 21
Team Fouls 28 16


Early in the second half, Tech took the lead and never looked back. We couldn't stop their PG, Jamon Gordon. Every time he touched the ball the refs blew the whistle. He had more free throw attempts than our entire team. The refs really gave Tech a nice home job. I wonder what the payoff was. Really, just look at the free throw differential.

[Dekanth]

January 19, 2005

St. John's (11-5) at #11 Miami (13-4)

The schedule is not getting any easier yet. We are in real danger of slipping to 1-4 in conference play, unless we can somehow find a way to win here tonight. Miami seems to run out an interesting lineup of 3 power forwards and 2 point guards, but they obviously are getting the job done. Anthony King might be the best defender in the nation and he will be all over Hamilton like a blanket. Guillermo Diaz is leading the team with over 20 points per game and Robert Hite is at 19.7. Trying to limit those 2 guys are the key to this game for us.



Miami 81, St. John's 73

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
St. John's (11-6):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 25 4-6 2-4 2 8 0 2 10
Lamont Hamilton PF 35 7-16 5-7 3 9 2 4 19
Rodney Epperson SF 34 5-13 6-6 3 10 4 1 17
Daryll Hill SG 23 5-10 4-4 0 1 1 5 16
Eugene Lawrence PG 34 2-10 1-2 0 4 7 3 6
Phil Missere C 22 0-2 1-2 0 3 0 1 1
Devin Mayo SG 17 2-5 0-0 0 0 1 3 4
Lashard Duran SF 7 0-2 0-0 0 1 0 1 0
Nygel Roach PG 3 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0

Turnovers: 12 (M.Diakite 3, L.Hamilton 2, R.Epperson 2,
D.Hill 4, N.Roach 1)
Blocked Shots: 7 (M.Diakite 4, L.Hamilton 1, D.Hill 1,
P.Missere 1)
Steals: 11 (R.Epperson 2, D.Hill 1, E.Lawrence 3,
P.Missere 1, D.Mayo 3, N.Roach 1)
3P FGs: 4-14 (L.Hamilton 0-1, R.Epperson 1-3, D.Hill
2-3, E.Lawrence 1-6, P.Missere 0-1)

Miami (14-4):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Gary Hamilton C 34 3-5 2-2 2 10 1 3 8
Anthony King PF 34 4-7 4-4 2 9 2 2 12
William Frisby SF 29 3-12 7-8 6 13 1 2 13
Guillermo Diaz SG 34 7-15 5-6 1 6 1 3 22
Robert Hite PG 14 3-7 2-2 0 2 2 5 9
Anthony Harris PG 32 3-11 2-2 0 3 8 1 9
Raymond Hicks SF 22 3-7 2-2 1 4 0 1 8

Turnovers: 15 (G.Hamilton 2, A.King 1, W.Frisby 2,
G.Diaz 3, R.Hite 3, A.Harris 2, R.Hicks 2)
Blocked Shots: 2 (A.King 2)
Steals: 6 (G.Hamilton 1, G.Diaz 4, R.Hite 1)
3P FGs: 5-17 (W.Frisby 0-1, G.Diaz 3-5, R.Hite 1-3,
A.Harris 1-8)

Player of Game: PG Guillermo Diaz (MIAMI)

Game Summary:

Game Stats STJN MIAMI
Halftime Score 42 40
FGM-FGA 25-64 26-64
FG% .391 .406
FTM-FTA 19-25 24-26
FT% .760 .923
3PM-3PA 4-14 5-17
3P% .286 .294
Rebounds 36 47
Assists 15 15
Steals 11 6
Blocks 7 2
Turnovers 12 15
Team Fouls 20 17


We hung in there after leading by 2 at the half, but couldn't close the deal. We did a nice job on Hite, but Diaz got his 22 points. Hamilton did a nice job scoring 19, but they were just a little too good on this night and it was on their home court. We may take them on our home court in a couple of weeks.

[Dekanth]

January 26, 2005

St. John's (11-6) at Providence (12-5)

The Friar's just might have the best offensive player in the Big East, in Ryan Gomes. He is averaging almost 26 points per game this year as well as 7.1 rebounds per game. Their perimeter defense is excellent and what Gomes lacks in defense in the post, center Randall Hanke makes up for it with his shot blocking and overall excellent defensive skills. Being on the road, this is going to be another tough one. In addition to Gomes, they have 3 other players averaging in double digits.



Providence 91, St. John's 59

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
St. John's (11-7):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 24 2-5 2-3 0 2 0 4 6
Lamont Hamilton PF 22 3-5 2-2 0 1 0 5 8
Rodney Epperson SF 34 6-12 0-0 0 1 2 2 12
Daryll Hill SG 34 5-11 9-10 1 4 4 4 20
Eugene Lawrence PG 36 2-4 3-3 0 2 4 3 8
Phil Missere C 28 1-3 0-0 0 4 0 4 2
Devin Mayo SG 12 0-5 3-4 1 1 3 3 3
Lashard Duran PF 9 0-3 0-0 0 0 0 5 0
Nygel Roach PG 2 0-0 0-2 0 0 0 0 0

Turnovers: 23 (M.Diakite 3, L.Hamilton 1, R.Epperson 2,
D.Hill 5, E.Lawrence 9, P.Missere 1, L.Duran 2)
Blocked Shots: 2 (M.Diakite 1, L.Hamilton 1)
Steals: 10 (M.Diakite 2, L.Hamilton 1, R.Epperson 1,
D.Hill 2, E.Lawrence 4)
3P FGs: 2-2 (D.Hill 1-1, E.Lawrence 1-1)

Providence (13-5):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Randall Hanke C 30 4-6 4-4 2 13 0 2 12
Ryan Gomes PF 35 10-15 13-14 1 5 2 3 35
Tuukka Kotti SF 34 0-1 4-4 1 4 2 1 4
Dwight Brewington SG 23 4-7 5-6 1 3 2 4 14
Gerald Brown PG 13 2-4 0-0 0 1 0 4 6
Herbert Hill C 16 2-4 3-3 2 7 2 2 7
Donnie McGrath PG 27 2-3 6-6 0 4 4 3 11
Rob McKiver SG 17 1-3 0-0 1 1 0 2 2
Sean Van de Walle SF 6 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 1 0

Turnovers: 27 (R.Hanke 5, R.Gomes 6, T.Kotti 2,
D.Brewington 5, G.Brown 1, H.Hill 1, D.McGrath 3,
R.McKiver 4)
Blocked Shots: 6 (R.Hanke 4, H.Hill 2)
Steals: 10 (R.Hanke 3, R.Gomes 2, T.Kotti 3, D.McGrath
1, R.McKiver 1)
3P FGs: 6-10 (R.Gomes 2-2, D.Brewington 1-3, G.Brown
2-2, D.McGrath 1-1, R.McKiver 0-2)

Player of Game: PF Ryan Gomes (PRVD)

Game Summary:

Game Stats STJN PRVD
Halftime Score 32 47
FGM-FGA 19-48 25-44
FG% .396 .568
FTM-FTA 19-24 35-37
FT% .792 .946
3PM-3PA 2-2 6-10
3P% 1.000 .600
Rebounds 15 38
Assists 13 12
Steals 10 10
Blocks 2 6
Turnovers 23 27
Team Fouls 30 22


I think my guys are losing faith in me as our losing streak hits 5 games now and we fall to 1-5 in the Big East. Gomes was unstoppable today. Outside of Hill, our offense was nowhere to be found. Hamilton fouled out after just 22 minutes and our team really revolves around him. Add to that the 9 turnovers by our freshman PG and it was a very long, frustrating night.

[Dekanth]

January 29, 2005

#6 Miami (16-4) at St. John's (11-7)

We lost by only 8 to these guys on the road just a week or two ago. We get one more shot, at home this time, to knock off a top 10 team and we know we can play with them. We are in desperate need of a big win right now.




Miami 80, St. John's 75

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Miami (17-4):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Gary Hamilton C 30 2-3 1-2 3 9 1 4 5
Anthony King PF 35 4-7 4-5 2 6 0 4 12
William Frisby SF 32 2-10 5-6 2 8 4 3 9
Guillermo Diaz SG 35 9-19 3-3 0 5 3 2 24
Robert Hite PG 32 5-16 14-15 1 3 2 2 26
Anthony Harris PG 13 0-0 0-0 0 1 2 1 0
Raymond Hicks C 23 2-5 0-0 0 2 0 5 4

Turnovers: 12 (G.Hamilton 1, A.King 3, W.Frisby 2,
G.Diaz 3, R.Hite 2, R.Hicks 1)
Blocked Shots: 7 (G.Hamilton 1, A.King 4, G.Diaz 1,
R.Hicks 1)
Steals: 7 (G.Hamilton 1, G.Diaz 2, R.Hite 2, A.Harris 2)
3P FGs: 5-10 (G.Diaz 3-7, R.Hite 2-3)

St. John's (11-8):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 26 1-2 1-2 1 5 1 1 3
Lamont Hamilton PF 35 6-12 12-14 3 10 3 3 24
Rodney Epperson SF 33 4-13 11-11 1 4 0 1 21
Daryll Hill SG 26 4-7 0-0 0 3 3 4 9
Eugene Lawrence PG 33 4-8 2-2 0 7 4 5 10
Phil Missere C 23 1-4 2-2 3 5 2 2 4
Devin Mayo SG 13 0-4 0-0 0 2 1 2 0
Lashard Duran PG 9 1-2 0-0 0 1 1 0 2
Nygel Roach SG 3 1-2 0-0 0 0 0 2 2

Turnovers: 19 (M.Diakite 2, L.Hamilton 2, R.Epperson 5,
D.Hill 3, E.Lawrence 5, P.Missere 1, L.Duran 1)
Blocked Shots: 2 (L.Hamilton 2)
Steals: 6 (L.Hamilton 1, D.Hill 2, E.Lawrence 2,
P.Missere 1)
3P FGs: 3-11 (R.Epperson 2-4, D.Hill 1-2, E.Lawrence
0-4, D.Mayo 0-1)

Player of Game: PG Robert Hite (MIAMI)

Game Summary:

Game Stats MIAMI STJN
Halftime Score 40 29
FGM-FGA 24-60 22-54
FG% .400 .407
FTM-FTA 27-31 28-31
FT% .871 .903
3PM-3PA 5-10 3-11
3P% .500 .273
Rebounds 34 37
Assists 12 15
Steals 7 6
Blocks 7 2
Turnovers 12 19
Team Fouls 21 20


This was a tough loss to swallow. Our two main guys played every bit as good as theirs, and with their lack of depth, we should have taken this one, but turnovers killed us in the end. We had 19 turnovers to their 12. Another key stat was blocked shots. They had 7 to our 2 and our guys were intimidated after getting so many shots sent back. Another lost opportunity tonight. This miserable month of January is over for us though.

[Dekanth]

February Top 25

It is late enough in the season to seperate the pretenders from the contenders. The first top 25 poll for February has been released.



Top 25 Poll

# School FPV Record Points Previous
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Maryland (72) 21-2 1800 1
2. Wake Forest 18-3 1728 3
3. Kansas 16-4 1618 4
4. Miami 17-5 1549 6
5. North Carolina 15-5 1522 7
6. Connecticut 11-8 1370 18
7. Michigan State 16-4 1306 10
8. Oklahoma 14-6 1304 16
9. Notre Dame 20-3 1269 2
10. Stanford 17-2 1183 11
11. Kentucky 18-4 1139 5
12. Florida 17-5 913 9
13. Cincinnati 18-4 907 8
14. Louisville 17-4 869 12
15. Illinois 14-6 846 19
16. Memphis 17-3 723 20
17. Syracuse 18-4 613 15
18. Arkansas 14-6 573 13
19. Alabama 13-8 503 24
20. Iowa 14-7 497 14
21. Tennessee 16-6 406 17
22. UCLA 16-6 292 23
23. Seton Hall 15-5 183 NR
24. Duke 14-5 145 25
25. Brigham Young 14-5 73 22

Others Receiving Votes:
Colorado 16-3 44
South Florida 15-4 25



The Torch, St. John's Student Newspaper breaks down their picks for the Final Four at this stage in the season.

Wake Forest – They lost their top scorer, Eric Williams for the month of February due to academic problems, but they should still get a good seed in the tourney and will have him back by then. With Justin Gray and Chris Paul in the backcourt, this team has 3 great weapons. Oh, did I mention they have the #4 ranked defense in the country?


Kansas – Wayne Simien is at 25 points per game. Giddens, Miles and Langford are all above 12 points per game. They are a little thin after that, but that is one star studded lineup.



Louisville – A top 10 defense, coupled with a top 20 offense makes for a formidble team. Larry O'Bannon and Fransico Garcia are both averaging 19 points per game.


Maryland – All 5 starters are averaging in double figures. A balanced scoring attack like that is tough to defend. They also have a top 10 defense.



OK, so what might stop these teams from reaching the Final Four? Each team has a weakness for sure. Maryland is turning the ball over 16 times per game. Their team defense is great, but they can be exploted in the paint. Louisville has a ton of trouble rebounding the ball. 264 teams grab more boards per game than they do. One of them is NOT Kansas, who rebounds even worst. They also turn the ball over 17 times per game. Very sloppy. Wake Forest is the worst rebounding team of all of these teams. They also get into foul trouble quite often.


Dark Horse Teams.

If these four teams don't make it, then who will? And dark horse, means outside the top 10, so....

Kentucky – Top rated defense in the country. Kelenna Azubuike.

Cincinnati – Top 10 defense. Four players averaging double figures with another 2 players over 9 per game. Above average, natioanlly, in most important statistics.

Syracuse – Championship experience, great inside-outside attack with Warrick and McNamara. 9-3 vs the top 50 teams in the nation.

Seton Hall – They are averaging over 90 points per game in a tough conference. If they get hot at the right time, they can shoot themselves right into the final four.

[Dekanth]

Early February Big East Standings


2004 Big East Standings

East CW CL Pct W L Pct
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#4 Miami 7 2 .778 17 5 .773
Villanova 6 2 .750 16 5 .762
#6 Connecticut 4 2 .667 11 8 .579
Boston College 3 3 .500 14 4 .778
Providence 3 4 .429 14 6 .700
St. John's 1 6 .143 11 8 .579
Virginia Tech 1 6 .143 9 9 .500

West CW CL Pct W L Pct
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#9 Notre Dame 5 2 .714 20 3 .870
#17 Syracuse 5 2 .714 18 4 .818
#23 Seton Hall 6 3 .667 15 5 .750
Georgetown 3 4 .429 14 7 .667
Rutgers 2 4 .333 12 6 .667
Pittsburgh 2 4 .333 9 9 .500
West Virginia 1 5 .167 11 7 .611

[Dekanth]

February 2, 2005

Virginia Tech (9-9) at St. John's (11-8)

Their top scorer, Jamon Gordon, is out for academic reasons. Carlos Dixon and Zabian Dowdell, both listed as SG's are their top scorers who will play. Offensively this team is pretty bad. If we get out on the shooters we should be OK tonight. With 7 of our next 8 games being at home, this would be a perfect time to start a little winning streak.



St. John's 95, Virginia Tech 82

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Virginia Tech (9-10):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Robert Krabbendam C 27 2-2 1-1 3 12 1 4 5
Coleman Collins PF 35 5-10 9-11 2 8 1 3 19
Deron Washington SF 35 7-10 3-4 2 6 2 1 17
Carlos Dixon SG 35 7-21 8-9 1 5 1 4 23
Zabian Dowdell PG 24 2-7 3-4 1 4 3 4 7
Chris Tucker PG 9 1-2 2-2 0 1 1 0 4
Allen Calloway C 18 2-4 0-0 2 5 2 2 4
W. Witherspoon PG 17 1-2 0-0 0 3 2 4 3

Turnovers: 24 (R.Krabbendam 5, C.Collins 3, C.Dixon 5,
Z.Dowdell 6, C.Tucker 1, A.Calloway 4)
Blocked Shots: 1 (D.Washington 1)
Steals: 8 (C.Collins 1, C.Dixon 4, Z.Dowdell 2,
W.Witherspoon 1)
3P FGs: 2-12 (C.Dixon 1-8, Z.Dowdell 0-3, W.Witherspoon
1-1)

St. John's (12-8):
Player Pos Min Fgm-a Ftm-a Off Reb Ast PF Pts
Mohammed Diakite C 28 0-2 4-5 1 4 1 1 4
Lamont Hamilton PF 35 9-15 0-1 7 14 0 5 18
Rodney Epperson SF 18 0-3 4-4 1 3 3 4 4
Daryll Hill SG 31 10-19 1-2 1 3 1 4 24
Eugene Lawrence PG 35 8-15 3-4 0 1 9 3 23
Phil Missere SF 21 2-3 3-4 1 6 1 1 7
Ryan Williams PF 10 0-3 3-6 0 2 0 4 3
Devin Mayo SG 11 2-8 2-2 1 1 3 1 6
Lashard Duran SF 10 3-4 0-0 0 1 1 1 6
Nygel Roach SG 2 0-1 0-1 0 0 0 0 0

Turnovers: 10 (M.Diakite 3, L.Hamilton 2, D.Hill 1,
E.Lawrence 3, D.Mayo 1)
Blocked Shots: 3 (L.Hamilton 3)
Steals: 12 (M.Diakite 1, R.Epperson 2, D.Hill 3,
E.Lawrence 2, D.Mayo 3, L.Duran 1)
3P FGs: 7-14 (D.Hill 3-8, E.Lawrence 4-6)

Player of Game: PG Eugene Lawrence (STJN)

Game Summary:

Game Stats VATC STJN
Halftime Score 44 45
FGM-FGA 27-58 34-73
FG% .466 .466
FTM-FTA 26-31 20-29
FT% .839 .690
3PM-3PA 2-12 7-14
3P% .167 .500
Rebounds 44 35
Assists 13 19
Steals 8 12
Blocks 1 3
Turnovers 24 10
Team Fouls 22 24


A close game at the half turned into a double digit win for us thanks to excellent guard play. We also shot 7 for 14 from long range and only committed 10 turnovers, compared to forcing 24 on them. Hill and Lawrence were hitting their shots and Hamilton put up a double double, with 14 rebounds!