Having reached the 20-win level already with its workmanlike 59-51 win at La Salle on Feb. 11, Saint Louis is going to start hearing speculation about its chances for an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
However, coach Rick Majerus won't be paying attention.
"The whole focus of today's practice is going to be on a Richmond team that is very good and has played really well," Majerus said as the Billikens got ready to host the Spiders on Feb. 15. "They have a system that you have to prepare for."
The Billikens will be facing multiple defenses plus an offense that incorporates much of the Princeton philosophy, which is logical since Spiders coach Chris Mooney is a Princeton alumnus.
"So you've got to prepare for a variety of things," Majerus said. "You don't have the luxury of focusing on anything else other than that.
"So I don't really look past the next game or discuss any of those other things with our guys. We try to stay in the moment if we can here."
The Billikens have won four in a row to move into sole possession of second place in the Atlantic 10 with an 8-3 mark through Feb. 12. Temple was first in league play at 8-2.
The Billikens are 20-5 overall as they prepare to play three of their next four games at home. After Richmond, Fordham visits. A trip to Rhode Island then is followed by a home game against Xavier.
Saint Louis got a big game from sophomore F Dwayne Evans in the win over La Salle. Evans recorded his fifth double-double of the season with his 16 points and 11 rebounds against the Explorers.
It was his eighth game in double figures in rebounds. The 6-foot-5 Evans was averaging a team-best 8.7 rebounds a game in conference play, which ranked fourth in the conference when play ended on Feb. 11.
After holding La Salle to nearly 24 points under its season average in its 59-51 win over the Explorers, Saint Louis continued to lead the A-10 in scoring defense. The Billikens had held their 11 opponents to just 61.6 points a game through Feb. 11.
The Billikens' win over La Salle snapped the Explorers' home winning streak at 14 games.
BY THE NUMBERS: The Billikens managed a 59-51 win over La Salle on Feb. 11 despite tying a season high with 17 turnovers. They made up for their own sloppiness by forcing the Explorers into 20 turnovers.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "Conklin recently scored 1,000 (career) points, and he had one scholarship offer. That was from the Billikens. When you saw him as a freshman, you didn't know if he was going to score 100 (career) points." Coach Rick Majerus, on the progress senior Brian Conklin has made.
vs. Richmond, Feb. 15
KEY MATCHUPS: Richmond has been struggling but has a great shot-blocker in F/C Darrius Garrett and a 3-point threat in freshman G Kendall Anthony off the bench. G Darien Brothers has been quiet lately, but if he is on, the Spiders will present a challenge.
vs. Fordham, Feb. 18
KEY MATCHUPS: The Rams have a double-double threat in F Chris Gaston, and C Kervin Bristol also has been solid recently. Fordham's youth, particularly in the backcourt, makes the Rams vulnerable on the road.
Junior G Kwamain Mitchell was closing in on 1,200 points for his career. He raised his total to 1,195 with his 12 points in the Feb. 11 win over La Salle.
Junior F Cody Ellis was 0-for-4 from 3-point range against La Salle on Feb. 11 after going 6-for-9 (5-for-5 in the second half) in the previous game against Saint Joseph's.
Senior F Brian Conklin has hit a rough patch in his shooting the last two games after going 12-for-18 from the field against St. Bonaventure and Dayton. He was only 4-for-12 in the win over La Salle after going just 3-for-9 against Saint Joseph's.
Junior F Cory Remekun had five points and three rebounds at La Salle after going scoreless with no rebounds in the previous two games against Dayton and St. Joe's. He played 19 minutes at La Salle, which was five more than he had played against the Flyers and Hawks combined.
