SLU’s Gibson Jimerson goes for a layup in the Billikens’ win over Saint Joseph’s, Wednesday night at Chaifetz Arena. (Photo: Thomas Grove)
| NCAA Men’s Basketball | 1 | 2 | Final |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saint Joseph’s (10-5, 0-2) | 43 | 42 | 85 |
| SLU (8-8, 1-2) | 33 | 55 | 88 |
Cedric Williams
Senior Editor
ST. LOUIS, MO — Things did not start well for the Saint Louis University men’s basketball team in its game against Saint Joseph’s, Wednesday night at Chaifetz Arena.
The Billikens missed 13 of their first 17 shots, committed five turnovers, and even missed six free throw attempts, as it fell 20 points behind Saint Joe’s with five minutes to go in the first half.
From that point on though, the Billikens were brilliant. They made shot after shot and combined that with stellar defensive play to storm all the way back for an incredible 88-85 Atlantic 10 Conference win over the visiting Hawks.
“For the first time in a long time I didn’t think we let doubt come into play,” Saint Louis head coach Travis Ford said. “A lot of these guys haven’t experienced winning. We’re trying to instill what it takes to win.”
Redshirt junior guard Gibson Jimerson led the way for Saint Louis. He scored 27 points — 24 in the second half — including seven three-pointers, as SLU made a season-high 14 three’s in the game.
The Billikens shot 57 percent overall (16-for-28) and 64 percent from three (nine-of-14), while scoring a whopping 55 points in the second half. Saint Louis also got key contributions from Tim Dalger off the bench, who score 15 points, and Bradley Ezewiro, who had 12 points, six rebounds, and two blocked shots.
A key part of SLU’s comeback actually began in the final five minutes of the first half, when the Billikens trimmed Saint Joe’s’ lead to 10 points. SLU was down 39-19, but closed the half on a 14-4 run to make the halftime score 43-33.
“I don’t know if we win the game if we don’t have those five minutes,” Ford said.
In the second half, SLU cut the Saint Joe lead gradually, before finally taking its own lead, on a three-pointer by Jimerson, with 8:59 to go. The teams traded baskets over the final minutes, leaving the score tied at 80 with one minute to go.
Ezewiro gave the Billikens the lead for good on a dunk with 53 seconds left, following a set up pass from Jimerson. A steal by Mike Meadows and a pair of free throws by Cian Medley gave Saint Louis some breathing room with 18 seconds left.
That almost evaporated though, when Erik Reynolds hit a three for Saint Joe’s to pull the visitors within a point with nine seconds left.
But the Billikens made free throws down the stretch — two by Jimerson and two by Medley — to put the game away and earn the club its first A-10 win of the season.
“Gibby put us on his shoulders a little bit and not just with shots,” Ford said. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen him act the way he did under five minutes. He was like me, coaching the team. He was outside himself, talking and motivating like I’ve never seen.”
The Billikens will have the rest of the week off, before returning to action next Tuesday, January 16, with a road game at Dayton. That matchup at UD Arena is slated for a 7 p.m. tip and will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network.
Saint Joseph’s 85
| ## | Player | GS | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | ORB-DRB | REB | PF | A | TO | BLK | STL | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 02 | Reynolds II,Erik | * | 36 | 7-15 | 5-12 | 8-8 | 0-2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 27 |
| 05 | Greer III,Lynn | * | 32 | 6-17 | 1-5 | 5-6 | 4-3 | 7 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 22 | Essandoko,Christ | * | 23 | 4-8 | 2-4 | 2-3 | 2-6 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 12 |
| 13 | Fleming,Rasheer | * | 25 | 2-5 | 2-4 | 3-4 | 0-4 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 9 |
| 03 | Brown,Cameron | * | 30 | 1-6 | 1-6 | 2-2 | 0-3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 11 | Brown,Xzayvier | 31 | 3-6 | 1-2 | 3-3 | 2-0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 10 | |
| 00 | Klaczek,Kacper | 12 | 1-5 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 2-2 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | |
| 23 | Finkley,Anthony | 5 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1-0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| 10 | Simmons II,Shawn | 6 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| TM | TEAM | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 5-1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Totals | – | 200 | 25-66 | 12-35 | 23-28 | 17-22 | 39 | 17 | 13 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 85 |
Saint Louis University 88
| ## | Player | GS | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | ORB-DRB | REB | PF | A | TO | BLK | STL | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 | Jimerson, Gibson | * | 37 | 8-14 | 7-11 | 4-4 | 1-3 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 |
| 03 | Ezewiro, Bradley | * | 30 | 3-8 | 0-0 | 6-7 | 2-4 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 12 |
| 22 | Hargrove, Terrence | * | 18 | 1-7 | 1-4 | 5-8 | 1-0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 8 |
| 01 | Medley, Cian | * | 31 | 1-4 | 1-1 | 4-4 | 0-5 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| 02 | Hughes, Larry | * | 15 | 2-5 | 2-5 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 6 |
| 05 | Dalger, Tim | 21 | 5-7 | 2-2 | 3-4 | 0-3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | |
| 12 | Zhang, Bruce | 9 | 4-6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3-0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | |
| 07 | Meadows, Michael | 29 | 2-4 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0-3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | |
| 00 | Thames, Kellen | 7 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 21 | Parker, Sincere | 3 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| TM | TEAM | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2-4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Totals | – | 200 | 26-56 | 14-26 | 22-27 | 10-26 | 36 | 19 | 16 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 88 |
2023-24 SLU Billikens Men’s Basketball Schedule
| Date | Gametime | At | Opponent | Location | TV | Radio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 16, 2024 (Tuesday) | 7 pm | Away | Dayton | Dayton, Ohio (UD Arena) | CBSSN | KMOX 1120AM |
| January 19, 2024 (Friday) | 6 pm | Away | VCU | Richmond, Va. (Siegel Center) | ESPN2 | KMOX 1120AM |
| January 24, 2024 (Wednesday) | 6 pm | Home | Davidson | Chaifetz Arena | Bally Sports Midwest | KMOX 1120AM |
| January 27, 2024 (Saturday) | 7 pm | Home | Massachusetts | Chaifetz Arena | Bally Sports Midwest | KMOX 1120AM |
| January 30, 2024 (Tuesday) | 7 pm | Away | Loyola Chicago | Chicago, Ill. (Gentile Arena) | Bally Sports Midwest | KMOX 1120AM |
| February 3, 2024 (Saturday) | 1:30 pm | Home | Fordham | Chaifetz Arena | USA Network | KMOX 1120AM |
| February 7, 2024 (Wednesday) | 5:30 pm | Away | La Salle | Philadelphia, Pa. (Gola Arena) | Bally Sports Midwest | KMOX 1120AM |
| February 10, 2024 (Saturday) | 11:30 am | Away | Saint Joseph’s | Philadelphia, Pa. (Hagan Arena) | USA Network | KMOX 1120AM |
| February 16, 2024 (Friday) | 6 pm | Home | VCU | Chaifetz Arena | ESPN2 | KMOX 1120AM |
| February 20, 2024 (Tuesday) | 6 pm | Away | Duquesne | Pittsburgh, Pa. (UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse) | Bally Sports Midwest | KMOX 1120AM |
| February 24, 2024 (Saturday) | 2 pm | Home | George Washington | Chaifetz Arena | Bally Sports Midwest | KMOX 1120AM |
| February 28, 2024 (Wednesday) | 7 pm | Home | Richmond | Chaifetz Arena | Bally Sports Midwest | KMOX 1120AM |
| March 2, 2024 (Saturday) | 3 pm | Away | Rhode Island | Kingston, R.I. (Ryan Center) | CBSSN | KMOX 1120AM |
| March 5, 2024 (Tuesday) | 8 pm | Home | Dayton | Chaifetz Arena | CBSSN | KMOX 1120AM |
| March 9, 2024 (Saturday) | 11:30 am | Away | St. Bonaventure | St. Bonaventure, N.Y. (Reilly Center) | USA Network | KMOX 1120AM |
| March 12-17 Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament | TBA | Neutral | TBA | Brooklyn, N.Y. (Barclay’s Center) |