The Essentials:
What: Third round of 2013 Men’s Basketball NCAA Tournament, Midwest bracket
When: 4:10 p.m. tipoff.
Where: HP Pavilion, San Jose, Calif. Televised on TBS
Who: No. 4 Saint Louis Billikens versus No. 12 Oregon Ducks
Why: Two conference tournament champions clash in this one, as the winners of the Atlantic 10 meet the conquerors of the Pac-12. Saint Louis beat New Mexico State by 20 points and Oregon upset Oklahoma State by 13 to set up a battle in the round of 32 for the right to travel to Indianapolis for the Sweet 16.
The Brief:
Saint Louis is about steadiness through veteran experience, balanced offense and hypoxic defense.
After a 3-3 start back in December, Saint Louis won nine in a row before dropping two. The Billikens rattled off 11 more wins before dropping to Xavier in overtime. They jumped back into winning ways again, streaking to five wins in a row, racking up an Atlantic 10 title and a first round March Madness win along the way.
The Billiken squad is comprised of three seniors, six juniors, only two sophomores and two freshmen.
That unit is the six-best defense in the field of 68, allowing only 57.7 points per game. They allowed just 44 points to New Mexico State on Thursday.
“Our defense is one of our strong points,” Saint Louis forward Rob Loe said. “When other teams look at us and scout us, they notice that.”
Junior forward Dwayne Evans leads Saint Louis in points and rebounds with 14 and 7.7. Senior forward Cody Ellis and senior guard Kwamain Mitchell each add 10.3 per game.
Where Saint Louis struggles is where Oregon excels, which is the rebounding department. The Ducks’ rebounds per game average is 34th in the nation while Saint Louis is 239th. Despite the big win for the Billikens over New Mexico State, Saint Louis was out-rebounded by 11.
The Ducks won their second round game because of superiority on the boards, pulling down a well above average 44 rebounds. Arsalan Kazemi snatched 17, and Carlos Emory and E.J. Singler both went above and beyond in grabbing missed shots, with nine and seven, respectively.
Oregon will again look to be the masters of the fiberglass to gain an advantage over Saint Louis. The Ducks will be much taller than their opponents, as the Billikens’ tallest player is Rob Loe, a 6-foot-11 forward who plays more on the perimeter.
“We’re going to have to gain rebounds,” Evans said. “We’re going to need five men on the glass and boxing their man out. It has to be a team effort.”
Matchups to watch:
The Pace. Oregon’s offense and Saint Louis’ offense move at different clips. While Oregon does often take the possession deep into the shot clock, the Ducks like to use their athleticism and quickness to score or set up perimeter opportunities.
“They’re really athletic,” Loe said.
“Our major focus will be stopping them from running,” Evans said.
The Billikens are short on athletes, and instead focus on quality shots and taking care of the ball.
“We like to handle the ball, we value each possession,” Loe said. “We take our time to find the right shot and when it comes, we’ll take it.”
“They play a little slower tempo than we like to play,” Oregon head coach Dana Altman said. “I think that will be important, who gets the tempo in their advantage.”
Oregon’s guards vs. St. Louis’ pressure
Saint Louis likes to run the press and trap their opponents. The Ducks’ Johnathan Loyd has an immense speed advantage but can be sloppy with the basketball. Dominic Artis had a solid performance against Oklahoma State but will need to display some of the poise he had back in January in the face of burdensome defense. Damyean Dotson has shot incredibly well when he has been open on kick-out opportunities, yet he will likely be forced to create for himself if the Billikens are in his face.