Both No. 19 Saint Louis and Davidson should be feeling good following mostly stress-free victories in their last outings.
The teams hook up Tuesday night at Davidson, N.C.
The Billikens (21-1, 9-0 Atlantic 10) have won 15 straight but are looking for more in their only scheduled meeting with Davidson this season.
“The ultimate to me is sustained success,” Saint Louis coach Josh Schertz said. “Can you do it over a long period of time?”
The Billikens steamrolled visiting Dayton 102-71 on Friday night. This is the first time the Billikens have ever won 21 of their first 22 games of a season.
“We are not a feel-good story. We have great players,” Schertz said. “There’s a collective commitment within them. Winning is above everything. They are all sacrificing on different levels.”
The Wildcats (13-8, 5-4) won 79-54 at Richmond on Saturday for their second-largest margin of victory against a Division I team this season.
“Just really, really thrilled in every way,” Davidson coach Matt McKillop said, heaping particular praise on the team’s defensive efforts.
The Wildcats probably will have to be efficient on offense to keep up with the Billikens, who’ve eclipsed the 100-point mark a school-record seven times this season. Yet the team’s leading scorer is center Robbie Avila at just 12.8 points per game.
There are six Saint Louis players averaging in double figures. Trey Green has led Saint Louis scoring in the past two games with 23 points in both outings, repeating his career-high total.
Roberts Blums has led Davidson in scoring the past two games to boost his average to 11.8 points per game. Buoyed by six 3-point baskets, he had a career-high 23 points on 8-for-10 shooting off the bench in the Richmond game despite missing time in the first half with two fouls.
“For us to leave the hottest guy on the court on the bench for a little bit and still win by 25 (is a great thing),” McKillop said. “Roberts got blistering hot. Roberts’ first few 3s and open looks came off execution of set plays. Those are little things that if they continue to show themselves can really carry us.”
McKillop said creating an inside presence early in the game helped the Wildcats develop more offensive options.
“I hope that’s something we continue to do,” McKillop said.
The Wildcats want some of the areas in which they excelled against Richmond to become contagious going into the matchup with Saint Louis.
Davidson made 13 of 25 shots from 3-point range in its weekend game.
“We were moving the ball and you see the first couple go in and as a team, you just find that rhythm,” Davidson guard Parker Friedrichsen said. “I think we moved the ball really well, got open looks. We didn’t feel like we were forcing a ton of shots.”
Saint Louis topped Davidson twice late last season, edging them 57-56 at Davidson, then ending the Wildcats’ season in the Atlantic 10 tournament.
–Field Level Media
