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Saint Louis Basketball: Billikens struggling in Travis Ford’s first year

By Doug Winkey

Jan 28, 2017; Washington, DC, USA; Saint Louis Billikens head coach Travis Ford gestures against the George Washington Colonials during the second half at Charles E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 28, 2017; Washington, DC, USA; Saint Louis Billikens head coach Travis Ford gestures against the George Washington Colonials during the second half at Charles E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports /
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Saint Louis basketball is trying to return to prominence under Travis Ford but is still near the bottom of the Atlantic-10 for the time being.

Saint Louis basketball was a mid-major power not all that long ago under Jim Crews and Rick Majerus. Now, they are struggling to stay out of the A-10 basement and have former Oklahoma State coach Travis Ford in charge of the rebuild.

Related Story: Travis Ford changed dynamic of Billikens

This year has definitely been a struggle under the Arch as the Billikens are 4-8 in conference and 9-16 overall. It isn’t enough to just lose sometimes, either. Occasionally life throws an insult on top like when the team’s bus driver got drunk and abandoned the team. Saint Louis really just can’t catch a break this season.

The biggest issue is scoring where they are an anemic 312th in adjusted offense. Their defense isn’t as bad, but the lack of points has kept the team out of most games. It didn’t help when leading scorer Jermaine Bishop went down with injury and left things to Davell Roby, Mike Crawford, and Reggie Agbeko.

It looks bad right now, but things will get better. Only Crawford and Agbeko are scheduled to graduate this spring. In their place are several promising transfers like Michigan State’s Javon Bess and UCF’s Adonys Henriquez.

Ford also brings in 4-star guard Jordan Goodwin and 3-star forward Hasahn French for 2017. Finally, the 2018 class has secured two players in shooting guard Fred Thatch 5-star forward Carte’Are Gordon. The early returns on recruiting should have fans hopeful for the next couple seasons.

Finally, in the 2018 class Saint Louis has secured two players in shooting guard Fred Thatch 5-star forward Carte’Are Gordon. The early returns on recruiting should have fans hopeful for the next couple seasons.

Next: Takeaways from the top 16 seeds

Coach Ford has leeway in this new situation. He has nearly equaled last season’s win total already with six games left. Ford should get the program back on its feet with his recruiting ability. Their conference is tough with Dayton and VCU at the top, but Saint Louis is as capable as any other team to rise up before too long.

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