Enrique Carrasco, Editor 

On Tuesday, Feb. 8, the Explorers faced off against the Saint Louis Billikens in their 11th conference game of the season. The Explorers were coming off of a hot win against George Mason, who were ranked amongst the top five in the Atlantic 10 conference, and were hoping to continue their hot streak heading into the game. Ultimately, though, the Explorers fell to the Billikens 57-75. 

The Explorers were off to a hot start against the Billikens, taking an early 5-3 lead following a three-pointer from junior Josh Nickleberry. Despite this, the Billikens went on a 12 point run to go up 15-7 against the Explorers. The Explorers were able to remain within the game, and with his ninth point of the half, redshirt senior Clifton Moore was able to bring the game to 26-22 with the Explorers down by four. The Billikens seemed to take this as a challenge, and responded with an unanswered 12 point run, something the Explorers were only able to stop with a three-pointer of their own. The Explorers went into halftime 41-27. 

Despite their lack of offense in the first half, the Explorers went into the second half full of energy. The Explorers were able to score five unanswered points within the first couple of minutes in the half, and managed to cut the deficit to only six points. Despite this, the Billikens (who lead the league in points) answered with their own points, and quickly went up on the Explorers. The Explorers failed to do anything defensively and offensively for the rest of the game, and ultimately fell to the Billikens 57-75.

After the Explorers’ win over George Mason, they seemed like a confident team who could overcome any team, regardless of their ranking. The Explorers failed to show even a sliver of that in their game against Saint Louis. The Explorers failed to compete in every aspect of the game, and were outperformed every step of the way. 

The defense was sloppy, oftentimes allowing wide-open three-pointers, and the offense was being shut down in every drive. Even after a break away from the Explorers, they failed to capitalize with a wide-open dunk, completely missing the basket. The Explorers have seven games left in the season, and if the current record is any indication for what is to come, the Explorers will once again see themselves outside of not only the March Madness tournament but the A-10 playoff series. If the current culture surrounding the Explorers doesn’t change soon, we are bound to witness many more losses at Tom Gola Arena.