Silas but Deadly

You can do just about anything in Dekalb, Illinois and go unnoticed. You can rob a bank, run a meth lab, or dress like Lil' Kim at the 1999 VMA's, and no one will bat an eyelash. If you don't believe me, ask Cindy Crawford, Dekalb High School's valedictorian in 1984. Or, ask Jacob Haish and Joseph Glidden, the co-inventors of barbed wire. They could drastically alter the development of the American West, but they needed to leave the limits of Dekalb County to be accredited for their achievement. Sadly enough, it took a school shooting in 2010 for NIU to break into the national media, which caused Dekalb to become an even less desirable place to spend four years of your life. Apparently, you can add dropping 28.3 PPG to the list of things that go unnoticed in the city on the banks of the Kishwaukee River. After a highly successful football season in 2010, NIU basketball is now making a claim as a force in the MAC conference, and has a legitimate NCAA Divsion 1 scoring title threat in Austin, Texas native, Xavier Silas.

As a high school senior, Silas opted to attend the University of Colorado-Boulder. Like most of Chicago's college-bound suburbanites, Silas was desperate to be a Buff because of the fresh powder, thin air, and readily available herb, brah. Of course. And again, like most of Chicago's college-bound suburbanites, he was out of the Rocky Mountain State just one year later as Colorado once again became only a destination his imagination could transpire while listening to the hidden tracks on the John Denver Greatest Hits CD. But Silas found something different in Dekalb than the average undergrad, he found a place to score (no pun intended to NIU sororities). I'm not going to sit here and say that NIU is making a decent case for being the best team in Illinois. They lost to Northwestern, Bradley and DePaul already, and only beat UIC by a bucket on Tuesday. So I guess you could pencil them in as a few points better than Wash U in St. Louis (shout out ZK). But, what the Huskies do boast is perhaps the best flat-out scorer in the Land of Lincoln. You don't believe me right? I'll prove it.

The "Silas Assassin" has racked up 25, 22, 34, and 40 points against his in-state rivals so far this season. For you non-Math majors, that's just above 30 every time he laces up against the likes of an Illinois sanctioned University. Is John Shurna a better shooter? Probably. Is Demetri McCamey a better player? Without a doubt. Am I qualified to answer either of the aforementioned questions? Absolutely not. All I know is, numbers can't lie, and Silas' stats are impressive. 28.3 PPG, 56% FG, 50% 3PFG, 90% FT. The dude can play, and apparently has a cheezy smile. Now, will all these points cause me to drive an hour into the armpit of I-90 to see Xavier play in the NIU Convocation Center? Let's just say the last time I went to NIU, I was 18, and saw an O.A.R. concert--there's no way I'm going back.

As for Pick of the Day, the 49ers failed to muster double-digit points behind Alex Smith (does this guy seriously still start?). If I were Singletary, I would trade the former #1 draft pick for a special teams reserve and a $20 gift-card to Bennigans (now out of business). For the weekend, the Pulse Man likes the Falcons giving 7 points in the City of Rain to the Seattle Seahawks.

Pick of the Day: Falcons (-7) @ Seahawks- FALCONS

Record:(40-27-0)

Now I'm done. Rack me

Frost