SAN JOSE — Rick Majerus died on Dec. 1, but his memory will fuel the Saint Louis Billikens today when they face New Mexico State at the HP Pavilion.
Majerus, who formerly coached at Marquette, Ball State, and Utah, died of heart failure at age 64. He had taken a medical leave of absence in August and announced he would not be coaching this season. He recruited all the players on the current team.
“We think about Coach every day,” Kwamain Mitchell said. “There’s no second that he’s not with our team. We run the same offense, the same philosophy that Coach has been teaching us since I’ve been here. He’s still there. He’s always going to be there personally for some of the seniors.”
The Aggies (24-10), winners of the WAC Tournament, are playing in their third NCAA tourney game in the past four years. Coach Marvin Menzies sees a lot of Majerus’ influence in the way the Billikens (27-6) play defense.
“You can see Rick Majerus all over them throughout the fiber of how they play,” Menzies said. “There’s no question that they’re playing inspired by him and especially on the defensive end. I think that’s probably their staple right now.”
➤ Oregon (24-8) won the Pac-12 tournament, but didn’t get much respect. The Ducks, who finished with the second-best regular-season record in their conference, were seeded 12th and will face fifth-seeded Oklahoma State (24-8) today. Conference rivals UCLA and Arizona draw sixth seeds.
“I think the Pac-12 had a really good year this year,” Oregon senior forward E.J. Singler said. “All that matters is how we do right now in the tournament. We have the opportunity to make a name for ourselves and for our conference in the tournament.”
The Cowboys insist they will give the Ducks plenty of respect.
“Whoever your first game is, it’s going to be tough,” Oklahoma State coach Travis Ford said. “If you’re playing this time of year, you’re going to have a very difficult first game. They’re all tough.”
➤ Fifth-seeded UNLV (25-9) plays 12th-seeded California today in a rematch of a non-conference game played in December. The Rebels won 76-75 on Dec. 9 in Berkeley, but senior guard Anthony Marshall doesn’t put much stock in that win.
“Both teams have gotten a lot better,” he said. “It was early on in the season where two teams were trying to find their identity, the right rotations, how they wanted to play and stuff like that. And I think both teams have come a long way and it’s going to be a battle.”
george.willis@nypost.com