By Paul Gotham
Time is getting tight with the halfway point in Atlantic 10 play a week away. Separation could take place at the top of the table. What’s at stake? A first-round bye at the Barclays Center in March.
Words of the week – Dayton’s Archie Miller on VCU’s Briante Weber: “If Briante Weber isn’t the nation’s best defender or the best defensive player in all of college basketball, then somebody in our marketing in the league or somebody at VCU probably needs to get a little bit of a foot up their butt. I have never seen a guy be that destructive on our home floor.”
Hot Reads: The St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Tom Timmerman on SLU’s Veteran Poise
From the Richmond Post-Dispatch – John O’Connor writes of Phil Martelli’s Ultimate Compliment about Crowd Noise at the Robins Center
The Olean Times-Herald’s J.P. Butler on For Bonnies, It’s Defense and Rebounds
College Chalktalk’s Ray Floriani with Tempo Tuesday: Richmond Rising
The Bona Venture’s Taylor Nigrelli on Marquise Simmons and a Path of Patience
VCU opponents can expect a steady diet of Treveon Graham.
Richmond (14-7/4-2) at VCU (17-4/5-1) High Noon ESPN2
So much for the wintry conditions across much of the country, this cross-town rivalry’ll heat things up. Richmond topped St. Joseph’s and UMass last week – two vastly different teams in the way they play the game (UMass wants to play full-court; St. Joe’s likes it in the half-court). The Spiders catch the VCU after falling to St. Louis – two teams who approach defense as almost polar opposites (VCU goes with Havoc; SLU goes with attrition). Difference is Richmond played both games at home last week and will visit their second opposing barns on Saturday. VCU is starting to look like the team we thought they were. Their defense smells blood in the water, and the Rams are creeping up on first-place SLU. VCU’s Juvonte Reddic and Richmond’s Kendall Anthony are reigning co-conference Players of the Week. Cedrick Lindsay (18.2 points/4.2 assists) leads the Spiders. VCU’s defense starts with Briante Weber (see Archie Miller’s comments above). It will be interesting to see if Treveon Graham can get to the basket against the Richmond match-up zone.
VCU by six.
No.21/19 UMass (17-3/4-2) at St. Joseph’s (14-6/4-2) 6 p.m. CBS Sports Network
Once the hottest team in the A-10, UMass now finds themselves in a bunker mentality. The Minutemen head to Hagan Arena having lost two of three, and the Hawks have revenge on their minds: “Buzzards gotta eat same as worms.” With Ronald Roberts Jr. on the bench suffering from back spasms, the Hawks let a nine-point lead slip away in the final six minutes of the previous meeting between these two teams. SJU hasn’t lost at home since a 30-point dismantling at the hands of Philly 5 rival, Villanova on December 7th. Trey Davis scored a career-high 18 in the UMass loss to St. Bonaventure on Wednesday. The sophomore needs a sliver of space to let if fly behind the arc. Halil Kanecevic will play the role of distributor from the middle of the floor as the Hawks break the Minutemen press.
UMass road woes continue. St. Joseph’s by two.
George Washington (17-3/5-1) at Dayton (13-8/1-5) 12:30 p.m. NBC Sports Network
Troubled times have come to the Dayton Flyers. After building an impressive non-conference record, Archie Miller’s gang has dropped four straight – two at home. GW comes in winners of five in a row, but the Colonials have injury concerns. With Kethan Savage already on the shelf for a month, Mike Lonergan’s crew might now have to shuffle the deck possibly without Joe McDonald. Dayton’s once formidable attack behind the arc has hit 13-of-42 in their last two losses. The Flyers will need to contend with GW’s Isaiah Armwood and Kevin Larsen in the paint and win the rebound battle. Devin Oliver, Dyshawn Pierre and Jordan Sibert net 12 a piece for the Flyers.
Dayton turns the bus around, wins by five.
George Mason (7-13/0-6) at No. 19/21 St. Louis (19-2/6-0)
The sledding won’t get any easier for George Mason. The Patriots triumphed just once in the month of January. The Billikens, with their stifling defense, can turn opponents Every Which Way But Loose. SLU has won 13 straight leading the A-10 field goal percentage defense (.382) and 3-point field goal percentage defense (.276). The Bills have a trio of 1,000 point scorers in Dwayne Evans, Jordair Jett and Mike McCall Jr. George Mason’s Jalen Jenkins has nabbed A-10 rookie honors for the last three weeks.
SLU running away.
Duquesne (10-9/2-4) at La Salle (11-9/3-3) 4 p.m. SNY/TCN/ROOT
After winning five straight, La Salle’s Explorers look to end a three-game slide. Dr. John Giannini’s club had VCU reeling last Saturday and couldn’t seal the victory. Now, the Explorers find themselves trying to keep pace with the top-half of the conference. The Dukes take a two-game winning streak into Saturday’s action including a win at the buzzer over St. Bonaventure. Tyreek Duren hands out 3.6 assists while scoring 14.7 a game for La Salle. Ovie Soko paces Duquesne with 18.2 points and 7.5 rebounds a game.
The Explorers honor Tom Gola with an eight-point triumph.
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