Courtesy of GoBonnies.com
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – Eight games at the Reilly Center and six games on national television – including a matchup with Fordham in Rochester — highlight St. Bonaventure’s 2016-17 Atlantic 10 Conference men’s basketball schedule, which was announced on Tuesday.
As the A-10 previously announced, the 18-game schedule pits St. Bonaventure against Dayton, Duquesne, Massachusetts, Saint Louis and Saint Joseph’s twice, with single games against Davidson, Fordham, George Mason, George Washington, La Salle, Rhode Island, Richmond and VCU.
The A-10 schedule opens before the New Year on Friday, Dec. 30, when St. Bonaventure will go on the road to face Massachusetts.
After the calendar flips to 2017, the Bonnies return home to host Dayton Jan. 3. The encounter with the Flyers is the first of Bona’s seven conference games that will be on American Sports Network. At the end of that week, George Mason will visit the Reilly Center Jan. 6 for a 5:00 tip-off on NBC Sports Network.
The Bonnies will then be away from home for three straight, although the middle game of that stretch is a “home” game in Rochester at Blue Cross Arena. Jan. 14, St. Bonaventure will host Fordham in Rochester; that game will tip off at 4:30 on NBC Sports Network. The Bonnies have played Atlantic 10 games at Blue Cross Arena each of the past two seasons. On either side of that game will be a Jan. 11 matchup at Richmond and the longest road trip of the A-10 season at Saint Louis Jan. 17.
Every A-10 team receives one bye in its schedule and St. Bonaventure’s falls during the weekend of Jan. 21-22. Following the rest, the Bonnies will host Saint Joseph’s, last year’s A-10 Tournament champion, on Jan. 24.
January ends and February starts with back-to-back road games. Jan. 28, the Bonnies will visit Rhode Island in another NBCSN-televised game with the Rams, who will be among the A-10 preseason favorites. St. Bonaventure then travels to Pittsburgh to face Duquesne on Feb. 1.
The always-anticipated game against VCU is set for Feb. 4 at the Reilly Center. That game will air on CBS Sports Network. The Bonnies remain at home to host Saint Louis Feb. 8.
A trip to our nation’s capital to meet George Washington Feb. 11 opens a stretch where the Bonnies will play three out of four games on the road. After a Feb. 15 home game against La Salle, coach Mark Schmidt’s team will travel to Dayton Feb. 18 and visit Saint Joseph’s Feb. 22.
Two of the last three games of the regular season will be at the Reilly Center, beginning Feb. 25 against Duquesne. The February schedule ends with a trip to North Carolina to face Davidson on Feb. 28. The regular season ends with a home game for Senior Day on March 4 against UMass.
The season will culminate with the A-10 Championship March 8-12 at a new venue, CONSOL Energy Center in Pittsburgh. Every A-10 team will again participate in the Championship.
Three A-10 schools advanced to the NCAA Tournament last season: Dayton, VCU and Saint Joseph’s. George Washington won the NIT and Davidson also advanced to the NIT. In all, the Bonnies will face six teams that reached the NCAA Tournament last year; the non-conference slate includes 2016 NCAA participants Buffalo, Arkansas-Little Rock and UNC-Wilmington.
Last season, St. Bonaventure finished 22-9 and shared the Atlantic 10 regular season title with a mark of 14-4. The Bonnies advanced to the NIT and Schmidt was selected the A-10 Coach of the Year. Two starters return: all-conference junior point guard Jaylen Adams and junior guard Idris Taqqee. Senior forward Denzel Gregg, the co-Sixth Man of the Year in the Atlantic 10 a year ago, is a potential starter. Sophomore guard Nelson Kaputo and sophomore forward LaDarien Griffin also return. Schmidt welcomes seven new players to the roster: senior forwards David Andoh and Chinonso Obokoh, junior small forward Courtney Stockard, junior guard Matt Mobley, freshman guard Tareq Coburn and freshman forwards Amadi Ikpeze and Josh Ayeni.
The Bonnies open the 2016-17 campaign Nov. 12 at home against St. Francis (Pa.). For information on season tickets, call 716-375-2500 or visit GoBonnies.com/tickets.
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