Toyminator's 2002-2003 Atlantic 10 Conference Preview

Let's face it, the Atlantic 10 was a disappointment last season. St. Joe's and Temple were supposed to be Top 25 teams and serious contenders come March. In the end, only Xavier made it to the Big Dance. Not good for a major conference! This season, things have to improve. First, Xavier will be one of the country's top teams! They will not disappoint! They lost hard-nosed Kevin Frey, but have 3 talented wide-bodies to replace him. Add these guys along side one of the best inside players in the country (David West), plus an experienced and talented backcourt, and you can see why Xavier will be a force this season!

After Xavier, things get fuzzy. Both Dayton and Richmond return a number of talented players and should be in the bubble picture come March. In fact, if either one of these teams can separate from each other and nip at the heels of Xavier, that could be good enough to reach the NCAA's. In the East, things are really murky. Temple is still the favorite, but I don't get the feeling that teams will fear the Owls as they have in the past. However, watch out for one of my sleeper teams for this season...St. Bonaventure! They lost scoring machine J.R. Bremer, but have a number of guys who can put points on the board in a hurry!

Unfortunately, this league has some really awful teams! Rhode Island, Fordham, Duquesne and GW will really bring down the power rating of this conference and will push many teams into the NIT, instead of the Big Dance. Until those programs get their Shiite together, the A10 will struggle to get more than one bid every March.

ON THE RISE: Xavier
Coach Matta has taken the Musketeers to higher levels than his predecessor, Skip Prosser! With the return of All-American David West, and the arrival of a number of talented freshmen and JUCO's, this could be the best Xavier team in a decade! Look for them in the Top 10 all season long, and pencil them in the Top 25 for years to come!

IN DECLINE: Fordham
What in the hell has happened with the Rams? Once, not so long ago, there was a boatload of talented players, a quality coach and excited fans who were looking for that breakout season. For numerous reasons, it never occurred. Most of those players have left campus and there's little talent remaining for Coach Bob Hill, whose mind has also left, still dreaming of another NBA stint! Look for this to be his last year in the Bronx!

1. TEMPLE

Strengths: Excellent team defense, that forces many turnovers. Take care of the ball well. Wings who can score.
Weakness: New frontcourt may struggle to score and rebound. Questionable PG. Poor shooting team.
Outlook: As usual, the Owls came on strong at the end of the season after a rough start. Look for a similar pattern to hold this season. They have the talent to take this division again, but need steady PG play and big Keith Butler to contribute down low in order to reach the NCAA's.

2. ST. BONAVENTURE

Strengths: Excellent backcourt. Good offensive team. Team quickness. Limit their turnovers. Good FT shooting team.
Weakness: Weak frontcourt. Little inside scoring or rebounding. Horrible team defense.
Outlook: The Bonnies have quietly been building a solid program here in the East. I'm pretty high on this team and think they can surpass Temple this season if they only play a little defense now and then. Keep an eye on Green & Gansey...they can really light it up.

3. UMASS

Strengths: Solid, yet passive team defense. Good, deep backcourt.
Weakness: Poor shooting team. Limited offensively. Poor rebounding team. Thin, inexperienced bench.
Outlook: UMass has settled into a state of mediocrity for years now, so don't expect things to change much. However, since this division is a bit down this season, they have a good enough starting 5 to possibly challenge for the top spot. Even so, the NIT is probably the best they'll do this season!

4. ST. JOSEPH'S

Strengths: Excellent backcourt. Good ball handling & distribution.
Weakness: Questionable frontcourt. Poor rebounding team. Little depth.
Outlook: The Hawks were a huge disappointment last season, but won't have to worry about that this time! They lost a lot of quality players and will rebuild around their lone star, Jameer Nelson. Postseason play of any kind would be a success!

5. RHODE ISLAND

Strengths: Decent backcourt.
Weakness: Terrible shooting, rebounding, defensive team. Inept frontcourt. Struggle to score points.
Outlook: Don't get me wrong, RI will still stink up the joint. But at least they've got enough "talent" to stay out of the basement this season!

6. FORDHAM

Strengths: Decent wings.
Weakness: Backcourt..we don't need no stinkin' backcourt! Too many turnovers! Horrible 3-pt & FT shooting team. Poor team defense.
Outlook: Yes, my friends...there is a worse team than RI! All the talent went bye-bye! Coach Hill should have too!

1. XAVIER

Strengths: Excellent inside/outside duo of West/Sato. Big, strong frontcourt. Good shooting team. Aggressive team defense. Deep bench. Loads of experience.
Weakness: Poor ball handling & distribution.
Outlook: Simply stated...Xavier will NOT be the St. Joe's of last season! This team is loaded and should make a deep run in the Tournament!

2. DAYTON

Strengths: Good shooting & rebounding team. Solid team defense. Deep bench. Very experienced team.
Weakness: Questionable PG. Little inside scoring.
Outlook: If the Flyers can find someone to handle the point, they could be Xavier's toughest competition in the league. Everyone else is back, so look for them to improve. They've got bubble written all over them!

3. RICHMOND

Strengths: Excellent team defense, that forces many turnovers. Good ball handling & distribution. Lots of experience.
Weakness: Horrible rebounding team. Poor shooting team.
Outlook: The Spiders surprisingly adjusted well to their new conference last season. In particular, Mike Skrocki exploded late last season and became one of the league's top scorers. Look for that to continue! Another NIT bid is well within reach!

4. LASALLE

Strengths: Solid backcourt. Good FT shooting team.
Weakness: Poor offense. Too many turnovers. Little depth in frontcourt.
Outlook: Cleaves is a future star and Okosa can handle his own down low, but there's not much after them. Someone's going to have to step up if the Explorers want to keep playing in March!

5. GEORGE WASHINGTON

Strengths: One player...Chris Monroe! Good FT shooting team.
Weakness: Unbalanced offense. Poor team defense. Small, inexperienced frontcourt. Poor ball handling & distribution.
Outlook: The hope is one of the freshman will step up, so there's some hope for this program after Monroe graduates! A long season again!

6. DUQUESNE

Strengths: Promising frontcourt. Good FT shooting team. Deep bench.
Weakness: Poor team defense. Weak rebounding team. Poor ball handling & distribution. Questionable PG. Lack of scorers.
Outlook: This team is slowly improving and may move up in the standings if some of their newcomers can make some positive contributions.

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Last updated on 10/3/02 by toyminator@prodigy.net