The first decade of this century saw some of the best players in Atlantic 10 history suit up, so with only a few games left before 2010, I offer my stab at the A-10's all-decade team.

To be eligible, a player had to play at least half of his career from 2000-2009. So for example, Monty Mack, who played only three of eight semesters in this decade, would not be eligible. If a player did play at least half his career in the decade, I considered him based on his whole career, including the years in the 1990s.

I chose two big men and three guards, which is pretty typical of an A-10 lineup.

POINT GUARD: Jameer Nelson, Saint Joseph's - There was no more obvious choice on the board. Nelson was a standout from the moment he arrived and led the Hawks to three NCAA Tournaments and one NIT. As a senior he piloted St. Joe's to a 30-2 record and a trip to the elite eight of the NCAA Tournament, while earning national player of the year honors. He might be the starting point guard on the A-10 all-time team and certainly takes the spot on the all-decade team.

OTHERS CONSIDERED: None.

GUARD: Lynn Greer, Temple - The Owls' combo guard is one of the conference's all-time leading scorers with 2,099 career points and helped lead Temple to three NCAA Tournaments and an NIT.

GUARD: Chris Monroe, George Washington - I went round and round on this one. Delonte West was very good. But playing with Nelson and getting hyped by Phil Martelli certainly helped. I'm giving no weight to making the NBA. For this, it's irrelevant. Monroe was the conference's leading scorer in the decade with 2,249 points. He could rebound and he could defend as well.

OTHERS CONSIDERED: David Hawkins, Temple; Dionte Christmas, Temple; Drew Lavender, Xavier; Stanley Burrell, Xavier; Brian Roberts, Dayton; Kevin Lisch, Saint Louis; J.R. Bremer, St. Bonaventure; Marques Green, St. Bonaventure; Mardy Collins, Temple; Romain Sato, Xavier; Gary Forbes, UMass; West, Saint Joseph's

FORWARD: David West, Xavier - Almost as easy a pick as Nelson. West was a three-time conference player of the year and led the Musketeers to three NCAA Tournaments and one NIT. He's the conference's all-time leading rebounder with 1,309 in his career.

FORWARD: Steve Smith, La Salle - Had Smith ever had much of a team around him, he'd be remembered as one of the best to ever play in the league. But he never averaged less than 14.4 points or 8.1 rebounds in a season and was one of the toughest players to guard in the league.

OTHERS CONSIDERED: Keith Waleskowski, Dayton; Pops Mensah Bonsu, George Washington; Stephane Lasme, UMass; Rashaun Freeman, UMass; Will Daniels, Rhode Island; Ahmad Nivins, St. Joe's; Justin Doellman, Xavier

GAME OF THE WEEK - Another week of potential statement-making games for the A-10 includes:

Dayton at No. 19 New Mexico, Friday 9 p.m. - A win here could be the Flyers' return ticket to the top 25.

Rhode Island vs. Oklahoma State, Saturday, 2 p.m. Mohegan Sun Arena - Former UMass coach Travis Ford's Oklahoma State team is up against a better than expected Rhode Island team.

No. 1 Kansas at No. 18 Temple, Saturday 5:30 p.m. - The Owls upset previously unbeaten Villanova and Seton Hall. Is Kansas next?

Charlotte at Georgia Tech, Saturday, 7:30 p.m. - If the Charlotte team that beat Louisville shows up an upset is possible. If the 49ers that lost to Old Dominion by 33 do, it'll be a long night.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK - Saint Louis guard Kwamian Mitchell had 33 points against Missouri-Kansas City to earn him A-10 Player of the Week honors. It was the most points by a Billiken in over 10 years.

Saint Joseph's freshman big man Carl Baptiste and Xavier guard Mark Lyons shared the rookie of the week award.

Baptiste had 13 points, six rebounds and three blocked shots in the Hawks' win over Lehigh, while Lyons had 13 points, four assists and three rebounds in the Musketeers' 70-67 win over Miami-Ohio.

POLL POSITIONING - Temple jumped up to No. 18 in the Associated Press Top 25 and No. 19 in the coaches poll.

Information from personal interviews, newspaper articles and sports information releases was used in this report.

Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com. For more UMass coverage, including a UMass sports blog, go to http://www.gazettenet.com/category/sports/umass-sports