Dayton beats tough foes to lead Atlantic 10 men's basketball standings
1
Even when the Xavier men's basketball team started Atlantic 10 play slowly, it was still assumed that the Musketeers, everyone's preseason pick to win the conference and a dark horse to make a Final Four run, would eventually right their ship and seize control of the conference race.
Xavier still might do that, but it's going to have to catch Dayton, which at least temporarily has established itself as the Atlantic 10 favorite.
There were plenty of questions surrounding the Flyers entering the season. New coach Archie Miller not only needed to replace standout forward Chris Wright and point guard Juwan Staten, who transferred, but early this month he lost Josh Benson, his second leading scorer and third leading a rebounder.
But instead of faltering they've thrived, opening conference play at 4-1 against some of the league's toughest teams. Dayton has yet to face any of the league's three under-.500 teams - Rhode Island, Fordham or George Washington - and three of its four wins have come against teams who are expected to contend for NCAA tournament berths - Xavier, Saint Louis and Temple. The latter of those two wins came on the road which has traditionally been an Achilles heel for the Flyers.
Each Atlantic 10 team plays three league foes twice and the other 10 just once. Dayton has perhaps the toughest trio of home-and-home opponents facing Xavier, Saint Louis and Duquesne, which will make it harder to win the league. But a decent record in those six games will put them in good shape for at-large consideration for the NCAA tournament.
TOUGHEST SCHEDULE - This week's roughest road belongs to LSU. The Tigers are at No. 18 Mississippi State on Wednesday and then host newly minted No. 1 Kentucky on Saturday. At 12-7, LSU's once promising 10-3 start could seem like a long time ago.
GAME OF THE WEEK: No. 16 Indiana at No. 25 Wisconsin, Thursday, 9 p.m. ESPN2 - After a terrific nonconference slate, the Hoosiers have struggled a bit, starting 4-4 in an incredibly competitive Big Ten. The Badgers lost their first three conference games but have won five straight since.
A-10 GAME OF THE WEEK: Saint Louis at Xavier, Wednesday, 7 p.m. - The Billikens' NCAA tournament hopes could use a boost, while the Musketeers can't afford too many losses if they want to stay in the conference title race.
PITTSBURGH TURNS ITS LONELY EYES TO - While Pittsburgh has never really fulfilled its promise in the postseason, there have been fewer teams more reliable than the Panthers in the regular season in recent years.
But an 0-7 start in the Big East means it'll be nearly impossible for Pitt to continue its string of NCAA tournament disappointments because it would take a remarkable turnaround just to get in.
Any fanbase of a school struggling in the present always pins its hopes on its incoming recruits and Pittsburgh has one to be excited about - Steven Adams, a 6-foot-10, 235-pound center from New Zealand, who signed early.
Adams, who plays at Notre Dame Prep in Fitchburg and appeared last week in the Hoophall Classic, only just began playing on this side of the world, but raves about his potential have been coming from all directions.
ESPN recruiting analyst Dave Telep, who is one of the most respected talent evaluators in the business, gave Adams high marks. "He has good touch out to midrange and is excellent around the hoop," Telep wrote. "He is a natural shot-blocker with the potential to be a volume rebounder. He displays patience in the post and is a good passer for his position. He has a solid hook shot, midrange jumper and the ability to finish with contact."
The Steelers are out of the playoffs, Sidney Crosby's return to the Penguins from lingering concussion symptoms remains uncertain, and the Pirates are expected to be bad again. With quite a few likely losses still coming for Pitt, Adams' arrival can't come soon enough in the Steel City.
Information from personal interviews, newspaper articles and sports information releases was used in this report.
Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com. Follow UMass coverage on Twitter at twitter.com/GazetteUMass. Get UMass coverage delivered in your Facebook news feed at http://www.facebook.com/GazetteUMassCoverage.
