About a week and a half ago I previewed the bottom half of the Atlantic Ten. This time I look into the top half of the conference. These are the teams that you should count on seeing in the postseason.

*7.
*Charlotte 49ers

Coming off a 2004 NCAA Tournament
appearance, Charlotte
looked to become an instant force in the Atlantic Ten. In their inaugural 2005-2006 season, Charlotte posted a
respectable 11-5 conference record. 2006-2007
saw a drop-off for Bobby Lutz’s team, going 7-9 in conference. Last season Lutz had his team back in form as
Charlotte stood
4-1 in A-10 play heading into February. A
month later, they were at a disappointing 6-7 conference record. Then star guard Leemire Goldwire turned things
on, averaging just under 23 points a game in Charlotte’s final three Atlantic Ten regular
season games that led the 49ers into the Atlantic 10 Tournament on a roll. An amazing comeback win over Massachusetts (most likely knocking the Minutemen out of
the NCAA Tournament) led Charlotte to the
semi-finals where they fell to eventual champion Temple.
Goldwire led the way with just under 22 points per game in the Atlantic
Ten Tournament. Unfortunately for Charlotte, Goldwire ended his career with only six points
in an NIT first round loss at Nebraska. Heading into their fourth Atlantic 10 season,
Charlotte looks
to replace Goldwire’s 18.6 points per game.
Seniors Lamont Mack and Charlie Coley, along with Sophomore An’Juan
Wilderness will provide a lift in the frontcourt, but the real task will be in
finding consistent guard play. Michael Gerrity left the program earlier this
month, leaving the 49ers with four guards averaging a combined 14.5 points per
game last season, four points less than
Leemire Goldwire. But if Lutz can find
the consistency at guard, his 49ers could have their best A-10 season to date.

*6.
*Dayton Flyers

There is not one Atlantic Ten
coach who needs a big season more than Brian Gregory. He had a successful first season in 2003-2004
taking over for Oliver Purnell. He led
the Flyers to an NCAA Tournament berth.
Since then, the Flyers have largely been a disappointment, earning only
one postseason appearance in which they lost in the NIT quarterfinals to Ohio State
last season. Last season should have been Gregory’s big year, but
injuries to Charles Little and superstar freshman Chris Wright sent the Flyers
from 14-1 to 23-11. Heading into this
season, the Flyers will be without arguably the greatest guard in UD history,
Brian Roberts and his near 2,000 career points.
The good news for Dayton
though is the talent that remains. The
Flyers have some excitement coming into the 2008-2009 season. Sophomore Chris Wright is back and
healthy. Junior Marcus Johnson averaged
14.1 points per game in the Flyers last seven games last year. Gregory has a solid recruiting class coming
in. However, like Charlotte, the Flyers need to get consistency
out of other guards to make up for the loss of Brian Roberts. If junior guards London Warren, as well as
incoming freshman Paul Williams play well, and if senior Charles Little
improves off his 8 points per game and 4.4 rebounds per game, the Flyers could
do some serious damage in this conference.
But if the Flyers keep losing to conference rival Xavier (six straight
losses) and keep disappointing in the league in general (24-29 in the past
three seasons), Brian Gregory could be looking for a new job.

*5.
Saint Louis
Billikens*

Saint Louis made some of the biggest news
last off-season. No, they didn’t land a
top ten recruit. They landed a major
head coach in Rick Majerus. The problem,
however, was that Majerus was dead set on changing the system that had been in
place. Star guards Tommie Liddell and
Kevin Lisch both had production drop offs from the prior season. That led the Billikens to a disappointing 7-9
Atlantic Ten record and no postseason.
So some maybe wondering why the Billikens are so high on the preseason
list. There are quite a few
reasons. The biggest reason is that
Kevin Lisch and Tommie Liddell are great guards. Both guards are already 1,000+ point
scorers. Both have had a season in Rick
Majerus’ new system. Both will be
looking to end their Billiken career with a bang. Also, Rick Majerus has had a season to
recruit. Coming in this season will be
near seven-foot center and Rivals.com #107 recruit, Brett Thompson. Last, but not least, the Billikens finally
have an on-campus home, the state-of-the-art Chaifetz Arena. Still, there are a lot of questions coming
into the 2008-2009 season for the Billikens.
There is no question that they have the talent. It will just be a matter of getting
everything to click this season. If that
happens, Saint Louis
could be the surprise team of the league.
If not, the Billikens could slide further down the standings.

*4.
**St. Joseph’s
Hawks*

Other than the days of Jameer
Nelson and Delonte West, St. Joe’s is usually nowhere near the top of the
league when it comes to athleticism. But
they are always near the top of the league when it comes to consistency. Since 2001-2002, the Hawks have won 91 league
games (including post-season). That’s an
average of 13 victories a year. Also,
since that 2002 season, the Hawks have only had one Rivals.com Top 150
recruit. That man was Ahmad Nivins in
2005. And he’s back for his last season
as a Hawk. He averaged 14.4 points per
game last season and was one of the top big men in the conference. Also coming back is the backcourt of Tasheed
Carr and Darrin Govens (combined 20.6 points per game, combined 8 assists per
game). The bad news for the Hawks is
that Pat Calathes (all conference first team) and Rob Ferguson (11.9 points per
game), two big men who could shoot or play in the low post, are gone. That would be a problem for most Atlantic Ten
teams. But not St. Joe’s. Head Coach Phil Martelli is a basketball
miracle worker and always finds a way to get the most out of his teams. This year should be no different. With loads of talent still in stock from last
year’s NCAA Tournament appearance, the Hawks will look to capitalize and make
another March run. Don’t be surprised if
they do. It wouldn’t be Martelli’s first
time.

*3. Massachusetts
Minutemen*

UMass should have been in the NCAA
Tournament last season. They had
non-conference wins over Syracuse, Boston College
and Houston. They beat Dayton
once and Rhode Island
twice in conference. They finished 10-6,
well enough for third place behind Temple
and Xavier. Then Leemire Goldwire of Charlotte took control of
their quarterfinal match-up in the Atlantic Ten Tournament. UMass led 36-17 at the half. Goldwire had only five points. Then UMass gave up 50 second half points, 19
to Goldwire. The defeat, however, which
would have crippled most teams, seemed to refocus UMass. They made an impressive NIT run all the way
to the title game before falling to Ohio
State. The Minutemen off season seemed to parallel
that Charlotte
game. Head Coach Travis Ford turned down
several high profile coaching jobs to stay with the Minutemen. Then in a shocking twist, Ford bolted to Oklahoma State.
Now it’s up to new Head Coach Derek Kellogg to refocus UMass. They will be without Atlantic Ten Player of
the Year Gary Forbes, as well as versatile forward Etienne Brower. But the Minutemen have arguably the best backcourt
in the league, and one of the best in the country. The senior tandem of Chris Lowe and Ricky
Harris (combined 30 points per game) will lead the way back to the
postseason. They’ll be joined by
Rivals.com Top 150 recruit in point guard David Gibbs, which gives UMass even
more depth at guard. Derek Kellogg has
all the tools in place to take UMass back to the NCAA Tournament for the first
time since 1998 and put UMass firmly back at the top of the conference.

*2.
*Temple Owls

Fran Dunphy is bringing Temple back to where they
belong: the national spotlight, the NCAA Tournament, fighting for the top of
the Atlantic 10. Last season saw the
Owls win the Atlantic Ten Tournament title for the first time since 2001. With the duo of Dionte Christmas and Mark Tyndale,
it should have been no surprise that Temple
would be in that position. But it was a
surprise. Temple was 6-8 on January 13^th^. They finished the season by going 12-4,
earning the second overall seed in the Atlantic 10. Fran Dunphy is primed to lead the Owls to a
repeat performance. Yes, Mark Tyndale is
gone. But Dionte Christmas is back. And anytime a team brings back a guard as talented
as Christmas, they are bound to be dangerous.
The senior has a legitimate chance to break 2,000 career points and will
look to increase his 19.7 points per game.
Sophomore guard Lavoy Allen will look to have a breakout year after
putting up 8.1 points in his debut season.
Temple
also brings back guard Ryan Brooks (8.6 points per game). They will challenge UMass with depth at
guard, and will play a similar exciting, run-and-gun style. It took time for things to click last season,
but this year Temple should start rolling from the
word go. Temple should be back in the NCAA Tournament
again this season, and with a star senior guard, could do some damage come
March.

*1.
**Xavier
Musketeers*

As Ric Flair always said, “To be
the man, you gotta beat the man.” Well,
Xavier is and has been ‘the man’ ever since joining the conference in 1995. They’ve won four conference tournaments and
have won or shared six regular season championships. They’ve appeared in the NCAA Tournament nine times
since joining the league. They had the
2003 National Player of the Year in David West. They are also only one of nine
teams in the country to make two “Elite Eight” appearances in the last five
seasons. They have been the epitome of consistency
and will look to capitalize on last year’s “Elite Eight” appearance and first
30 win season in school history. Not all
things are perfect for the Musketeers though.
The senior trio of Josh Duncan, Stanley Burrell and Drew Lavender graduated. That leaves the Musketeers looking for
answers, primarily at the guard position.
Luckily for reigning Atlantic Ten coach of the year Sean Miller, the
corps of freshmen and sophomore guards should step in and pay dividends. Sophomore guard and former Rivals.com Top 150
recruit Dante Jackson will see more minutes this year. The hole left by Drew Lavender at point guard
is the biggest question mark, but Miller has brought in guards Terrell Holloway
(Rivals.com #100), Mark Lyons (Rivals.com #103) and Brad Redford
to fight for minutes. Better news for
Musketeer fans is that the front line should be the best it has been in some
years. Forwards C.J. Anderson (10.7
points per game, 5.9 rebounds per game), potential NBA first round draft pick Derrick
Brown (10.9 points per game, 6.5 rebounds per game), and guard/forward B.J.
Raymond (9.9 points per game) all return.
Sophomore forward and Tulsa transfer
Jamel McLean (6.0 points per game, 4.8
rebounds per game in 2006-2007) is eligible.
Miller also added Kenny Frease (Rivals.com #41) at center to go along
with Jason Love (6.0 points per game, 5.5 rebounds per game). The mixture of an experienced front line, a
Top 25 recruiting class and arguably the best coach in the league will keep
Xavier at the top of the league and back in the NCAA Tournament. And unless someone else steps up, Xavier
looks to continue to be ‘the man’ for years to come.

College football
season is finally here and kicking into gear.
That means that the college basketball season is right around the
corner. With that in mind, here is a
glance at the 2008-2009 Atlantic 10 Conference.

*14.
*St. *Bonaventure
Bonnies*

March 2000 was a long, long time ago.
For those not familiar, that was the last NCAA Tournament appearance for
the St. Bonaventure program. They took
powerhouse Kentucky
to the limit, forcing three overtimes, before falling short of shocking the
college basketball world. In the eight
years since, the program has fallen on its face. In 2003, eligibility issues created a
monumental scandal that lead to forfeits and firings. So when Head Coach Mark Schmidt took over the
program in 2007, he knew it would be a tough time turning things around. Unfortunately, 2008 won’t be that turn around
year. After going 2-14 in the conference
last year, the Bonnies lose their three leading scorers including Michael Lee,
top two assist men and two of its top three rebounders. Senior D’Lancy Carter (6.6 points per game,
6.2 rebounds per game) and Jonathan Hall, a 6-foot-5 Junior College transfer,
are going to have to have standout seasons for the Bonnies to survive.

Prediction: 1-15

13. Duquesne Dukes

Duquesne was seemingly headed in the right direction the past few
seasons. In 2006-2007 they had six
conference wins. Last year they amassed
seven Atlantic 10 victories. Then, in a
surprising move, leading scorer Shawn James and second leading scorer Kojo
Mensah left school early for the NBA draft.
Three others graduated, leaving the Dukes without their five top
scorers. But, the Dukes do return a
talented guard in Aaron Jackson (9 points per game); as well as bring in a
Rivals.com Top 150 recruit in Melquan Bolding.
2008-2009 will be a season that will provide a tough test for Coach Ron
Everhart. He’s been slowly improving the
program, but this year will be a step back.

Prediction: 4-12

12. Fordham Rams

Dereck Whittenburg was primed to have a historical season last season at
Fordham. His Rams were 10-6 in
conference play the year before. His
talented foursome that featured potential Atlantic 10 player of the year Bryant
Dunston, as well as Marcus Stout, Sebastian Greene and Michael Binns were
entering their senior year. It was safe
to say, like Duquesne, Fordham was headed in the right direction. Even though Bryant Dunston finished the
season with 15.5 points per game and 9.8 rebounds per game, the numbers
translated to only six conference wins and a disappointing season. Things won’t get any better this year with
last year’s senior class departed. They
will still be able to rely on junior Brenton Butler (11.2 points per game), as
well as newcomer and Rivals.com Top 150 recruit Jiovanny Fontan. But the lack of experience will cost the Rams
their fair share of games.

Prediction: 4-12

11. *La Salle**Explorers*

Atlantic 10 second team all conference standout Darnell Harris and his
16.6 points per game are gone. But that
doesn’t leave Dr. John Giannini without plenty of options and experience
returning from a team that had a surprising 8-8 2007-2008 campaign. This team is loaded with juniors and seniors
including Rodney Green (13.4 points per game, 5.0 rebounds per game, 3.2
assists per game), Jerrell Williams (9.1 points per game, 6.4 rebounds per
game) and Yves Mekongo-Mbala (8.3 points per game, 6.0 rebounds per game). While losing a player like Harris is a huge
loss, it is the only significant loss the Explorers face entering the
season. Don’t be surprised to see the La
Salle Explorers finish the 2008-2009 season much higher than 11^th^ in
the conference. They will cause their
fair share of trouble.

Prediction: 6-10

*10.
**George
Washington Colonials*

Karl Hobbs is on the hot seat, no question about it. His Colonials went undefeated in conference
in 2005-2006. In 2006-2007, George
Washington won the Atlantic 10 Tournament.
Since then things have been slowly falling apart. They proceeded to lose to Vanderbilt in the 2007
NCAA First Round by an incredible 33 points.
Then, last season the Colonials went 5-11 and missed the Atlantic 10
Tournament altogether. Maureece Rice had
a disappointing finish to a nice Colonial career, averaging nearly seven points
per game less than his junior year. On
top of that, this past off-season, Karl Hobbs dismissed Cheyenne Moore and
Miles Beatty from the team. No doubt
this upcoming season could be the most important for Hobbs.
Luckily for him, he will have his usually long and athletic roster which
could bail him out. Led by Rob Diggs,
Wynton Witherspoon and Damian Hollis (34 total points per game, 18.2 rebounds
per game), the Colonials should improve.
But don’t be surprised if the Colonials have another disappointing
season and finish lower than 10^th^.

Prediction: 6-10

*9.
*Richmond Spiders

There was no bigger surprise in the Atlantic 10 last year than the
Richmond Spiders. The Spiders finished
tied for fourth in the conference, earning a bye in the conference tournament,
as well as a place in the first College Basketball Invitational. The Spiders return three of their top four
scorers to try and duplicate the success from last year. Don’t be surprised if David Gonzalvez takes
over this season. Gonzalvez scored 20
points or more seven times last season including 25 against national runner-up Memphis. A tough conference schedule could slow the
Spiders (they play Saint Louis, Charlotte and George Washington twice). Also, last year’s leading scorer, Dan Geriot,
is out for the year with a knee injury.
But what could really hurt the Spiders are off the court issues. On September 8^th^ two assistant
coaches involved with Richmond’s
men and women’s teams left the school over recruiting violations. Time will tell if the NCAA steps in and how
well Coach Chris Mooney and his Spiders respond.

Prediction: 7-9

8. Rhode Island Rams

At one point last year, the Rhode Island Rams were 14-1 and ranked in the
Top 25. Then they started Atlantic 10
play. After such a hot start, the Rams
cooled considerably, and arguably had the most disappointing second half of the
season for any Atlantic 10 team. The
Rams settled for a National Invitational Tournament berth and then lost their
first round game at Creighton after losing a 15 point halftime lead. The Rams
look to rebound after a disappointing season without leading scorer and
Atlantic 10 first team performer Will Daniels (18.6 points per game, 6.5
rebounds per game). They also lose
sharpshooter Parfait Bitee who made 51.2% of his three-point attempts. The Rams do return another sharpshooter in
coach Jim Baron’s son, Jimmy Baron (40.6% three-point shooting). They also return Kaheim Seawright, a 6-foot-8
forward who chipped in 9.2 points per game last season. The Rams will rely heavily on these two
experienced seniors to end their careers on a high-note. The Rams could finish higher, but the rest of
the league may be too talented for that to happen.

Prediction: 9-7