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
