Atlantic 10

Atlantic 10 Basketball Preview: 08-09

CHN — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 20:30:31 -0500

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Conference Rank: 7th

All-Atlantic 10 Team
Pos.	Player	Team	Yr.

G	Ricky Harris	UMASS	Jr
G	Dionte Christmas	Temple	Sr
F	Derrick Brown	Xavier	Jr
F	Chris Wright	Dayton	So
C	Ahmad Nivins	St. Joseph's	Sr
CHN Award Winners		Returning Leaders
All-Americans Dionte Christmas High-Major All-Americans Lavoy Allen Derrick Brown Dionte Christmas Ricky Harris Ahmad Nivins Chris Wright		Points: Dionte Christmas 19.7 Rebounds: Kahiem Seawright 8.4 Assists: Chris Lowe 6.3 Team Points: Duquesne 82.3

A10 Standings
Nat'l	Team	League	Tourney

27	Temple	A-10	1	NCAA
32	Xavier	A-10	2	NCAA
42	Dayton	A-10	3	NCAA
57	Massachusetts	A-10	4	NIT
62	Charlotte	A-10	5	NIT
70	Richmond	A-10	6	NIT
81	Saint Louis	A-10	7	NIT
92	St. Joe's	A-10	8
111	George Washington	A-10	9
121	La Salle	A-10	10
158	Rhode Island	A-10	11
190	Duquesne	A-10	12
214	Fordham	A-10	13
236	St. Bonaventure	A-10	14

*Click on links for full Top 144 team preview

Poll: Who Do You Think Will Win the Atlantic 10?

Other A10 Content

Head Coach Interviews

Bobby Lutz: Charlotte

Sean Miller: Xavier

Conference Media Poll

Xavier the Favorite

Other

A-10 National Television Schedule

Atlantic 10 Media Poll: Xavier The Favorite

Press Release — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 09:17:20 -0400

After winning a program-record 30 contests and advancing to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament, Xavier has been tabbed as the team to beat in the Atlantic 10 men's basketball race, according to a poll of Atlantic 10's head coaches and media released Tuesday during Basketball Media Day.

The Musketeers received 44 of the 61 first-place votes cast by the panel of coaches and media members. Xavier (30-7/14-2) returns a pair of starters from last year's team which captured its second consecutive A-10 regular season title. Leading XU will be junior forward Derrick Brown (10.9 ppg., 6.5 rpg.) and senior guard/forward C.J. Anderson (10.7 ppg., 5.9 rpg.), who garnered preseason All-Conference first- and third-team honors, respectively. Xavier has won 20 or more games in 11 of the last 12 seasons and advanced to the NCAA Tournament in seven of the past eight years, including Elite Eight appearances in 2004 and 2008.

Temple received 12 first-place votes and placed second in the preseason poll. The Owls (21-13/11-5) captured the 2008 Atlantic 10 Championship for the first time since 2001 - their league-leading seventh time overall. TU welcomes back senior guard Dionte Christmas (19.7 ppg., 5.9 rpg.), a preseason first-team All-Conference selection who is vying to become the first player to lead the A-10 in scoring three times.

Dayton (23-11/8-8) was picked third and will be led by preseason second-team selection Chris Wright (10.4 ppg., 5.7 rpg.), a 6-8 forward who garnered All-Rookie team distinction a year ago. The Flyers earned three first-place votes. 2008 NCAA participant Saint Joseph's (21-13/9-7) was tabbed fourth and will be anchored by preseason first-team choice Ahmad Nivins (14.4 ppg., 5.8 rpg.), the A-10 field goal percentage leader the past two seasons.

One of a league-record eight teams to win at least 20 games a year ago, Charlotte (20-14/9-7) earned a pair of first-place votes and was selected fifth in the poll, while NIT runner-up Massachusetts (25-11/10-6) was picked sixth. Saint Louis (16-15/7-9) was tabbed seventh, followed by Richmond (16-15/9-7), Rhode Island (21-121/7-9), La Salle (15-17/8-8), George Washington (9-17/5-11), Duquesne (17-13/7-9), Fordham (12-17/6-10) and St. Bonaventure (8-22/2-14).

In that same poll, the coaches and media selected the preseason All-Conference teams. The first-team is comprised of Brown, Christmas, Nivins, Kevin Lisch of Saint Louis and Massachusetts' Chris Lowe. The second-team consists of Wright, George Washington's Rob Diggs, Ricky Harris of Massachusetts, the 2008 recipient of the Chris Daniels Most Improved Player Award and the league's second-highest returning scorer (18.2 ppg.), Tommie Liddell of Saint Louis and Charlotte's Lamont Mack. On the third-team are C.J. Anderson of Xavier, Richmond's Kevin Anderson, Jimmy Baron of Rhode Island, La Salle's Rodney Green and David Gonzalvez of Richmond.

The preseason All-Defensive team consists of Brown, Lisch, Lowe, Lavoy Allen of Temple and Saint Joseph's Garrett Williamson. The All-Rookie team is comprised of Melquan Bolding of Duquesne, Dayton's Paul Williams and Xavier teammates Kenny Frease, Terrell Holloway and Mark Lyons.

The 2008-09 season tips off on Nov. 11 when Massachusetts faces Arkansas-Monticello in the 2K Sports Classic in Carbondale, Ill. The top 12 teams will advance to the 33rd Annual Atlantic 10 Championship, to be held Mar. 11-14 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J.

Last season marked the 14th time in Conference history and fifth since 2000 that multiple A-10 teams earned at-large berths to the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. In addition, Charlotte, Dayton, Massachusetts and Rhode Island advanced to the NIT and Richmond earned a berth in the inaugural College Basketball Invitational.

PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH

1. Xavier (44)

2. Temple (12)

3. Dayton (3)

4. Saint Joseph's

5. Charlotte (2)

6. Massachusetts

7. Saint Louis

8. Richmond

9. Rhode Island

10. La Salle

11. George Washington

12. Duquesne

13. Fordham

14. St. Bonaventure

- First-place votes in parentheses

Daily Conference Poll: Who Will Win the Atlantic 10?

Shawn Siegel — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 04:24:28 -0400

Atlantic 10 National TV Schedule

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 09:59:06 -0400

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – Following a year in which eight men’s and five women’s basketball teams advanced to postseason play, the Atlantic 10 will again have a major presence on television as the league’s national television schedules were announced today.

“We are definitely energized and excited about our national TV schedule,” says Atlantic 10 Commissioner Bernadette V. McGlade. “The non-conference match-ups are sure to be great games and the increase in nationally televised Conference games is a credit to our teams. Fans will have plenty of opportunities to see great A-10 men’s and women’s basketball this season.”

This year's men's national television package includes 11 games that will be carried on CBS College Sports Network, eight of which are league match-ups, while the Xavier-Duke contest on Dec. 20 will be aired on CBS. In addition, 11 women's contests will be aired on CBS College Sports Network, including six regular season Conference games and the semifinals of the 2009 Atlantic 10 Championship at Charlotte’s Halton Arena.

CBS College Sports Network (formerly CSTV) entered into a long-term, comprehensive agreement with the Atlantic 10 Conference in January, 2006. The agreement consists of all Conference-related media and marketing rights including television, national over-the-air and satellite radio, video-on-demand, Internet, broadband, wireless, and exclusive corporate sponsorship and licensing rights to all Atlantic 10 sports during the regular season and postseason championships, including the men's and women's basketball championships.

This year's national television coverage is also highlighted by the Atlantic 10's continued association with ESPN, which will televise 34 men's games and three women's games involving A-10 teams on its three networks as part of its college basketball package. Included is the title game of the 2009 Atlantic 10 Women’s Basketball Championship on Mar. 9 at Charlotte and the men's title game on Mar. 14 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J., both to be aired on ESPN2. In addition, the Massachusetts-Memphis game at midnight on Nov. 18 tips-off ESPN’s season-long coverage of college basketball, while league games will be shown weekly over the final five weeks of the season on either ESPN or ESPN2.

2008-09 ATLANTIC 10 MEN’S BASKETBALL NATIONAL TELEVISION SCHEDULE

CBS College Sports Network

Wed. Dec. 3 Auburn at Xavier 8:00

Sat. Dec. 6 Boston College at Massachusetts 8:30

Sat. Jan. 3 Vanderbilt at Massachusetts 5:00

Thu. Jan. 8 Saint Louis at Xavier 8:00

Thu. Jan. 15 Xavier at Rhode Island 8:00

Sun. Jan. 18 Charlotte at Saint Joseph’s 4:00

Thu. Jan. 22 Saint Louis at Temple 8:00

Thu. Jan. 29 Saint Louis at Dayton 8:00

Sun. Feb. 8 Saint Joseph’s at Massachusetts 3:00

Wed. Feb. 18 Saint Joseph’s at Saint Louis 10:00

Thu. Mar. 5 Saint Joseph’s at Temple 7:00

ESPN

Tue. Nov. 18 Massachusetts at Memphis 12:00

Tue. Nov. 18 Richmond at Syracuse 6:00

Tue. Nov. 25 Saint Joseph’s vs. Indiana/Notre Dame* TBA

Wed. Nov. 26 Saint Joseph’s at Maui Invitational# TBA

Fri. Nov. 28 Duquesne at Duke 3:00

Sat. Dec. 13 Tennessee at Temple 12:00

Sat. Dec. 13 Massachusetts at Kansas 2:00

*May be aired on ESPNU depending on outcome of previous game

#May be aired on ESPN2 or ESPNU depending on outcome of previous game

ESPN/ESPN2

Thu. Feb. 5 Temple at Xavier 7:00

Thu. Feb. 12 Temple at Saint Joseph’s 7:00

Thu. Feb. 19 Xavier at Charlotte 7:00

Thu. Feb. 26 Xavier at Saint Joseph’s 7:00

Thu. Mar. 5 Dayton at Xavier 9:00

Network designation to be determined at a later date

ESPN2

Fri. Nov. 21 Xavier vs. Fairfield/Virginia Tech* TBA

Sun. Nov. 23 Xavier at Puerto Rico Tip-Off Classic* TBA

Mon. Nov. 24 Saint Joseph’s vs. Texas 3:00

Fri. Nov. 28 Charlotte vs. Baylor/ Providence* TBA

Sun. Nov. 30 Charlotte at Anaheim Classic* TBA

Thu. Dec. 11 Saint Joseph’s at Villanova 8:00

Sat. Dec. 13 Xavier at Cincinnati 8:00

Sat. Dec. 20 Temple at Kansas 2:30

Sat. Jan. 17 Temple at Massachusetts 7:00

Sat. Jan. 24 Xavier at Louisiana State 8:00

Wed. Feb. 11 Xavier at Dayton 7:00

Sat. Mar. 14 Atlantic 10 Championship Final 6:00

*May be aired on ESPNU depending on outcome of previous game

ESPNU

Sun. Nov. 16 Rhode Island at Duke 4:30

Thu. Nov. 20 Xavier vs. Missouri 1:00

Fri. Nov. 21 Xavier vs. Fairfield/Virginia Tech* TBA

Thu. Nov. 27 Charlotte vs. Arizona State 9:00

Sat. Dec. 13 Virginia Commonwealth at Richmond 2:00

Sun. Dec. 14 Villanova at La Salle 7:00

Fri. Dec. 19 Wake Forest at Richmond 7:00

Tue. Dec. 23 Butler at Xavier 7:00

Sat. Jan. 24 Charlotte at Temple 6:00

Mon. Dec. 29 Temple at Villanova 7:00

Sat. Jan. 31 Massachusetts at Xavier 12:00

*May be aired on espn360.com depending on outcome of previous game

CBS

Sat. Dec. 20 Xavier vs. Duke 2:00

Poll: How Many A10 Teams Will Make the 2009 NCAA Tournament?

Shawn Siegel — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 13:47:25 -0400

Poll: What Will be the Best High-Major Conference in 2009?

Shawn Siegel — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 12:00:04 -0400

Rise & Fall: High-Major Conference Review

Shawn Siegel — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 12:01:06 -0400

In recent weeks, the Rise & Fall series has chronicled the progress (or regress) of college basketball's major conference teams. But if I equated each team to a civilization, I was mistaken. It is really the NCAA conference that equates to a burgeoning civilization or nation, each with its sometimes stable and sometimes rotating member states. Like civilizations, the prestige and power of conferences wax and wane..

Today, I'll continue with the status of the high-major conferences before moving up to the big boys. (Check out the Rise & Fall: Data article to see how the league groupings were made).

HIGH-MAJORS

ATLANTIC 10 - RISING (VERY SLOWLY)

The A10 is coming off its best season since the mid-90's, finishing 7th in the RPI, and it was arguably better than the Big Ten (the A10's non-conference RPI and median member ranking trumped the Big Ten.) This was a major turnaround considering 05-06-07 were actually subpar for A10 standards. While a decline is almost certain this time around (the top teams all lose major contributors), a more usual RPI of 9-10 seems about right.

CONFERENCE USA - RISING (SLOWLY)

Judging the CUSA is a bit more challenging than the other leagues. After all, its completely changed since 2005 when Louisville, Cincy, Charlotte, etc, left. Plus, even moreso than Gonzaga in the WCC, no team dominates a league like Memphis does. Since the realignment, the CUSA's RPI has gone up each year from 13th to 11th to 10th. This is mainly due to the strengthening of the conference's mid-level teams like UCF, USM, and Tulsa. Memphis will fall back from last year, but the 2nd tier should once again remain solid.. and bottom of the barrel Rice (3-27) has to improve.. right?

MVC - STATUS QUO

Despite reverting back to a one-bid league last year, the numbers weren't bad at all in the MVC. In fact, the leagues's non-conference RPI of 6th was better than the Big Ten & A10, and was just as good as '06 when Bradley & SIU made tournament noise. So why the sudden lack of respect? I guess there wasn't that one big BCS win to garner some positive PR like in season's past (and the struggles of flagship SIU didn't help either). Regardless, the MVC should be right there (I'm guessing next to the MWC) fighting for the title of best non-BCS league in 2009.

MWC - STATUS QUO

Going by avg. yearly RPI (8.2), this has been the strongest non-BCS league since its inception in 2000. The only thing troubling is how the league's non-conference SOS seems to get worse each year. Thus while it seemed like last year was a banner year with three potential NCAA Tourney teams (BYU & UNLV making it, UNM on the fringe), the big win totals were mostly rung up against bad teams. Due to the decline of Utah (and the departure of Rick Majerus), the league isn't as strong as it was in 02-03-04 but the rejuvenation of UNLV under Lon Kruger has helped the MWC remain strong.

WAC - DECLINING

Last year was as bad as it gets in the WAC.. or as as bad as it gets for any league that considers itself a high or mid-major. With an RPI of 20, and a non-conference RPI of 22, the league trailed such powerhouses as the Southland, Summit, and Patriot League. Not only did the top teams struggle, but the bottom teams were some of the worst in the country. Louisiana Tech, Idaho, even Hawaii at times were absolutely brutal. The positive thing to note is that it can only get better in 2009. Nevada should improve, as will New Mexico State, both of which should fight for an NCAA Tournament bid. The bad news is that the bottom of the league should struggle once again, and even if the RPI improves to 14th or 15th, it would still be considered a down year for this once proud league.

- Note that league power isn't quite as fluid as team power, so seemingly small baby steps end up counting more..

- Up Next: Mid-Majors

BCS

ACC

Big 12

Big East

Big Ten

Pac-10

SEC

High-Major

Atlantic 10

Conference USA

MVC

MWC

WAC

Mid-Major

Big West

Colonial

Horizon

MAC

MAAC

Southern

Sun Belt

WCC