Forum › Forum › Lehigh Sports › Lehigh Men’s Basketball › A-10 Opponents
This topic contains 1 reply, has 1 voice, and was last updated by LU65 15 years, 3 months ago.
-
AuthorPosts
-
November 4, 2009 at 1:19 pm #1013
Lehigh will be tested coming out of the gates this year with games against three of the nation’s top basketball powers – all on the road and all against Atlantic 10 opponents. While making their rounds, Lehigh will also get a chance to see – up close and personal – three of the league’s top 10 talents: Chris Wright, Dayton’s 6/8" forward, Dan Geriot, Richmond’s 6’9" center, and Kevin Anderson, Richmond’s 6’0" guard.
Fran Frshila of ESPN Sports offers these brief team recaps and predicted order of finish within the 14-team A-10. To no one’s surprise,
Dayton vs. LU 12/5/09 is picked to come out on top with Richmond (vs. LU 11/13/09) finishing third and St. Joe’s (vs. LU 12/20/09) 12th in the 14 team grouping.1. Dayton:
Coming off 27 wins and an NCAA tourney victory over West Virginia, Brian Gregory’s Flyers return four starters and 10 of their 11 top scorers. Because he is a warrior inside and plays way above the rim, homegrown product Chris Wright is the perfect face of a program that relies on toughness and grit. Sophomore Luke Fabrizius is an outstanding compliment to Wright beyond the arc. This team is my favorite to win the league, but the battle with I-75 rival Xavier will be fierce.
Dayton’s Numbers:
2009-10 AP Preseason Ranking: 21
2009-10 College Hoops Net Preview: 16
2008-09 RPI: 27
2008-09 Sagarin: 57
2008-09 Pomeroy: 783. Richmond: The Spiders might end up being a surprise on the national level, but Atlantic 10 folks fully expect Richmond to make a run toward the top of the league. Chris Mooney has one of the most underrated backcourts in the country in David Gonzalvez and Kevin Anderson. The return of 6-9 junior Dan Geriot from season-ending knee surgery will give this team an anchor, both inside and out — as long as he returns to his All-Atlantic 10 self.
Richmond’s Numbers:
2009-10 College Hoops Net Preview: 61
2008-09 RPI: 129
2008-09 Sagarin: 112
2008-09 Pomeroy: 11412. Saint Joseph’s: The loss of the league’s best big man, Ahmad Nivins, is significant. Replacing point guard Tasheed Carr won’t be easy, either. The Hawks have been a consistent 9-7 in A-10 play the past four seasons, and Phil Martelli probably would take 9-7 again in a heartbeat. Guards Darrin Govens and Garrett Williamson will have to play like Jameer Nelson and Delonte West for Saint Joe’s to make noise in conference play.
St. Joseph’s Number:
2009-10 College Hoops Net Preview: 95
2008-09 RPI: 105
2008-09 Sagarin: 96
2008-09 Pomeroy: 100For more of what ESPN has to say about the A-10, go to………..
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/notebook? … around/a10November 6, 2009 at 4:45 pm #1024LU’s Top Ranked A-10 Opponents
as determined by collegehoopsnet.com ……a service that previews "their’ Top 144 Division I programsSt. Joseph’s
Overall Rank: #95
Conference Rank: #7 Atlantic 102008-09: 17-15, 9-7
2008-09 postseason: none
Coach: Phil Martelli (278-167 at Saint Joseph’s, 278-167 overall)Saint Joseph’s was looking like a possible Atlantic 10 contender heading into mid-February, but then Coach Phil Martelli’s team lost seven of their last ten games, including a conference tournament loss to Temple. The Hawks, who had four players who averaged over 34 minutes per game, simply ran out of gas at the end of the year. Without their two best players returning, this is a team that needs to find some depth and fast.
Final Projection:
This group may lack a superstar, but Williamson, Govens and Hilliard are not a bad trio to build around. The bigger question is how well can the inexperienced underclassmen play this year? As was shown last year, the Hawks need more than five players if they want to be fresh in February and March and that means the newcomers need to contribute and Prescott and Irwin need to be ready to play major minutes.Projected Post-season Tournament: CBI/CIT
Projected Starting Five:
Garrett Williamson, Senior, Guard, 6.1 points per game
Chris Prescott, Sophomore, Guard, 2.8 points per game
Darrin Govens, Senior, Guard, 12.5 points per game
Idris Hilliard, Junior, Forward, 9.2 points per game
Bryant Irwin, Sophomore, Forward, 3.1 points per gameRichmond
Overall Rank: #61
Conference Rank: #4 Atlantic 102008-09: 20-16, 9-7
2008-09 postseason: CBI
Coach: Chris Mooney (57-70 at Richmond, 75-82 overall)Richmond had high expectations heading into the 2008-2009 campaign, but those expectations were knocked down a bit when center Dan Geriot went out for the year with an injury. Still Coach Mooney managed to make the postseason and win 20 games. The absence of Geriot forced some younger frontcourt players into action and that will pay off big time this year.
Final Projection:
This should be a big year for Coach Mooney and his Richmond team, but the future looks just as bright. Even if the team cannot overcome teams like Dayton and Xavier, they could be on the cusp of the NCAA Tournament. But even a trip to the NIT is a step in the right direction and soon Richmond will be mentioned along with Xavier and Dayton as a perennial top team in the conference.Projected Post-season Tournament: NIT
Projected Starting Five:
Kevin Anderson, Junior, Guard, 16.6 points per game
David Gonzalvez, Senior, Guard, 16.0 points per game
Kevin Smith, Junior, Forward, 4.7 points per game
Justin Harper, Junior, Forward, 9.2 points per game
Dan Geriot, Junior, Center, DNP last seasonDayton Flyers
Overall Rank: #16
Conference Rank: #1 Atlantic 10 Conference2008-09: 27-8, 11-5
2008-09 postseason: NCAA
Coach: Brian Gregory (125-68 at Dayton, 125-68 overall)In the 2009 NCAA Tournament Coach Brian Gregory and his Dayton squad knocked off West Virginia in the first round before running into a tough Kansas team. With just one impact player gone, the Flyers will look towards the Sweet Sixteen or even better this time around. And they certainly have the weapons to make such a deep run in March.
Final Projection:
If there is a year that Dayton is going to beat out Xavier for the A-10 crown, this is it. The conference is good enough for both teams to make the NCAA Tournament, but the Flyers are the most experienced and deepest team in the conference and they want to show the nation that they are here to stay. A conference title and a run to the Sweet Sixteen should prove it.Projected Post-season Tournament: NCAA
-
AuthorPosts
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.