2023 Atlantic 10 Tournament Awards & Lookahead

CBB Review hands out awards for each conference tournament in 2023. Up next: The Atlantic 10 Tournament.

Dan, the man, was 50% for his picks for the Atlantic 10 Tournament Championship in his preview. He was going for the upset that didn’t happen. Dayton faced off against VCU and fell short. Dan’s credit continues as VCU was his pick, and they beat Dayton 68-56. Daron Holmes II tried to will the Flyers to a win scoring 28 points and grabbing 16 rebounds. Mustapha Amzil was the other player for the Flyers to score 15 points in the first half, but he cooled off and only added 2 points in the second half. The more balanced and spread-out scoring of the Rams won the game.

CBB Review Atlantic 10 Tournament Most Outstanding Player

DaRon Holmes, Dayton

Daron Holmes, in his second year, has become quite the player. In this tournament, he averaged 21 points and ten rebounds a game and was the consistency key for Dayton. His ball-handling ability and shot creation and is maturing beautifully for this Flyer team. He can play inside out, and shooting the 3-pointer forces defenses to adjust.

CBB Review All-Atlantic 10 Tournament First Team

• G: Ace Baldwin, VCU – 3 games played (13.3 PPG, 6.3 APG, 2.7 RPG)
• G: Khalil Brantley, La Salle – 3 games (17.0 PPG, 5.3 APG, 5.3 RPG, 1.0 SPG, 42.2 3P%)
• G: Erik Reynolds, Saint Joseph’s – 3 games played (22.0 PPG, 3.7 APG, 3.0 RPG)
• F: Josh Oduro, George Mason – 2 games played (15.5 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 3.5 APG, 55.0 FG%)
• F: DaRon Holmes, Dayton – 3 games played (21.0 PPG, 10.3 RPG, 1.3 APG, 56.6 FG%)

VCU’s NCAA Tournament Prediction

Round of 32

An unfortunate draw for the VCU Rams as they land in probably the most challenging region, the West. The Rams face off against Saint Mary’s Gaels in the first round. These teams will match up well. The Gaels are an offensive force. However, VCU is a strong defense with players that can show up. Ace Baldwin is one such player, and seeing him go toe-to-toe with Aidan Mahaney will be a must-watch. The balanced play and defense of the Rams will allow them to move past the Gaels, but it will be a battle.

Unfortunately, that is likely as far as they go. UConn is playing so well and has so many metrics in their favor. Adama Sanogo is the difference between the two teams for me. He should dominate Jalen DeLoach and Jamir Watkins. The guard play for UConn is also superior with the additional length, talent, and experience. Tristen Newton and Jordan Hawkins matched up with Ace and Jayden Nunn is not ideal. This game could be a grind but expect the Huskies to end the Rams’ run.