Day One of the A-10 Tournament has come and gone. Three teams punched their ticket into the second round, while three had their cinderella hopes spoiled in The Nation’s Capital.
The first round of the A-10 tournament had a little bit of everything. It consisted of a nailbiter, an unexpected upset, and a legendary head coach who is set to retire at the end of the season, extending his coaching career by at least one more game.
If day one is any indication of what is to come across the next four days of basketball, you will not want to miss a second of the A-10 tournament that historically, is one of the craziest.
Game 1: No. 12 Davidson 69, No. 13 Richmond 65,
Both sides came into this game on four-game losing streaks, but for the Wildcats the streak came to an end.
Davidson trailed by five with just over a minute remaining in the first half, but a 7-0 run to finish the first 20 minutes gave the lead back to the Wildcats. After a back-and-forth second half, Richmond forced a turnover with 15 seconds to go, trailing the Wildcats by two, 67-65.
The Spiders looked to B. Artis White, who hit five triples in the loss. But after White’s shot missed from behind the arc, it was Davidson who moved on to face Saint Louis in Thursday’s second round.
Takeaway: Reed Bailey can lead the Wildcats further than expected
Davidson’s Reed Bailey has quickly developed into one of the most dynamic players in the Atlantic 10. Although he has started every game in his Davidson career, he has evolved from a secondary scorer to the primary focus for the Wildcats.
In Wednesday’s win over Richmond, Bailey had 25 points, on 10-19 shooting. Bailey’s 19 shots are the third most he has put up in any single game this season. However, if a shooter is that effective on every level of the offensive end, then he has the green light.
“We’ve adjusted things to our personnel, but really we’ve adjusted it to get the ball to Reed Bailey as quickly as possible,” Davidson’s head coach Matt McKillop said. “When the ball is in his hands, he will score it or he will find a teammate that is going to be open for a score.”
As a 6-foot-10 forward, Bailey also showed his ability to stretch the floor in the win. He went 2-4 from behind the arc, improving on his already impressive 43.6% from deep.
If Bailey can continue his success, look for Davidson to give Saint Louis a real scare in the second round of the A-10 Tournament.
Game 2: No. 15 Fordham 88, No. 10 Rhode Island 71
Fordham and Rhode Island met on Saturday, but it was Rhode Island who dominated, defeating Fordham 86-67. But Wednesday afternoon’s matchup was a completely different story.
Fordham got off to a scorching hot start, as they jumped out to a 22-point lead, with just over six minutes to play in the first half. Then in the second half, Rhode Island was the team who came out hot, cutting the lead to just six points, five minutes in.
However, Fordham basketball had an answer to everything that Rhode Island threw at them, timely threes, momentum-changing stops, and the biggest key of them all, the free throw line. The Rams finished the game shooting 82% from the charity stripe. But after going 16-17 in the first half, Fordham took the wind out of the sails of Rhode Island’s high-flying offense.
Takeaway: Fordham’s Defensive Changes
While Rhode Island’s style of play is vastly different than most other teams in the A-10 tournament, Fordham made key adjustments following their blowout loss on Saturday. In that game, Rhode Island came out hot, and Fordham did not seem to be ready for the early offensive onslaught.
Rhode Island came into Wednesday’s contest with the best-scoring offense in the A-10. The Rams have also shown their ability to push the tempo and create opportunities in transition, ranking in the top 50 in adjusted tempo according to KenPom.
After the game, head coach Keith Urgo believed that playing back-to-back games against Rhode Island played a large factor in the defensive success on Wednesday.
“One of the adjustments was we didn’t send 3,4, and 5 to the offensive glass like we did the other day,” coach Urgo said.
Fordham forced Rhode Island to play in the halfcourt and hindered their ability to score in transition. In Saturday’s loss, Rhode Island scored 24 points in transition, in Wednesday’s matchup that was cut down to 19. While that is not a massive difference, the switch in defensive pressure disrupted the flow of the game.
Rhode Island also came into Wednesday’s contest with the best-scoring offense in the A-10. The Rams have also shown their ability to push the tempo and create opportunities in transition.
“We call it sprint and convert, sprinting inside the college three and building a wall versus the ball,“ Urgo said. “Our guys executed that as well as they have all year long.”
While George Washington does not play the up-tempo style that Fordham faced, Wednesday’s win is a good preparation for the balanced Revolutionaries.
Game 3: No. 14 La Salle 78, No. 11 Massachusetts 71
La Salle entered Wednesday’s game after snapping an eight-game losing streak after defeating Big 5 rival Saint Joseph’s on Saturday. But there was no big-win hangover for the Explorers in their first-round matchup against UMass.
La Salle came out firing from behind the arc, hitting three triples in the first seven minutes of the game. The Explorers then rode this momentum into the halftime buzzer, as they led 30-39. But the Minutemen responded as they started the second half on a 13-4 run to knot the game up at 43. As expected, the game remained close, but La Salle slammed the door shut as they hit their final eight attempts from the free throw line.
This earns the Explorers a date with a familiar foe tomorrow, Saint Joseph’s.
Takeaway: La Salle’s Rotation
For the most part late in the season, the Explorers have run a very short rotation of just seven players. This was the case again on Wednesday, as La Salle ran with their seven-man rotation.
This included Corey McKeithan playing all 40 minutes of the contest, with Deuce Jones and Mac Etienne playing 39 minutes a piece. While this does limit the chance that the Explorer’s chemistry and rhythm are thrown off, it is not reminiscent of a Cinderella run.
Although foul trouble did not play a factor in the win, it is something that is on the mind of head coach Fran Dunphy.
“He [Mac Etienne] had an early foul today which was troublesome, because it was in the first three or four minutes,” Dunphy said. “I was worried about it.”
However, the Explorers were forced to use the shortened rotation. Both Jahlil White and Demetrius Lilley did not play for La Salle in the win. Throughout the season, White provided 9.7 points per game while leading the team in rebounds. However, after the game, Dunphy said that White is dealing with a severe ankle injury, which means that it is highly unlikely that he will return for Thursday’s matchup.
On the other side, in 26 games this season, Lilley is averaging 7.7 points per game, providing another much needed lift. Dunphy was more hopeful that Lilley could return at some point in the tournament.
“If his back gets some more looseness to it, maybe he can help us. But that’s not what we’re thinking about right now,” Dunphy said.
If a long run is on the horizon for La Salle, rest may become a factor. But if I had to guess, they will be amped up and ready to go, as they face cross-town rival Saint Joseph’s for the fourth time this season, on Thursday.
Next up for Davidson: 5. Saint Louis at 2 p.m. EST on USA Network
Next up for Fordham: 7. George Washington at 5 p.m. EST on USA Network
Next up for La Salle: 6. Saint Joseph’s at 7:30 p.m. EST on USA Network