Atlantic 10 Basketball: Preseason rankings for 2018-19

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DALLAS, TX – MARCH 15: Amadi Ikpeze #32 and Idris Taqqee #1 of the St. Bonaventure Bonnies react in the second half against the Florida Gators in the first round of the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at American Airlines Center on March 15, 2018 in Dallas, Texas. The Florida Gators won 77-62. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /

9. St. Bonaventure Bonnies

2017-18 season record: 26-8 (14-4)

This team is hard to judge for next season. One one hand, the Bonnies will have to replace their great senior duo of Matt Mobley and Jalen Adams, who combined to average 37.2 ppg, 8.4 rpg and 7.6 apg last season. The transfer of freshman Izaiah Brockington and graduation of Idris Taggee hurts their depth even more on the perimeter for 2019.

Coach Mark Schmidt was prepared, bringing in former UNLV Rebel guard Jaylen Poyser over a year ago. As a starter in the 2016-17 season, he averaged 10.4 ppg and 2.6 apg while playing in the Mountain West. Poyser is more suited to play on the ball than off of it, shooting just 35% from the field overall and 29% from three-point range. At the very least, St. Bonaventure will have a veteran guard to rely on rather than going the freshman route, although Kyle Lofton is a name to look out for in the future.

If the guideline can handle their own, it’ll complement one of the better frontlines in all of the A-10. Rising seniors Courtney Stockard and LaDarien Griffin combined to average over 22 ppg and 12 rpg, with Griffin being one of the better post defenders in the league.

Another freshman who can elevate the team’s ceiling is Osun Osunnyi, a 6’10 center who had previous offers from teams such as Georgetown and Syracuse. He very well could start at the center position and be one of the big stars in due time in the A-10.

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