Atlantic 10 Basketball: Observations from first month of 2018-19

Dayton and VCU were underestimated

Over the offseason, very few people predicted that either Dayton or VCU would finish in the top four of the conference. As the season progresses, however, and with more A10 teams disappointing than surprising, it’s seeming increasingly likely that both of them will contend for a double-bye in the conference tournament.

Essentially everyone knew that Saint Louis and Davidson would be in the mix for the title, but after that, just about every pundit had different choices for who would round out the top 4. Many assumed it would be George Mason, who finished 5th last season and returned 100% of their scoring production, and teams like Rhode Island and St. Joe’s were often tabbed as well. Dayton and VCU were mostly expected to still be rebuilding after recent coaching changes, but they’ve shown us in the first month of play that they’re here to make statements sooner rather than later.

One reason for VCU’s success has been star guard Marcus Evans’ sooner-than-expected return, but they’ve also played tenacious defense en route to victories over the likes of Temple and Texas. Dayton’s strong start can be attributed to the continued development of role players like Jalen Crutcher and Trey Landers, as well as the stellar play of freshman Obadiah Toppin. Senior big man Josh Cunningham was always expected to be effective, but questions remained about whether or not he’d have the talent around him. So far, it looks like we have our answer.