Atlantic 10 Basketball: Rhody a wildcard, Fordham a fluke

HONOLULU, HI - DECEMBER 22: Cyril Langevine #10 of the Rhode Island Rams pushes the ball up court Paul Newman #0 of the Bucknell Bison tries to chase him down during the first half of their game at Stan Sheriff Center on December 22, 2018 in Honolulu, Hawaii. (Photo by Darryl Oumi/Getty Images) /

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ST LOUIS, MO – MARCH 21: Head coach Jeff Neubauer of the Eastern Kentucky Colonels shouts to his players against the Kansas Jayhawks during the second round of the 2014 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Scottrade Center on March 21, 2014 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /

Takeaway #3: Fordham was a Fluke

After being picked almost unanimously to end up as the A10’s worst team this season, the Rams played surprisingly well in the non-conference slate. They entered A10 play at 9-4 and even looked good in a Power-5 win over Rutgers. If you examined who they played overall, however, it quickly became apparent that skepticism remained the best course of action. According to Kenpom.com, they played the 352nd easiest non-conference schedule in all of Division I, meaning there was only one team in the nation (East Carolina) that had softer opponents.

Fast forward from the end of the non-con to today, and the Rams have predictably spiraled back to earth. At 9-11 overall and 0-7 in conference, they are officially the only team in the A10 to not have a conference win under their belt. They’ve come close to finding their stride in several of their recent contests (three-point losses to Saint Louis and George Mason), but it’s tough to see them improving on last season’s 4-14 record at this point. They got absolutely stomped by Dayton at home on Saturday (by 23 points), and watching that game one got the sense things could easily continue to get worse before they get any better in the Bronx.

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Fordham will have a chance to follow in UMass’ footsteps and get their first conference W on Wednesday (January 30), when they travel to D.C. to take on George Washington. A win there would give them some much needed momentum heading into the upcoming gauntlet of UMass, Duquesne, Davidson, and Rhody.

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