Rhode Island Basketball: Rams Look to finish season strong in 2019

Rhode Island basketball has struggled so far this year, but they’re still in position to finish strong with the Atlantic 10 Tournament on the horizon.

Barring a true miracle, the Rhode Island Rams won’t be extending their NCAA Tournament appearance streak to three this season. But most would have projected that long before opening night back in November. What some may have not foreseen is that Rhody (13-14, 6-9 in A-10 play) would be below .500 headed into March. Unfortunately for Ram fans, that’s the way it is. URI is going to fall short of their predicted fifth place finish, per the Atlantic 10 Preseason Poll. In fact, unless they win out, they’ll end the regular season with a losing record in conference play.

But wait! There’s reason for optimism! URI is coming off one of their best games of the season — an 80-53 thrashing of George Washington on Tuesday night. Rhode Island shot 54.2 percent from the field and 47.6 percent from three in front of their home crowd, temporarily quieting those critical of their shooting woes. The ‘W’ snapped Rhody’s five game losing streak, and certainly gave them something to build on as they close out the regular season.

Next up for the Rams? Err… it’s Dayton. Rhode Island will face the Flyers on the road tomorrow night, and it figures to be a very tough contest for them. But even if they drop that one, Rhody can still keep building momentum. URI’s final two games are against Saint Joseph’s and UMass — two A-10 bottom feeders. If they can find a way to notch victories in three of their final four games, the Rams will be in good shape headed to Brooklyn.

And ultimately, that’s what this season has been about. Building something, showing improvement, and making a push as the calendar flips to March. If they can do that, Rhode Island basketball will be in solid shape moving forward.