Atlantic 10 Basketball: 2020 conference tournament preview and predictions

Friday, March 13 (Quarterfinals)

1) Dayton 72

8) UMass 65

I think UMass will put up a respectable fight here, but there are just aren’t enough weapons around Mitchell to keep up with the Flyers offensively.

5) Saint Bonaventure 60

4) Saint Louis 74

Saint Louis is red hot right now, and their most recent win was over the Bonnies by 23. I’d love to see Bonas get revenge for how the last tournament ended, but SLU is simply too good for them right now.

2) Richmond 78

7) Davidson 77

Two similar teams here in terms of offensive fluidity and ball movement, but Richmond is the better version this season. I trust McKillop, JAG, and Grady to make things interesting, but they wouldn’t be able to slow the Spiders down enough on the other end.

6) Duquesne 64

3) Rhode Island 59

The Rams won round one of this matchup easily back in January, but they’re not nearly the same team that they were in the midst of that 10-game winning streak. Dukes pull the upset.

Saturday, March 14 (Semifinals)

1) Dayton 82

4) Saint Louis 74

I know it’s often said that it’s impossible to beat the same team three times in a season, but despite how close the last two games have been, I can’t see it happening on the biggest stage of them all. Dayton wins but, as always, it’s a good one.

2) Richmond 68

6) Duquesne 74

Richmond is unquestionably the better team, but what kind of predictions would these be if I didn’t have any hot takes? Dukes keep it rolling.

Sunday, March 15 (Finals)

1) Dayton 78

6 Duquesne 65

If Dayton is going to go out, it would have to be earlier than this. They have too much pride to win 20 straight conference games and then lose the one that matters most, even if they know they’ll dance no matter what.