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Atlantic 10 Basketball: Preseason power rankings for 2020-21 season

By Adam Bernstein

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 17: Hasahn French #11 of the Saint Louis Billikens celebrates a basket against the St. Bonaventure Bonnies during their Atlantic 10 basketball tournament Championship game at Barclays Center on March 17, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 17: Hasahn French #11 of the Saint Louis Billikens celebrates a basket against the St. Bonaventure Bonnies during their Atlantic 10 basketball tournament Championship game at Barclays Center on March 17, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MARCH 17: head coach Mark Schmidt of the St. Bonaventure Bonnies (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MARCH 17: head coach Mark Schmidt of the St. Bonaventure Bonnies (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) /

5. Saint Bonaventure Bonnies

The Saint Bonaventure Bonnies are poised for another great season in the Atlantic 10. Although they won’t finish top-tier with Saint Louis and Richmond, I think the Bonnies can still be considered a top-tier team in the league. The Bonnies will, however, have a difficult time competing with teams like Dayton and Duquesne for a third-place spot.

They were good but not great last season, finishing 5th while going 3-7 against the top half of the standings and earning eight of their conference wins against teams in the bottom 4. It seemed like the inconsistency came from injuries and struggles to find a rhythm throughout the season.

The biggest factor that came into effect came from Osun Osunniyi, who struggled on and off with injuries. The Bonnies found more struggles finding reliable options off the bench that fit well into their rotation. This season, the Bonnies have a deeper rotation which will hopefully be maintained and remain healthy over the course of the season.

As far as returning players outside of Osunniyi, Kyle Lofton has always been a lock at the PG spot, and Dominick Welch is good for boards per contest from the wing. Jaren English, Alejandro Vasquez, and Justin Winston are all candidates to have big breakout seasons.

Aside from their deep roster, the Bonnies are that they have a very experienced coach in Mark Schmidt. Schmidt should be able to capitalize on the Bonnies’ success and talent in the Atlantic 1O. I could see the Bonnies land the third-place spot going into Brooklyn and evolving into a serious contender as of late in the season.

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