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Atlantic 10 Basketball: Richmond, Saint Louis on top in opening weeks

By Benjamin Zacher

WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 09: The Atlantic-10 logo on the floor before a college basketball game between the George Washington Colonials andthe Dayton Flyers at the Smith Center on January 9, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 09: The Atlantic-10 logo on the floor before a college basketball game between the George Washington Colonials andthe Dayton Flyers at the Smith Center on January 9, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /
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Atlantic 10 Basketball Dahmir Bishop Saint Joseph’s Hawks (Photo by Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images) /

8. Saint Joseph’s Hawks

  • 2020-21 record: 0-2
  • Wins: N/A
  • Losses: vs. Auburn (96-91 OT, neutral), #7 Kansas (94-72, neutral)

This choice might backfire later on down the line, but there is a lot to be optimistic about regarding this Saint Joseph’s team compared to last season’s squad that went 6-26 – their worst record in over 25 seasons.

The Hawks nearly pulled off a season-opening upset over Auburn in the Fort Myers Tip-Off Classic, falling in overtime before taking on the nationally-ranked Jayhawks in a game that was closer than the score indicates (Saint Joseph’s were within six with a little over 11 minutes left).

Billy Lange’s crew were competitive with teams last season, but the difference with this team is that there are so many more offensive weapons.  Ryan Daly – the A-10’s leading scorer last year – is back, but he has been supported by three other double-digit scorers in these two games.

Xavier transfer Dahmir Bishop (14.0 ppg) and Columbia transfer Jack Forrest (16.5 ppg) have been great for the Hawks thus far, and Taylor Funk – after missing 25 games last year due to injury – made his presence known immediately, dropping a game-high 28 points on Auburn in the season opener.

There is work to do offensively and especially defensively, and Daly desperately needs to find his shooting stroke (32.3%), but the Hawks already appear to be much improved from last season.  After being forced to pause due to COVID-19 protocol, they will have an opportunity to pick up a few wins over Drexel (Dec. 16) and Mount St. Mary’s (Dec. 19) when they return.

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