Atlantic 10 Basketball: St. Bonaventure on top in latest power rankings

WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 10: The Atlantic 10 Logo on a basketball during the game between the St. Bonaventure Bonnies and the Davidson Wildcats during the Semifinals of the Atlantic 10 Basketball Tournament at Capital One Arena on March 10, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images) /

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Atlantic 10 Basketball Tre Mitchell Massachusetts Minutemen (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

5. UMass Minutemen

2020-21 record: 5-4 overall, 4-2 A-10
Previous ranking: 10th

This might be the embodiment of an overreactive pick, but it is hard to ignore the solid showings from the Minutemen as of late – and just how much potential is on this team moving forward. After starting the season 2-3 – with all three losses being extremely unimpressive – UMass has found itself as a team that could be the dark horse in the A-10 moving forward.

After dropping a double-overtime heartbreaker to George Mason, the Minutemen kicked off the calendar year by completing a season sweep over La Salle while handling Fordham – both by double-digits – with a significant and impressive overtime factory over Rhode Island sandwiched in between. The Minutemen let a valuable one slip away in their most recent outing, however, falling by nine to Davidson in a game where UMass trailed by just two with five minutes left to play.

What makes UMass such an intriguing and enticing dark horse candidate is the fact that they have one of the best players in the A-10 – and one who has been fantastic in his sophomore campaign. Tre Mitchell – the A-10’s leading scorer this season – has been unconscious, averaging 20.0 points and 7.4 rebounds, and he has already recorded a career-high this season with 37 (11-14 2PT, 2-3 3PT, 9-14 FT) against La Salle.

Mitchell is the key to UMass’ success – but his supporting cast has been just as important. Five different Minutemen are averaging double-figures, and the play of freshman TJ Weeks off the bench is an optimistic sign for UMass, especially after he tallied 16 points against Davidson. Where UMass desperately needs to work, however, is on the defensive end – despite shooting clips of 35.3% (2PT) and 36.4% (3PT) against Davidson, the Minutemen were still in the game – but allowing Davidson to shoot 64.7% inside, obviously, ailed them.

If the Minutemen hope to be taken seriously as a legitimate A-10 dark horse, they will need to prove that their win over URI was not just a fluke. They will get one of those opportunities soon, traveling to VCU for a Wednesday showdown before facing George Mason to end January.

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