Atlantic 10 Basketball: VCU on top, Bonnies drop in latest power rankings

RICHMOND, VA - DECEMBER 07: Nah"u2019Shon Hyland #5 of the VCU Rams drives past Jaylin Hunter #12 of the Old Dominion Monarchs in the first half during a game at Stuart C. Siegel Center on December 7, 2019 in Richmond, Virginia. (Photo by Ryan M. Kelly/Getty Images) /

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Atlantic 10 Basketball Sherif Kenney La Salle Explorers (Photo by G Fiume/Maryland Terrapins/Getty Images) /

10. La Salle Explorers

2020-21 record: 8-12 overall, 5-8 A-10
Previous ranking: 8th

There is no way to make any sense out of La Salle. They are the A-10’s giant-killers, owning stellar wins over Dayton, Richmond, and Saint Louis – but they own blowout losses to UMass and George Mason, and – just a week ago – gave the Fordham Rams just their second win of the season.

That Fordham loss is certainly less than ideal, but La Salle’s showings against marquee A-10 talent bodes well for Ashley Howard’s crew moving forward into next season. Their win over Saint Louis was particularly impressive, with the Explorers recording 1.12 PPP while shooting clips of 52.8% on two-pointers and 42.1% from long-range – all the while going 20-26 from the charity stripe.

Unfortunately, the Explorers are also on a two-game skid, having taken the loss at Fordham on February 6th before falling at St. Bonaventure days later by 13. They enjoyed great success offensively again, recording 1.18 PPP while hauling down an asinine 16 boards, and being led by a game-high 22 points from Sherif Kenney – but they also allowed the Bonnies to average 1.39 points per possession and shoot nearly 60% from two and 65% from three.

La Salle’s path does not get any easier, although it grants them more opportunities to be giant-killers. Perhaps unfortunately for them, they will meet two teams looking for revenge in their next two outings, traveling to Saint Louis on Tuesday before hosting Richmond over the weekend.

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