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 URI’s Fatts Russell George Mason’s Tyler Kolek Syndication The Providence Journal /

9. Rhode Island Rams

2020-21 record: 9-12 overall, 6-8 A-10
Previous ranking: 6th

The past few weeks have not been kind to David Cox’s Rams, who – despite owning brilliant wins over Seton Hall, St. Bonaventure, and VCU – are now losers of four-straight dating back to January 30th.

After picking up their second-straight win on January 27th – a 73-60 romp over La Salle – URI suffered double-digit losses to Dayton and UMass, alongside single-figure defeats to VCU and Saint Louis. None of them are bad losses by any means – but it is certainly frustrating for a URI team led by senior point guard Fatts Russell.

Russell himself has struggled a bit in URI’s last four outings, as well. After being sidelined against Fordham a couple of weeks back due to a core muscle injury – just the second game Russell has ever missed – he scored just four points at Dayton before being forced to miss the subsequent game against VCU. He rebounded with nine points in the loss to UMass before tallying 15 at Saint Louis.

His resurgence decidedly bodes well for the Rams, but it has not been enough to save their woeful offense, which ranks among the worst in the A-10 – and with their turnover percentage in dead last at 22.5%. They don’t have many more opportunities to find themselves back in the upper echelon of the conference, either, with just two scheduled contests remaining – the first coming on Tuesday in a rematch with Dayton.

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