Atlantic 10 Basketball: Bonnies on top heading into conference tournament

11. Saint Joseph’s Hawks

• 2020-21 record: 4-14 overall, 3-9 A-10
• Previous ranking: 14th

If the past week and a half have proven anything, it is that this is Ryan Daly’s world, and we are living in it.  When the last rankings were released, the Hawks were in the midst of a COVID-19 pause, having played their last game on January 30th.  At that time, they had just one win under their belt – a January 9th victory against Albany – and were on a six-game losing streak.

Saint Joseph’s finally returned to action on February 20th, and this time, had Daly – the A-10’s leading scorer last season – back on board.  After going down with an injury just prior to Christmas and missing the subsequent 10 games, Daly returned to the court against La Salle – and has now led the Hawks to three-straight wins.

That first win was an overtime nailbiter against La Salle – and the Hawks have proven that it was not just a fluke.  Days later, Billy Lange’s crew toppled Dayton by double-digits before scooping up a significant road win on Richmond to start off March.  In that three-game stretch, Daly is averaging 23.0 points on a 50% shooting clip, 7.6 boards, 3.0 assists, and 1.7 blocks.

The upstart Hawks will have an ample opportunity to continue their resurgence, too, entering the A-10 Tournament as the 13th seed – and with a rematch set against La Salle.  With Daly back on board, Saint Joseph’s could be a trendy pick to break through to the quarterfinals of the conference tournament.