Atlantic 10 Basketball: Davidson rises, St. Bonaventure falls in latest power rankings

8. George Mason Patriots (7-5)

It’s been a season of streaks for the Patriots so far, winning the first four games, then losing five straight, then currently on a three-game win streak. Part of the reason for the inconsistencies has been due to the over-reliance on the top-heavy rotation, with the team playing as few as six guys, although they recently got sophomore guard Ronald Polite back to extend the bench.

Big man Josh Oduro (17.4 ppg and 6.8 rpg) has been as good as expected, while transfer guards  D’Shawn Schwartz (14.6 ppg and 5.0 rpg), Devon Cooper (13.6 ppg and 2.8 apg), and Devonte Gaines (10.9 ppg and 7.8 rpg) have been good overall but has to play at a high level 90% of the time for George Mason to beat good teams. This is a team that can shoot the ball very well and has one of the best bigs in the conference. But will this core tire out playing 35 mpg in league play?

7. VCU Rams (7-4)

Although none of them were against meaningful opponents, VCU is on a four-game winning streak heading into conference play. Most importantly, they got back talented sophomore guard Ace Baldwin, who suffered a season offseason injury but has been back for the past three games, averaging 10.0 ppg and 4.7 apg, providing a massive boost to an offense that ranked towards the bottom in every category.

On the other side, the Rams ranked towards the top on defense, including being No. 9 nationally in scoring defense at 56.7 ppg. Senior Vince Williams leads the way with 10.7 ppg and 5.6 rpg, while freshman Jayden Nunn (10.0 ppg) has been a standout newcomer. This is a team whose defense will keep them in every game but now with Baldwin back to lead the offense, VCU has a chance to climb the ladder in the standings.