Busting Brackets
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Atlantic 10 Basketball power rankings: UMass tumbles while Dayton soars up

By Tristan Freeman

Nov 26, 2021; Orlando, FL, USA; Dayton Flyers forward Daron Holmes II (15) passes the ball against Kansas Jayhawks in the first half at HP Fieldhouse Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Reper-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 26, 2021; Orlando, FL, USA; Dayton Flyers forward Daron Holmes II (15) passes the ball against Kansas Jayhawks in the first half at HP Fieldhouse Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Reper-USA TODAY Sports /
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Atlantic 10 Basketball George Washington Colonials forward Ricky Lindo Jr. Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
Atlantic 10 Basketball George Washington Colonials forward Ricky Lindo Jr. Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports /

It was a rough opening couple of weeks for Atlantic 10 Basketball due to the going covid pandemic. About half of the teams had gone on “pause” and 80+% of the games had to be postponed at the start of January. The good news is that most of the games have been rescheduled and to this point, there haven’t been any other issues.

And after George Mason got back onto the court on Monday, every team in the A-10 had played at least once in league play. That allows me to do another power ranking for the league, although it’s still a tough process since most teams have played 5-6 games in the conference, while others have done three or fewer.

Interesting results have shifted many positions from the last rankings, with a somewhat clear No. 1 and No. 14 team. But check out where everyone else falls in between?

14. George Washington Colonials – 5-11 (1-3)

A stretch of eight losses in nine games put the Colonials in the bottom spot of most A-10 rankings heading into league play. And the first couple of games in league play confirmed those views, as they lost by 25+ points to both Dayton and VCU.

But George Washington wasn’t going to stay down for long, facing off against a George Mason team that was coming off a long covid-related pause at home. The underdogs looked to take full advantage, racing off to an early double-digit lead. But the Patriots stormed back to retake the lead late.

However, the Colonials weren’t to be denied, getting a last-minute bucket to prevail, 77-76. Joe Bamisile and James Bishop, the two stars of the team, scored 26 and 23 points respectively, along with 13 from Brayon Freeman. It’s even more impressive considering that leading rebounding  Ricky Lindo and other rotation players were out for the game due to various reasons.

George Washington wasn’t able to win against its last opponent, falling by 11 points on the road at Saint Joe’s. They’ll remain on the road in the next week, taking on Rhode Island and Saint Louis. Hopefully getting back to full strength, the Colonials hope to remain competitive and avoid the very bottom of league play.

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