Atlantic 10 Basketball questions: Key storylines, 2022-23 POY favorites

We’re midway through the 2022-23 season and at Busting Brackets, we’re doing a bevy of roundtables to talk about what has gone on and what to expect going forward. This one is about Atlantic 10 Basketball, which has certainly had its ups and downs in the non-conference.

For this roundtable, we’ll be asking questions to three of the most knowledgeable observers of the conference. Check out who they are and their answers to some key topics.

Adam Bernstein – @AdamBernstein18

Tyler Cronin – @tcrons21, @3BidLeaguePod

Stu Leddecke – @SLuddecke93 

1. Which team has been the biggest surprise so far?

Bernstein

The team that has been the biggest surprise so far has to be Duquesne. The Dukes were picked to finish last in the Atlantic 10 preseason poll. They finished the 2021-22 season on a seventeen-game losing streak and entered with essentially a new roster this year. The Dukes finished 10-3 in non-conference play this season and already have conference wins over Rhode Island and VCU.

Cronin

Duquesne. The Dukes were picked last in the preseason and (almost) no one believed they could get to 9th place and avoid the opening round, now that might be a worst-case scenario. Most shocking is that Duquesne is the A-10’s best three-point shooting team, a long-time issue for them.

Leddecke

Duquesne. They look like a legitimate top 4 contender. I’m not sure how much that means in a season like this one, but they’re right there with the teams in that ~2-7 group. That’s a big deal for a team that was picked by many (not myself, thankfully)  to finish dead last.