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Atlantic 10 Basketball: 5 key storylines to watch in 2023 offseason

By Tyler Cronin

Feb 8, 2020; Dayton, Ohio, USA; Saint Louis Billikens head coach Travis Ford reacts from the bench in the game against the Dayton Flyers in the first half at University of Dayton Arena. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 8, 2020; Dayton, Ohio, USA; Saint Louis Billikens head coach Travis Ford reacts from the bench in the game against the Dayton Flyers in the first half at University of Dayton Arena. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports /
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Atlantic 10 Basketball
Atlantic 10 Basketball Keith Urgo of the Fordham Rams (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /

3) Postseason Hopes For Fordham?!?!…

In the last five years, eleven conferences have received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Those conferences are comprised of 135 members total, and amongst them, Fordham has the third longest drought since their last trip to the Tournament (1992; just behind Loyola Marymount (1990) for second).  The Rams haven’t even made the NIT over that span.

Fordham is coming off of a magical first season under Coach Keith Urgo, but with a pair of All-Conference players in Darius Quissenberry and Khalid Moore leaving, many will be quick to write off the year as a wonderful roadside stop on a path back to the program’s usual struggles.  But the Rams are much closer to contention then you would think.

Related Story. Reinvigorated Fordham Rams look to stay as a contender. light

The most under-appreciated glue guy in mid-major basketball, Antrell Charlton, has already announced he will be using his extra year to return and the team’s two best defenders, Kyle Rose and Abdou Tsimbila, have the option to do the same. If they return, these veterans will be joined by a group lacking in experience but possessing an abundance of talent. Will Richardson is already the Rams’ best shooter and a quality defender, and has the potential to develop into a lead option.

Elijah Gray already has the per minute impact of a quality center but needs to learn to foul less. Romad Dean, Zach Riley and Patrick Kelly are all candidates to improve in larger roles, but the real hidden gem could be Angel Montas, a 6’6″ scorer who was elite at getting rebounds and steals in high school but had his first year destroyed by injury.

But none of this will matter unless Urgo can hit a home run in the portal, like last year’s move to bring in Moore as a replacement for Chuba Ohams. The coaching staff clearly knows this, as evidenced by one of the first transfers that Fordham has been linked to, former Rhode Island guard Ish Leggett, who could simultaneously replace some of Quissenberry’s point guard duties and Moore’s rebounding, while also giving the Rams another plus defender. The pursuit of Leggett, an older player generating significant power conference interest, shows that Fordham is confident that they can contend on his short timeline and that they can recruit against the big boys now.

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