Including games from tonight, the conference is a combined 18-32, including a 14-15 home record. Take away GW and Richmond, who are each 4-1 and it gets really ugly! Temple has played a decent schedule so far (no big surprise), but itās not like the rest of the conference is playing heavyweights.
Theyāre having an off year because the A-10 was so strong last year. It was inevitable.
[i]Originally posted by NormanNiner[/i]@Dec 2 2004, 07:28 AM [b] They're having an off year because the A-10 was so strong last year. It was inevitable. [/b]well..it's not surprising that they are not as good as last year..but it is surprising how far they've dropped. Let's hope they reload for our 1st year (or do we want a cake walk to our first A-10 championship?)
There will be no excuse for us not to run all over this league. That way, when the selection committee goes looking for mid-majors to cast as 11, 12, 13, or 14 seeds, weāll be at the top of the list.
[i]Originally posted by bobblinlutz[/i]@Dec 2 2004, 08:01 AM [b] There will be no excuse for us not to run all over this league. That way, when the selection committee goes looking for mid-majors to cast as 11, 12, 13, or 14 seeds, we'll be at the top of the list. [/b]Hello Mr. Negative :blink:
The problem with the A-10 is depth in the league. They have to get rid of the bottom feeders. If they did that and had a 9 team league with a true round robin sched. it would be a good league.
Charlotte 3-1
Saint Louis 1-3
Temple 1-3
Dayton 1-2
Richmond 3-1
St. Joeās 1-1
Xavier 2-2
George Washington 3-1
Then take your pick between
Umass 2-1
or
Rhode Island 1-4
Take out the bottom feeders and they are 13 and 11 with Temple playing probably one of the hardest sched. in the country to this point.
the teams I left out (I would pick Umass to stay) are 4 and 18
Duquesne 1-6
Rhode Island 1-4
La Salle 1-2
Fordham 1-2
St. Bonaventure 0-4
Donāt get rid of UMASS, they are the state university.
By the way, will next year be the first year we are in a conference that has the state university in it ?
With Chalmers, Nelson, and Dalonte West gone, sadly, it looks like everyone in the conference is a bottom feeder.
Yes, the A-10 isnāt exactly getting off to a roaring start this year. Neither is C-USA.
Thus far, the A-10 has played these teams from the so-called power conferences (though some of those teams are more mid-major, e.g., Miami-FL, South Florida, Southern Cal):
Arizona State (PAC 10) L
Auburn (SEC) L
DePaul (C-USA) L
Georgetown (Big East) L
Kansas (Big XII) L
Miami-FL (ACC) W
Seton Hall (Big East) W/L
South Carolina (SEC) L
South Florida (C-USA) W
Southern Cal (PAC 10) W
Syracuse (Big East) L
Wake Forest (ACC) L
And Conference USA:
Florida State (ACC) W
Iowa (Big 10) L
LSU (SEC) L
Maryland (ACC) L
Missouri (Big XII) W/L
NC State (ACC) L
Ohio State (Big 10) L
Oregon State (PAC 10) W
Purdue (Big 10) W
Rutgers (Big East) L
Stanford (PAC 10) W
Syracuse (Big East) L
Texas Tech (Big XII) W
So far, C-USA has suffered losses to the following hoops powers:
Austin Peay
Eastern Michigan
Gardner-Webb
Georgia State
Louisiana Tech
New Orleans
Northern Illinois
Old Dominion
Oral Roberts
Rice
Rutgers
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi
I agree that the A-10 has got to āslimā down to 12 or 10 teams, beginning with Duquesne and Fordham. Iām not going to place Rhode Island on the āneeds to goā list with all the injuries, dismissals, etc. that the Rams have had to deal with this season. URI will be okay, though this season will probably be a wash unless they can get Dawan Robinson back soon.
Anyway, my 2 centsā¦
Also, Iām not saying Marquette is a sham, but look at whoāve theyāve played. Next up is D-II South Dakota State. But weāll fin out soon enough. After SDSU is Wisconsin and Arizona.
[i]Originally posted by Smoothieking[/i]@Dec 2 2004, 01:40 PM [b] Also, I'm not saying Marquette is a sham, but look at who've they've played. Next up is D-II South Dakota State. But we'll fin out soon enough. After SDSU is Wisconsin and Arizona. [/b]Actually South Dakota State is no longer DII. They are in the transitional period to DI. By all accounts they are a DI school they just can't win anything for another 5 years.
I got my BS there so I know a lot about them. Marquette should trounce them.
URI is no more a bottom feeder than we are. They bouced back nicely from the Harrick debacle and are having some issues this year but they are on the same level as us. The Bonnies are sadled with the fallout from the welding certificate scandal and the Chairman of their Board of Trustees paid the ultimate price for their carelessness. Xavier and St. Joeās lost the #1 player in the NCAA in successive years. We had a bad year two years ago too. And look at SLU this year.
The conference will reload. SLU will attract some better talent when their new building opens the same way it has helped us.
But the A-10 does need to lay down the law and issue ultimatums to the bottom feeders who are not even trying to be competitive. Shape up or ship out.
I donāt see how you can get the A-10 down to nine schools. I just hope they do a better job with the schedule than the pathetically unbalanced job that C-USA has done. What Iād have given to be in the National Division all those years.
Joining South Dakota State in the provisional D-I netherworld are Longwood, North Dakota State, Northern Colorado (the other UNC!), UC Davis, and Utah Valley State.
SDSU NDSU and UNC all came out of the same conference and decided to make the ājumpā together. I believe all of these teams could be spoilers once they get the chance to dance.
[i]Originally posted by MeinShaft[/i]@Dec 2 2004, 01:29 PM [b] Xavier and St. Joe's lost the #1 player in the NCAA in successive years. [/b]The No. 1 player in college basketball last year was Okafor. And his team, UConn, won a title.
[i]Originally posted by Mike_Persinger+Dec 2 2004, 01:41 PM-->
[b]QUOTE[/b] (Mike_Persinger @ Dec 2 2004, 01:41 PM)
More on Nelsonā¦
This press release begins:
[b]Saint Josephās Jameer Nelson has won every major national player of the year award.
The senior guard has been named the national Player of the Year by the Associated Press, the U.S. Basketball Writers Association, the Naismith and Wooden Committees, Basketball Times, The Sporting News, CBS Sports/Chevrolet, and the National Association of Basketball Coaches.
Nelson is also the recipient of the inaugural Bob Cousy Award, presented by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to the countryās best point guard; the Senior CLASS Award from the Kansas City Club; and the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award, which goes to the best player under 6-0 tall.[/b]
[i]Originally posted by run49er+Dec 2 2004, 02:54 PM-->
[b]QUOTE[/b] (run49er @ Dec 2 2004, 02:54 PM)
[i]Originally posted by bobblinlutz[/i]@Dec 2 2004, 08:01 AM [b]There will be no excuse for us not to run all over this league. That way, when the selection committee goes looking for mid-majors to cast as 11, 12, 13, or 14 seeds, we'll be at the top of the list.[/b]:blink: 11, 12, 13, 14? Seriously? A10 is not a mid major conference, it is a major conference. Not a powerhouse conference, but still a major. Mid-major's don't get 1 seeds in the NCAA tourny. They also don't get 4 teams in the tourny. Mid majors get their automatic bid and if a team goes 25-5 but lose in the conference tourny they start praying to sneak in as a 12 seed. Dayton wasn't really sweating last year going into the tourny selection with 8 losses(and Richmond seemed to make it comfortable as an 11 seed with 13 loses). A mid-major would be making their NIT plans if they had 8 losses and didn't win their conference tourny.
If we ārun all over this leagueā like St. Joeās did last year, we could be a #1 seed. We should be contenders, not neccessarily favorites, for the A10 title every year, but we arenāt going to run all over them. We arenāt joing in the CAA here, we wonāt have to win the A10 tourny to get an NCAA bid. The best case senerio is that this year is just a down year, but things start to swing up next year, plus add in us and maybe the conference gets 4 or even 5 bids to the NCAA tourny next year. The A10 is almost a lock for 3 bids on an average year for them, might not get that many this year, but since 1996 they have gotten at least 3 bids every year but one.