Atlantic 10 2004 Offseason News Recap
Don’t be surprised if the familiar faces of Dayton, Saint Joseph’s and Xavier are not at the top of the 2004-05 Atlantic 10 standings.
Graduation has hit each of these programs hard, and they don’t have proven, experienced players who can step in and fill the shoes of those who left.
George Washington has emerged as the clear favorite to win the A-10 West while Temple, Massachusetts and Rhode Island all have legitimate shots at stealing the East title from Saint Joseph’s.
Two first-year coaches, Xavier’s Sean Miller and LaSalle’s John Giannini, will have two completely different objectives.
Miller has a tough act to follow in Thad Matta, who compiled an impressive 78-23 record in three years as Musketeers’ coach.
Giannini just hopes to establish some sense normalcy to a program that lost its head coach and three players this summer due to rape allegations involving said players.
A-10 West
Dayton
Flyer fans have been spoiled with two consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, but it appears that their luck will run out this season.
Dayton lost its top three scorers (Sean Finn, Ramod Marshall and Keith Waleskowski) from 2003-04 to graduation and have just one senior on its roster.
That senior, guard Mark Jones, is the team’s leading returning scorer with 9.1 points per game. The Flyers’ other returning starter, junior forward Marques Bennett, is known for his defensive prowess, and only averaged 2.9 points per game last season.
Dayton, who out-rebounded its opponents by 6.9 boards per game last season, only has one player taller than 6’8″ on its roster.
That player, 6’11” sophomore center James Cripe, will have to have a big year and stay out of foul trouble for Dayton to be successful.
The future does look bright for the Flyers, however, as their seven freshmen have garnered national praise as a top recruiting class.
Duquesne
Although the Dukes lost three two-year starters from last year’s 12-17 squad, a strong backcourt may enable them to make a move in an uncharacteristically weak A-10 West.
Senior point guard Martin Osimani returns after leading the A-10 in assists with 5.9 per game. One of his favorite targets figures to be junior guard Bryant McAllister, who is Duquesne’s top returning scorer with 11.1 points per game.
Junior guard Jack Higgins transferred from Cleveland State last season, but was not eligible until December. Higgins made a splash early and often, finishing the season with 9.1 points per game and a 45.4 three-point percentage.
If sophomore center Kieron Achara, a Scotland native, can fill in for graduated big man Ron Dokes, Duquesne may make some noise in conference play.
LaSalle
Newly hired head coach John Giannini inherits a program in turmoil, as rape allegations involving three Explorer players have caused them to no longer be affiliated with the school.
One of those players, guard Gary Neal, led LaSalle in scoring last season with 17.9 points per game.
Guard Mike Cleaves and forward Dzalfo Larkai also will not return to the Explorer lineup, which leaves them shorthanded with only nine players, four of whom are freshmen.
With Neal no longer a part of the picture, junior forward Steven Smith is LaSalle’s top offensive weapon. A year ago, Smith averaged 17.1 points and 8.1 rebounds per game. At 6’8″, Smith can score from anywhere on the floor, shooting 32.7 percent from beyond the arc last season.
Not much can be expected from LaSalle this season, but their young players will gain valuable experience that may pay dividends in the future.
George Washington
The Colonials are the hands-down favorite to capture the A-10 West this season, as they return all five starters from last year’s team that finished second in the division.
Junior point guard T.J. Thompson’s 13.2 points per game leads a balanced offense that had six players average between eight and 14 points per contest.
GW also expects good things from junior forward Pops Mensah-Bonsu, who was the recipient of the 2003 Chris Daniels Award, given to the A-10’s most improved player. Mensah-Bonsu averaged 11.2 points and 5.4 rebounds in just 21.2 minutes per game, and was almost automatic from the field, converting 62 percent of his field goal attempts.
The Colonials also bring highly-touted freshman Maureece Rice into the fold. Rice scored 2,681 career points in high school, breaking Wilt Chamberlain’s Philadelphia high school record by more than 400.
Perhaps the only thing in GW’s way this season will be their tough schedule, which pits them against as many as 15 teams who advanced to postseason play in 2003-04.
Xavier
The Musketeers lost both their head coach and the core of last year’s team that made an improbable run at the Elite Eight.
Thad Matta resigned at Xavier to fill the coaching vacancy at Ohio State, and Romain Sato (16.3 points, 8.0 rebounds per game), Lionel Chalmers (16.6 points per game) and Anthony Myles (10.6 points, 6.9 rebounds per game) were lost to graduation.
Two of last year’s starters, junior guard Dedrick Finn and sophomore forward Justin Doellman return and will be the Musketeers’ main offensive threats.
Finn led Xavier in assists (124) and steals (55) last season while shooting 37.8 percent from three-point range.
Doellman, a 6’9″ 210-pound rangy forward, poses matchup problems for defenses because of his ability to step out and hit the three-point shot. His 42.5 percent three-point shooting in 2003-04 led the Musketeers.
Doellman and Finn are capable of having a huge game every time they step on the floor, but this Xavier team is probably a year away from being A-10 West champs.
Richmond
The Spiders’ chances of returning to the NCAA Tournament in 2005 do not appear to be very good, as its three top scorers from last season have graduated.
Richmond is the last team that could afford to lose scoring, as they finished 11th in the A-10 last season in scoring.
Gone are sharpshooter Mike Skrocki (16.1 points per game), Tony Dobbins (11.1 points) and Reggie Brown (7.5 points), and only two players that scored five or more points per game return.
The Spiders’ defense is usually stingy, but this year may be different. Dobbins was also the A-10’s Defensive Player of the Year last season, and Richmond may miss his ability to guard the perimeter and pressure ball handlers.
Sophomore Gaston Moliva turned some heads in his rookie season, averaging 5.4 points and 3.9 rebounds per game in just 19.1 minutes a contest.
Sophomore transfer T.J. Paterick may soften the blow of losing both Skrocki and Dobbins, but the former Washington State guard will not be eligible until January of next year.
Richmond will probably struggle this season, and much like Dayton, Xavier and Saint Joseph’s, have a hard time returning to the big dance.
A-10 East
Fordham
The Rams have been hapless in the last two seasons, winning just eight games. Six of those wins came last season, and it appears that Fordham will again finish near the bottom of the A-10 East.
Some good news for the Rams is that guard Derrick Breland and forward Mushon Ya-akosi return for their senior seasons with 44 combined starts from a year ago. Sophomore Dominic Osei and junior Jermaine Anderson also have some starting experience for the Rams, which will be very valuable on a team with seven newcomers. Anderson played for the Canadian national team this summer in the Four Nations Basketball Tournament, held in China, so it’s obvious that he has some talent.
Ya-akosi and freshman Bryant Dunston are the tallest players on the team at 6’8″ so the Rams may struggle against Temple and Saint Joseph’s, who each have tall frontlines.
Although a weaker A-10 may improve Fordham’s record this year, the Rams will still struggle to climb out of the cellar.
Massachusetts
Many have tabbed the Minutemen as the favorite to win the A-10 East, and with good reason.
Junior forward Rashaun Freeman burst onto the A-10 basketball scene last year, leading UMass in scoring (15.4 ppg) and rebounds (8.5 rpg).
Freeman, along with five other players who started at least one game in 2003-04, return for this season.
With seasoned head coach Steve Lappas returning for his third season at Massachusetts, all the pieces are in place for UMass to make a run at the NCAA Tournament.
The offensive combination of Freeman’s inside presence and the outside shooting of senior guard Anthony Anderson should frustrate opposing defenses all season. In 2003-04, Freeman connected on 55 percent of his field goal attempts while Anderson sank 82 shots from beyond the arc.
If the Minutemen can shape up their defense which allowed 73 points per game last season, you can expect to see UMass at the top of the A-10 standings in March.
Rhode Island
The Rams struggled in conference play last season at 7-9, but recorded an impressive 20 wins overall.
With the losses of Dustin Hellenga, Brian Woodward and their 24.5 combined points per game, senior guard and returning scorer Dawan Robinson must step up his game to repeat the successes of 2003-04.
Robinson, a 6’2″ point guard, has often been criticized for making poor decisions, and his 99 turnovers was most on URI last year. His other stats are impressive, though, as he led the Rams in scoring (15.1 ppg), assists (3.5 apg), steals (1.5 spg) and was second in three-point percentage (.403).
How Robinson will fare with no other proven scoring threat remains to be seen, however.
Senior forward Scott Hazelton, despite not starting a game last year, played well in limited time, averaging 6.1 points and 3.6 rebounds in just 15.8 minutes per game.
For a smaller team, the Rams rebounded amazingly well last season, leading the A-10 in rebounding margin. That tenacity around the glass is enough to keep URI in any game they play, but their lack of firepower will make it hard for them to win a lot of games.
Saint Joseph’s
Jameer Nelson is gone. Delonte West is gone. Tyrone Barley is gone. Almost every player from SJU’s brilliant backcourt has graduated or moved on to the NBA, leaving the Hawks with an identity crisis.
Last season, SJU relied on the quickness of their backcourt to create opportunities on offense (either by penetrating and kicking it out to jump shooters or by getting to the basket off the dribble) and to dictate the tempo on defense. Without the same personnel, the Hawks will have to figure out new ways to put points on the board.
If anyone can do that, it’s SJU head coach Phil Martelli. A large part of the Hawks’ success this season will be based on his performance, as SJU does not have the talent that it did last year.
Senior forward Pat Carroll returns as the Hawks’ only double-digit scorer, and led the A-10 in three-point percentage (45.8 percent) last year. Many of those shots came from the defense collapsing on West or Nelson, so he may not get as many clean looks at the basket.
Another key player this season for SJU will be junior center Dwayne Jones, who led the A-10 in blocks last season with 1.97 rejections per game. Jones recorded three double-doubles last season, but the Hawks will need him to be a consistent offensive threat to be successful.
SJU will not repeat the success of last year’s team, but if they gel and Martelli can get them to play at their absolute best, the Hawks could challenge Massachusetts for the A-10 East crown.
St. Bonaventure
Wunderkind point guard Marques Green has graduated as the Bonnies’ all-time career leader in points, assists, steals and three-point field goals and accordingly left a huge hole in St. Bonaventure’s offense.
Another key part of last year’s squad that finished 7-21 is Maurice Young, SBU’s third-leading scorer with 11.7 points per game.
The departures of Green and Young will allow other players, such as talented junior swingman Patrick Lottin, to spend more time on the floor. Lottin only started 11 games last season, but averaged 13.3 points and pulled down 4.5 rebounds per contest. How he recovers from ACL surgery in May will have a huge impact on the success of the Bonnies.
SBU returns three starters from their 2003-04 that allowed 79.3 points per game and shot only 39.3 percent from the field.
With only five returning scholarship players, a walk-on and four newcomers, it appears that 2004-05 will be another rebuilding year for the Bonnies.
Temple
Much like Saint Joseph’s and St. Bonaventure, Temple is losing a large part of its offense from a year ago. David Hawkins, the nation’s fourth-leading scorer last year with 24.4 points per game, accounted for nearly 40 percent of the Owls’ offense.
Back to pick up the slack are junior guard Mardy Collins, senior center Keith Butler and junior forward Antywane Robinson.
Collins, who has started every game since enrolling at Temple two years ago, is the A-10’s second-leading returning scorer at 15.5 points per game.
Butler, at 7-foot-1, is a force in the paint, and finished second in the A-10 in blocks game last season (48).
Robinson averaged just 4.7 points and 4.5 rebounds per game at power forward last season, but showed flashes of talent late in the season, averaging 8.3 points and 6.3 boards over TU’s last four games.
The Owls have some talent returning, but its brutal schedule will be its worst enemy. Temple has non-conference games against Duke, Maryland, Wake Forest, Auburn, Alabama, South Carolina, Penn, Villanova, Georgetown and Princeton.
The only way the Owls will be dancing in March is if they salvage half of these games and the selection committee rewards them for their strength of schedule.
