The Atlantic 10 has three potential Top-30 teams -- Dayton, Rhode Island, and VCU -- heading into next season, but how many teams will this conference have in the 2017 NCAA Tournament?
Check out more on that storyline plus others below in an-depth look at the Atlantic 10 heading into the 2016-17 college basketball season.
How many NCAA bids will the Atlantic 10 get?
It's the million dollar question for people associated with this conference and it's one that nobody really has an answer to. The Atlantic 10 deserved to have four teams in last year's NCAA Tournament, but the selection committee left St. Bonaventure out of the field.
This league had a combined 11 teams in the field of 68 in 2013 and 2014, but has only had a combined six teams in the NCAA Tournament since the conference switched from 16 to 18 league games over the past two years. It will be interesting to see what happens next season as the Atlantic 10 continues to try and carve out its place in the college basketball landscape as a perennial contender for four or five bids to the sport's most hallowed showcase.
Rhode Island tries to break through
That's what was supposed to happen last season before Dan Hurley was hit with the epitome of brutality. The Rams lost the Atlantic 10's potential player of the year -- E.C. Matthews -- to a torn ACL in their season opener and all-conference big man Hassan Martin struggled to stay healthy all season after a plethora of different injuries.
Hurley still managed to lead Rhode Island to a 17-win season, highlighted by a wire-to-wire win at Dayton and unearthed two All-Atlantic 10 caliber guards in Jarvis Garrett (12.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 4.7 assists in 2015-16) and Jared Terrell (13.6 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists in 2015-16) as well. Now Matthews and Martin are back with those two players and returning starter Kuran Iverson, giving the Rams what looks like a top-20 roster on paper.
Hurley also returns two role players who logged double-figure minutes last season in Christion Thompson and Nikola Akele while incoming freshmen Cyril Langevine and Mike Layssard are expected to provide depth in the low post. Rhode Island has returned to relevancy under Hurley's watch, but this is still a program that hasn't played in the NCAA Tournament since 1999. Anything less than a trip to the field of 68 will be a major disappointment for a group that's more than capable of winning the Atlantic 10 regular season title and being a trendy pick to do damage in March.
Will Wade prepares for an encore
The 33-year old head coach did yeoman's work in his first season at VCU, leading the Rams to 25 wins and their first NCAA Tournament win since 2013. Wade looks like he's 23 and acts like he's like 53, giving VCU the type of stoic face assassin it needed when Shaka Smart left for Texas in the spring of 2015. The Rams only lost Melvin Johnson and Korey Billbury from last year's team who shared the Atlantic 10 regular season title with Dayton and add De'Riante Jenkins, a four-star recruit who figures to immediately challenge for a starting spot.
There were some serious doubts surrounding the future of this program when Wade took over and VCU lost Terry Larrier, Tevin Mack, Kenny Williams, and Jordan Murphy. Those doubts have now completely dissipated. One thing is still for certain in the Atlantic 10: you still don't want to go to war with the Rams. Expect VCU to be a top-30 team under Wade while challenging both Dayton and Rhode Island for the Atlantic 10 regular season title.
Can La Salle put it all together?
John Giannini went to the Sweet 16 in 2013 thanks to an influx of transfers from high-major programs and he's hoping that the same formula works once again. La Salle will add three high-level transfers -- Pookie Powell (Memphis), B.J. Johnson (Syracuse), and Demetrius Henry (South Carolina) -- and could add a fourth if Savon Goodman (Arizona State) returns to school in the fall. Those players will join a returning core that features two double-figure scorers in Jordan Price and Cleon Roberts along with a burgeoning glue guy in Tony Washington (7.7 points, 7.4 rebounds). The Explorers only won nine games last season, but their talent upgrades are undeniable.
The big question now is whether or not Giannini can do what he did during the 2012-13 season: get players who were highly recruited out of high school to sacrifice for the betterment of the team during the second stop of their college basketball careers. If he does, then things could be really interesting next season in North Philadelphia.
George Washington could be a sleeper
Mike Lonergan lost four of his top six players from last year's team that won 28 games and the Postseason NIT, but he's still got more than enough to be an absolute nuisance to play against. Tyler Cavanaugh (16.8 points, 7.6 rebounds) is an All-Atlantic 10 first-team caliber player and Seton Hall transfer Jaren Sina should immediately stabilize the point guard spot. Six-foot-nine forward Yuta Watanabe returns with two solid years of college experience under his belt while Harvard grad transfer Patrick Steeves is a candidate to start after averaging 9.1 points last season for the Crimson.
The wild card for this team could be 6-8 freshman Kevin Marfo, a 235-pound power forward who had interest from multiple Big East schools before committing to play for the Colonials. This isn't the most talented team that Lonergan has had since he's been at George Washington, but he's also never needed more than six or seven capable players to get through a season. If Sina can play close to all-conference caliber basketball at point guard and Marfo can provide quality minutes next to Cavanaugh up front, then the Colonials have a real chance to be in the mix at the top of the Atlantic 10 once again.
This and That
- Dayton returns four players who averaged over 8.0 points last season and adds a gem in Bradley transfer Josh Cunningham. The 6-7 forward averaged 7.9 points and 7.5 rebounds two seasons ago and should push for a starting spot up front next to Kendall Pollard. Until somebody proves otherwise, this is the team to beat in the Atlantic 10.
- Jack Gibbs isn't Stephen Curry, but that doesn't mean he's not going to be one of the better players in the country next season. The 6-0 guard averaged 23.5 points, 4.9 assists, and 4.1 rebounds last season all while keeping Davidson relevant in one of the more competitive leagues in the country. Gibbs will be one of the most exciting players to watch in 2016-17 -- book it.
- UMass is the mystery team in the Atlantic 10 entering next season. Derek Kellogg adds a top-flight recruiting class headlined by four-star prospect DeJon Jarreau, but it remains to be seen how this team will adjust with so many young players expected to play key roles. A word to the wise: remember the name Luwane Pipkins. The 5-10 point guard red-shirted last season, but is expected to be the Minutemen's future at the most important position on the floor.
- Central Connecticut transfer Matt Mobley is the likely candidate to start next to Jaylen Adams in St. Bonaventure's back court. The 6-3 guard averaged 17.2 points two seasons ago and made 74 shots from long distance. The Bonnies are also expecting a big impact up front Syracuse grad transfer Chinonso Obokoh (6-9).
- One thing that's really hurting the Atlantic 10: an early season showcase event that highlights the league's better teams. The sooner this happens, the better it will be for the conference. This Atlantic 10 needs an annual platform to display its teams against some of the better leagues in the country. No conference in college basketball has a harder time filling its non-league schedule than this one.
- Archie Miller talked about Dayton's rise, Steve McElvene's death, and attempting to sustain success on this week's College Hoops Today Podcast. Click here to listen.
