Game of the Night

Dayton Flyers 68 VCU Rams 67 (OT)

If this game is any indication of what the Atlantic 10 Tournament in Brooklyn is going to be like, then buckle up; we are in for a wild ride. This game represented all that is great about A10 basketball and then some. Buzzer-beaters, overtime, high-drama, great atmospheres, etc.

VCU led 55-53 with 26 seconds remaining, when Doug Brooks, a 74% free throw shooter, missed two from the line, opening the door for Dayton. Scoochie Smith came down and hit a shot, with 11 seconds remaining to tie the game at 55. A Doug Brooks missed shot sent the game to overtime.

Down the stretch in the extra period, a similar story unfolded. JeQuan Lewis made just one of two free throws, giving VCU a 67-66 lead with 27 seconds left in OT. Door wide open now for Dayton to win the game. Kyle Davis came down, and drove right to the basket. He missed his first shot, but got a put-back to go with 16 seconds left, to give the Flyers a 68-67 lead. On the ensuing inbound, the ball changed possession at least  three times, before winding up in the hands of Davis, who was fouled. Davis missed two free throws, but a combination of strange clock management and a bad shot from VCU sealed the win for Dayton.

The victory for the Flyers gives them a share of the Atlantic 10 regular season title, along with VCU and St. Bonaventure, but Dayton claims the 1-seed in Brooklyn. Scoochie Smith led Dayton with 29 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists. The Flyers carry a large wave of momentum into the A-10 Tournament. While this loss certainly hurts VCU, the Rams should still find themselves on the right side of the bubble come Selection Sunday. 

Elsewhere in A10 Action

Fordham Rams 64 Rhode Island Rams 61

Ryan Rhoomes had a game-high 27 points, as Fordham picked up a big home win in the battle of the Rams. The final minutes of the game were extremely hectic, and the final 20 seconds saw a tie and a lead change alone. Four McGlynn hit a three for URI with 20 second remaining to the game a 61-61. Antwoine Anderson then came down and scored an and-1 with three seconds remaining to give Fordham a three point lead. McGlynn then missed a last-second three, as Fordham held on to win. Kuran Iverson and Four McGlynn led Rhode Island with 16 points each.

Davidson Wildcats 87 George Washington Colonials 80

Jack Gibbs had 31 points and proved to be too much for George Washington to handle, as the Wildcats held on to win down the stretch on Senior Day. In addition to defensive struggles, the Colonials uncharacteristically made just 14-22 (63%) from the foul line. The was a stretch of four consecutively missed free throws that could have tied the game for GW. Davidson, on the other hand, missed just five free throws the entire game.

Yuta Watanabe and Patricio Garino helped semi-contain Gibbs in the first half, but just had no answer for Stephen Curry Jr. (aka Gibbs) in the second half. Davidson also saw impressive performances from Brian Sullivan who had 19 points and Peyton Aldridge who had 18.

Duquesne Dukes 78 Saint Joseph’s Hawks 70

Duquesne gained a huge momentum boost heading into Brooklyn, as they downed Saint Joseph’s 78-70. Micah Mason lead the Dukes with 28 points, including a bid three with 1:08 left to stretch the Duquesne lead to six. The Hawks’ offense was unable to produce down the stretch, scoring their last points with 2:28 left in the game. At the time, DeAndre Bembry’s basket made it a 73-70 Dukes lead, but that was it for Saint Joseph’s. Isiah Miles lead the Hawks with 21 points while Aaron Brown added 20.

George Mason Patriots 83 Richmond Spiders 73

The Patriots withstood a furious late Richmond rally to hang on to win on Senior Day. At the under-4 timeout, George Mason lead 70-48, and the Spiders got as close as eight, down 81-73, but it was too little too late. Otis Livingston lead the Patriots with 21 points while Shevon Thompson added 16. T.J. Cline led Richmond with 23 points while Khwan Fore had 17.

Massachusetts Minutemen 69 La Salle Explorers 52

Trey Davis had a game-high 27 points along with 12 rebounds as UMass routed La Salle in their regular season finale. The game remained close throughout the first half, but the Minutemen slowly pulled away throughout the second half.  Donte Clark added 17 points while Jabarie Hinds added 13. Cleon Roberts, Jordan Price, and Yevgen Sakhniuk carried the Explorers, combining for 40 of La Salle’s 52 points.

Saint Bonaventure Bonnies 76 Saint Louis Billikens 67

The Bonnies helped solidify their NCAA at-large position by winning their fifth consecutive game to close out the regular season. As a near-lock, the Bonnies avoided a late-season slip up, as they put away Saint Louis late. Jaylen Adams led the Bonnies with 23 points, Marcus Polsey had 18, and Dion Wright had 16. Reggie Agbeko led the Billikens with 20 points.

Bonus! A10 Tournament Seeds/Schedule

Atlantic 10 Tournament Seeds

1. Dayton Flyers (24-6, 14-4 A10)
2. VCU Rams (22-9, 14-4 A10)
3. Saint Bonaventure Bonnies (22-9, 14-4 A10)
4. Saint Joseph’s Hawks 24-7, 13-5 A10)
5. George Washington Colonials (22-9, 11-7 A10)
6. Davidson Wildcats (18-11, 10-8 A10)
7. Rhode Island Rams (17-14, 9-9 A10)
8. Fordham Rams (17-12, 8-10 A10)
9. Richmond Spiders (15-15, 7-11 A10)
10. Massachusetts Minutemen (13-17, 6-12 A10)
11. Duquesne Dukes (16-15, 6-12 A10)
12. George Mason Patriots (11-20, 5-13 A10)
13. Saint Louis Billikens (10-20, 5-13 A10)
14. La Salle Explorers (8-21, 4-14 A10)

Atlantic 10 Tournament Schedule

March 9th: First Round

Game 1: #12 George Mason vs #13 Saint Louis (6:30 PM, ASN)

Game 2: #11 Duquesne vs #14 La Salle (9:00 PM, ASN)

March 10th: Second Round

Game 3: #8 Fordham vs #9 Richmond (12:00 PM, NBCSN)

Game 4: #5 George Washington vs #12/13 (2:30 PM, NBCSN)

Game 5: #7 Rhode Island vs #10 UMass (6:30 PM, NBCSN)

Game 6: #6 Davidson vs #11/14 (9:00 PM, NBCSN)

March 11th: Quarterfinals

Game 7: #1 Dayton vs #8/9 (12:00 PM, NBCSN)

Game 8: #4 Saint Joseph’s vs #5/12/13 (2:30 PM, NBCSN)

Game 9: #2 VCU vs #7/10 (6:30 PM, NBCSN)

Game 10: #3 Saint Bonaventure vs #6/11/14 (9:00 PM, NBCSN)

March 12th: Semifinals

Game 11: #1/8/9 vs #4/5/12/13 (1:30 PM, CBSSN)

Game 12: #2/7/10 vs #3/6/11/14 (4:00 PM, CBSSN)

March 13th: Finals

Game 13: #1/8/9/4/5/12/13 vs #2/7/10/3/6/11/14 (12:30 PM, CBS)