A-10 Outlook for 2023-24

[reef]

Duquesne will likely have to win the A-10 Tournament for an NCAA bid if the program follows recent form with its schedule. The Dukes typically play a lot of home games with cupcakes and very mediocre MTE's if they are in one. Their known to date schedule for 2023-2024 is not going to help a lot:


vs Charleston
Samford
Stony brook
Rider
at Nebraska
at Marshall
vs Santa Clara

Duquesne's best hope is to not be a drag on the A-10's metrics. An NIT resume is their ceiling.

A10 is a 1 bid league now. Every team will have to win the AQ, Duquesne is no different than the other 14 teams at this point, unless something significant changes.

This is my feeling as well unless that 1 special team materializes then loses in the a10 tournament, unlikely on paper @ this stage

[ramster]

Duquesne's best hope is to not be a drag on the A-10's metrics. An NIT resume is their ceiling.

Keep in mind because URI finished 14th and lost badly to LaSalle in A10 Tournament thus URI gets a relatively weak Home/Away schedule as compared to Duquesne. This represents a worse NET for URI because of past performance.

A10 started scheduling this way a few years ago. Rewards past performance and penalizes past performance.


URI - 8 games home/away
Fordham, UMASS, LaSalle, George Mason

DUQUESNE - 8 games home/away
Dayton, Fordham, St. Bonaventure, Saint Joseph’s

No one with a sane mind is however predicting URI to be an NCAA contender like that blurb about Duquesne suggested. Regardless, with so few NCAA teams in the A-10 these days, the conference schedule has less value than it once did.

A lot less
Therefore Rothstein's suggestion to go to 16 Conference games makes sense. A10 NET rankings have dropped significantly.

[RF1]

Keep in mind because URI finished 14th and lost badly to LaSalle in A10 Tournament thus URI gets a relatively weak Home/Away schedule as compared to Duquesne. This represents a worse NET for URI because of past performance.

A10 started scheduling this way a few years ago. Rewards past performance and penalizes past performance.


URI - 8 games home/away
Fordham, UMASS, LaSalle, George Mason

DUQUESNE - 8 games home/away
Dayton, Fordham, St. Bonaventure, Saint Joseph’s

No one with a sane mind is however predicting URI to be an NCAA contender like that blurb about Duquesne suggested. Regardless, with so few NCAA teams in the A-10 these days, the conference schedule has less value than it once did.

A lot less
Therefore Rothstein's suggestion to go to 16 Conference games makes sense. A10 NET rankings have dropped significantly.

It only makes sense if A-10 teams are able to schedule OOC opponents that are stronger than teams in the A-10. With the trend in how the high profile conference programs are now scheduling their reduced number of OOC games, that is probably not very likely.

[PeterRamTime]

Ya it sucks that this year is likely a one-bid season.. However, I think moving forward, the A10 will still be a 2 bid league most years. Especially once Archie gets us to where we need to be.

We are only a few years away from Dayton, likely making the final four or winning the entire thing. Even this year, which is probably the worst it's been in a long time, teams like Dayton, Fordham, Duquense, and St. Joe's have legitimate talent on paper. Dayton has Daron Holmes. St Joe's has one of the best backcourts in the country. But their coach sucks, so I expect them to underachieve.

My point is the league still has a few NCAA tournament-level rosters each season. When you look at the normal 1 bid leagues, you don't see rosters as talented as our top A10 teams each year IMO... The A10 also has some fantastic coaches, including Archie Miller. I don't think that's going to change.

It's on the top teams to make some noise in the nonconference, win the games they need to win, and end up at the top of the A10 in conference play.

We've also had teams that were one or two wins away from getting a bid the last few years. Dayton the last two, SLU has been close. SLU had a late lead at Auburn last year and baroned it up big time and lost. The league will have its opportunities again this year, they need to cash in.

[Jersey77]

Give me Zek over Des 100%. Des is a solid wing, but I remember he missed many wide-open shots in the games I watched. You give Zek his role at Davidson, and he puts up better numbers, in my opinion. Plus, they already have Ben Schweiger and Alston.. I feel like they may cancel each other out a little bit. Obviously, Alston is a stud.

Greg Dolan is a great get. I would have loved him. He'll have some issues playing against more athletic guards consistently, but he'll put up good numbers. What I wonder is what happens to Braden Norris. My guess is Norris will need to accept a lesser role this year. Or you start both, but that's an unathletic small backcourt. Unless they still have Kennedy, who is their best on-ball defender. But I thought he was a senior last year.. House and Kortright are highly athletic, fast, big guards that should be able to lock dudes up and excel in the fast break against a team with two small guards.

Dame had great numbers in the Ivy League and was pretty good in the non-conference. He dropped 40 against Columbia, which was nuts. I watched him play Fordham, Bryant, Quinnipiac, and Brown.. Antwan Walker and Bryant didnt' have any issues defending him. Antwan is the type of player he will be facing in the A10 consistently...He's a good rebounder. Not that athletic, but solid footwork and a nice touch. But again, another player that doesn't scare me. I think he'll be a decent A10 big. I think he will have trouble against the bigger, longer bigs that we have. Bilau and Foumena have a few inches on him. Brown is tough.

Yes, we will face teams with more talent on paper, like Loyola, but I think Archie can coach circles around Valentine. I think Archie knows what our strengths are, and he will maximize our potential.

Stevey, I think they start both Norris and Dolan
Norris is smart, solid, and steady at PG averaged 37 minutes 11 pts (37% 3PT/77% FT), and 4 assists.
Dolan is much bigger at 6'4" and a deadly shooter.

Alston is a stud, and Dame was a good get.
They may also start Schweiger up front with them, who had a solid freshman season averaging 9 pts (35% 3PT)/ 4 rebs.

Bringing (F)Welch (7 Pts/ 4 rebs) and Des in off the bench gives them a nice 7-man rotation.

This doesn't include grad transfer (F)Mwamba from Oral Roberts averaged 8 pts/ 5 rebs.
Also athletic guard Sheldon Edwards who scored 16 pts against us and double digit points the last 4 of 5 games.
Sophomore Dawson was having a decent freshman year until he got injured scored 9 points against both Texas A&M and Clemson.
Plus, freshman guard Quinn made 17 starts last season, playing in 29 games.

I was just comparing rosters on paper and not factoring in the intangibles which could make a difference.
Also we play them at the RC, which helps.

I hope all the pre-season hype you are hearing about our players in practice translates to the court this season.
That can make a huge difference because there are so many question marks about our team.

I think Dolan is much more effective as the starting point guard. You want the ball in his hands as much as possible. At least that's what they did at Cornell, and it worked. I think he was around the top 50 in the country in assist to turnover ratio. Norris is very one-dimensional, so he's either your starting point guard or your point guard off the bench in a sixth-man role. I could see that happening. I'm not sure if I love that fit in the backcourt. But maybe I'm wrong.. We shall see. We have two starting guards with terrible 3 pt % so what the hell do I know.

Regarding the hype, no one is saying that this team will win the A10.. But coaching, fit, and chemistry matters. And if these guys are clicking as well as they are this early, that's a great sign for A10 play. I feel like some people are talking about how good some of our opponents are, and I want to give our team some love. If Green gets his waiver, I'll be even more excited.

Duquense having a great year would be awesome for Dambrot and the league... They have the talent on paper. That's a backcourt that does scare me.

Yeah Stevey who the hell knows.

I do understand you aren't suggesting or hearing we will win the conference this season, but glad that there is some positive news coming out of the preseason practices.

About Norris, I will be very surprised if he isn't the starting PG at Loyola this season.
Afterall that is probably why he is returning for his 6th and final year along with some convincing from Valentine.
He did run the point for the last 3-seasons which included 2 NCAAT bids and this year he has a better cast around him than last season.

Like I responded earlier to 02, I think on paper they can finish in the top half but very doubtful they will contend.

The A10 has some talented backcourts and yeah Duquesne as you mentioned along with St. Joe's.
But I have to give the nod to the Bonnies with all their talent and depth that includes returning players: Banks, Luc, and Flowers, plus the huge additions of Pride and Adam-Woods. Not sure where they will get all the minutes to go around.

PS. Hope you are feeling better Steve.

[NYGFan_Section208]

COLLEGE HOOPSFive Under the Radar Teams for the 2023-2024 College Basketball Season

Duquesne
There are rumors circulating that this could be Keith Dambrot’s last year before retirement and he’s making sure he goes out with a bang. The Dukes are primed to take a huge jump in 23-24 thanks to a group featuring seven (7!) players in their last year of eligibility. Dae Dae Grant and Jimmy Clark are back, giving Duquesne one of the best backcourts in the Atlantic 10. Combine those guards with the additions of Dusan Mahorcic (NC State) and Andrei Savrasov (Georgia Southern) in the front court and this group has all the makings of a potential NCAA tournament team.



https://burnerball.com/five-under-the-r ... ll-season/

That's good news for when we kick their a's....

[steveystuds06]

[Jersey77]

Yeah Stevey, the new transfers along with Bishop and Edwards (2023 A10-ROY 10.5 PTS/6.5 rebs) not terrible.

Plus freshman recruits Trey Autrey (who we recruited) and Weluche-Ume who was on Great Britain's U20 Euro Team (same as Rory's) and finished 2nd on that team in scoring for the tournament.

[SGreenwell]

Ya it sucks that this year is likely a one-bid season.. However, I think moving forward, the A10 will still be a 2 bid league most years. Especially once Archie gets us to where we need to be.

We are only a few years away from Dayton, likely making the final four or winning the entire thing. Even this year, which is probably the worst it's been in a long time, teams like Dayton, Fordham, Duquense, and St. Joe's have legitimate talent on paper. Dayton has Daron Holmes. St Joe's has one of the best backcourts in the country. But their coach sucks, so I expect them to underachieve.

My point is the league still has a few NCAA tournament-level rosters each season. When you look at the normal 1 bid leagues, you don't see rosters as talented as our top A10 teams each year IMO... The A10 also has some fantastic coaches, including Archie Miller. I don't think that's going to change.

It's on the top teams to make some noise in the nonconference, win the games they need to win, and end up at the top of the A10 in conference play.

It would help if the better teams in the conference stopped crapping all over themselves in OOC play. VCU went 0-2 in Quad 1, 5-2 in Quad 2 games, which is kind of OK, and they had the best NET at 54. Dayton went 1-2, 1-6. St. Louis went 1-4, 2-5. Fordham played a whopping four games total against Q1, Q2, and fattened up on a 17-1 Q4 record. If power conference teams refuse to play, I think A-10 teams need to be more aggressive about scheduling against other mid-majors, instead of just defaulting to teams that will almost certainly be Q4 by the end of the year.

[RhowdyRam02]

Duquesne's best hope is to not be a drag on the A-10's metrics. An NIT resume is their ceiling.

Keep in mind because URI finished 14th and lost badly to LaSalle in A10 Tournament thus URI gets a relatively weak Home/Away schedule as compared to Duquesne. This represents a worse NET for URI because of past performance.

A10 started scheduling this way a few years ago. Rewards past performance and penalizes past performance.


URI - 8 games home/away
Fordham, UMASS, LaSalle, George Mason

DUQUESNE - 8 games home/away
Dayton, Fordham, St. Bonaventure, Saint Joseph’s

No one with a sane mind is however predicting URI to be an NCAA contender like that blurb about Duquesne suggested. Regardless, with so few NCAA teams in the A-10 these days, the conference schedule has less value than it once did.

11/6 Central Connecticut Monday
11/9 Fairfield Thursday
11/14 Wagner Tuesday
11/26 Yale Sunday
12/6 Brown Wednesday
12/21 New Hampshire Thursday
12/30 Northeastern Saturday
Milwaukee
UMass
Fordham
La Salle
George Mason
Duquesne
Loyola Chicago
Richmond
Saint Louis
Saint Joseph's

As you said, the conference schedule doesn't provide the value that it used to and the out of conference leaves a lot to be desired at least from an excitement perspective. What's the most exciting game on that Ryan Center schedule, our matchup against an also rebuilding UMass? Is there a single game on that list that's going to draw a casual fan? What games do you even start building mini plans around? Good luck to our ticket office staff this year, they're going to need it!

[RIFan]

This is my concern. How long before interest starts to really dry up for A10 teams and they are playing in 3/4 empty arenas because we are a 1 bid league with no games worth watching.

[reef]

Keep in mind because URI finished 14th and lost badly to LaSalle in A10 Tournament thus URI gets a relatively weak Home/Away schedule as compared to Duquesne. This represents a worse NET for URI because of past performance.

A10 started scheduling this way a few years ago. Rewards past performance and penalizes past performance.


URI - 8 games home/away
Fordham, UMASS, LaSalle, George Mason

DUQUESNE - 8 games home/away
Dayton, Fordham, St. Bonaventure, Saint Joseph’s

No one with a sane mind is however predicting URI to be an NCAA contender like that blurb about Duquesne suggested. Regardless, with so few NCAA teams in the A-10 these days, the conference schedule has less value than it once did.

11/6 Central Connecticut Monday
11/9 Fairfield Thursday
11/14 Wagner Tuesday
11/26 Yale Sunday
12/6 Brown Wednesday
12/21 New Hampshire Thursday
12/30 Northeastern Saturday
Milwaukee
UMass
Fordham
La Salle
George Mason
Duquesne
Loyola Chicago
Richmond
Saint Louis
Saint Joseph's

As you said, the conference schedule doesn't provide the value that it used to and the out of conference leaves a lot to be desired at least from an excitement perspective. What's the most exciting game on that Ryan Center schedule, our matchup against an also rebuilding UMass? Is there a single game on that list that's going to draw a casual fan? What games do you even start building mini plans around? Good luck to our ticket office staff this year, they're going to need it!

Yeah wow pretty weak home OOC , would guess Yale is the toughest of that group. I’m ok with it we aren’t challenging for an at large this year

[Jersey77]

No one with a sane mind is however predicting URI to be an NCAA contender like that blurb about Duquesne suggested. Regardless, with so few NCAA teams in the A-10 these days, the conference schedule has less value than it once did.

11/6 Central Connecticut Monday
11/9 Fairfield Thursday
11/14 Wagner Tuesday
11/26 Yale Sunday
12/6 Brown Wednesday
12/21 New Hampshire Thursday
12/30 Northeastern Saturday
Milwaukee
UMass
Fordham
La Salle
George Mason
Duquesne
Loyola Chicago
Richmond
Saint Louis
Saint Joseph's

As you said, the conference schedule doesn't provide the value that it used to and the out of conference leaves a lot to be desired at least from an excitement perspective. What's the most exciting game on that Ryan Center schedule, our matchup against an also rebuilding UMass? Is there a single game on that list that's going to draw a casual fan? What games do you even start building mini plans around? Good luck to our ticket office staff this year, they're going to need it!

Yeah wow pretty weak home OOC , would guess Yale is the toughest of that group. I’m ok with it we aren’t challenging for an at large this year

Yale did lose one of their best players and top big E. J. Jarvis who transferred to Florida.
They didn't list their roster yet, but they should still return a solid core.

Our toughest OOC home game may end up being Milwaukee.
Last season they won 22 games and 14-6 (conference).
They return their best player B. J. Freeman (All-Conference 18 pts/ 5 rebs) and 4 of their 5 top scorers.
Plus, the addition of several transfers and juco's who will probably contribute.

Aside from those 2 games the rest of the OOC home schedule is pretty weak as previously mentioned.

[steveystuds06]

https://collegehoops.today/rothstein-fi ... eakdown-4/
Rothstein has us in last place. Use it as fuel!!!

[RIFan]

That’s disappointing.

[NYGFan_Section208]

https://collegehoops.today/rothstein-fi ... eakdown-4/
Rothstein has us in last place. Use it as fuel!!!

Jon....Jon...c'mon Jon!
95% of the Key Losses....nohehohs.....

[Blue Man]

https://collegehoops.today/rothstein-fi ... eakdown-4/
Rothstein has us in last place. Use it as fuel!!!

Considering he's going to hit 3/5 on starters, I won't put much stock in it.

Again with these things. Loyola being in 12th is funny to me. For context let's look at last years predictions:

1 St Louis VCU
2 Dayton Fordham
3 VCU Dayton
4 Davidson St Louis
5 George Mason
6 Richmond Dukes
7 Loyola GW
8 UMass Davidson
9 Bonnies St Joes
10 URI Bonnies
11 Fordham Richmond
12 La Salle
13 St Joes UMass
14 GW URI
15 Dukes Loyola

2/15. Move over Oracle of Omaha! If Jonny boy says it's happening believe him!! Definitely the truth! Not another "expert" just filling air time in the offseason and not knowing dick about what's going to happen.

Loyola in 7th! Great call! But you did nail 5th and 12th! What are the powerball numbers Jonny!? Tell me!!

[Dino611]

Lmao I have Dayton in the top 4 but not first, St Joes at 3rd can I have what Rothenstein is smoking as well as how he as Lasalle that high

[Rhodymob05]

Lol

[reef]

https://collegehoops.today/rothstein-fi ... eakdown-4/
Rothstein has us in last place. Use it as fuel!!!

Wow very shocked he usually loves URI

[hrstrat57]

https://collegehoops.today/rothstein-fi ... eakdown-4/
Rothstein has us in last place. Use it as fuel!!!

This 100%

Post it on every door.

Prognosticators yuk.

Go Rhody

[RF1]

I think it is near mandatory that any predictions for order of finish in the A-10 has to have a team with the nickname of Rams at the bottom. Unfortunately for URI, it is no longer Fordham.

[Rhody74]

That’s disappointing.

It’s irrelevant.

[steveystuds06]

I wasn’t lying when I said I keep hearing good things from people that have watched this team.

[steveystuds06]

And that Green getting a waiver is huge…

[adam914]

Agree with Chris, I get picking us last is kind of the easy move, but there is a 0% chance we finish last (barring all sorts of injury problems or something wild like that). And if somehow we do then the Archie honeymoon will REALLY be over.

[RIFan]

As said on other thread, I trust Chris over Rothstein.

[RIFan]

That’s disappointing.

It’s irrelevant.

Wouldn’t say that, you never want to be predicted last by a respected national source. Not for the perception of a team that wants to be seen as on the rise. Until games are played perception is reality.

[RhowdyRam02]

I wasn’t lying when I said I keep hearing good things from people that have watched this team.

After this tweet I will no longer listen to people that want to place Fordham Chicago above us in the standings

[Jersey77]

I wasn’t lying when I said I keep hearing good things from people that have watched this team.

After this tweet I will no longer listen to people that want to place Fordham Chicago above us in the standings

O2, I think you meant Loyola/Chicago.
Besides, I agree with Chris and also feel we won't finish last.

These are only pre-season predictions and who the hell really knows what will happen anyway.

[RhowdyRam02]

No, I meant to call Loyola Fordham Chicago. It was a terrible pickup for the conference, they suck, and I will be treating and calling them accordingly

[NYGFan_Section208]

I wasn’t lying when I said I keep hearing good things from people that have watched this team.

After this tweet I will no longer listen to people that want to place Fordham Chicago above us in the standings

O2, I think you meant Loyola/Chicago.
Besides, I agree with Chris and also feel we won't finish last.

These are only pre-season predictions and who the hell really knows what will happen anyway.

There should be pictures of Jon (who I actually like) and his prediction posted all over the Ry. And instead of "Gino time", like the C's have when the game is in the satchel, everyone just start chanting "15th!! D'oh, Jonny, d'oh!!" (he would love it)

[Jersey77]

No, I meant to call Loyola Fordham Chicago. It was a terrible pickup for the conference, they suck, and I will be treating and calling them accordingly

Okay got it, even though we disagree.

[Blue Man]

No, I meant to call Loyola Fordham Chicago. It was a terrible pickup for the conference, they suck, and I will be treating and calling them accordingly

I do not disagree with the above. I believe you and I were in a very small minority of people who knew Loyola would suck, that Moser wasn't walking through that door, and that beating up on MVC teams and then catching fire with the right matchups in the tournament one time didn't make them a program. Valentine sucks. They suck.

That said, they most definitely aren't Fordham. They at least invest in their facilities.

What they are however, is a very strictly academically driven, small college in a city that has 2 clearly better programs around the corner, and another couple D1 schools to compete with for talent that wants to stay home. And within a 1 hour flight - B1G and Big XII royalty. Michigan. Mich St. IU. Illinois. Wisconsin. Iowa. Iowa State. Etc, etc.

Granted, they were probably added to keep Dayton/St Louis happy with travel so they become less of a flight risk. Short-sighted and stupid as it's going to be another NET-drag on the programs with a chance.

I'd have rather Bernedette changed the NCAA sharing agreement so that teams that make the dance get more revenue share. In the last 6 seasons, only 7 programs have contributed to the revenue sharing pot. Yet they're splitting 50% of their winnings with the rest of the dregs. VCU, Davidson, Richmond, Bonnies, St Louis, URI, Dayton.

You have to go back to 2014 to add 3 more programs to that list - GW, Joes, UMass.

It's the same teams carrying the weight of the conference to get NCAA money. The conference needs to get way more creative in rewarding extra share percentages to the teams that go to the dance.

Why do you think Gonzaga stays in the WCC? They get an outsized share of their winnings.

If you put more of an incentive in front of winning, maybe the schools that drag us down - Fordham, La Salle, George Mason, Duquesne, etc - decide to either invest or bail out and go to a conference where they make more money. The NCAA "recommends" an even split, and most conferences do. But the A10 is different. Not a P5. Not a mid-major. SO START ACTING DIFFERENT.

The sooner Bernadette moves on, the better.

[reef]

https://collegehoops.today/rothstein-fi ... eakdown-4/
Rothstein has us in last place. Use it as fuel!!!

This 100%

Post it on every door.

Prognosticators yuk.

Go Rhody

Yeah no doubt classic bulletin board material

[ramster]

No, I meant to call Loyola Fordham Chicago. It was a terrible pickup for the conference, they suck, and I will be treating and calling them accordingly

I do not disagree with the above. I believe you and I were in a very small minority of people who knew Loyola would suck, that Moser wasn't walking through that door, and that beating up on MVC teams and then catching fire with the right matchups in the tournament one time didn't make them a program. Valentine sucks. They suck.

That said, they most definitely aren't Fordham. They at least invest in their facilities.

What they are however, is a very strictly academically driven, small college in a city that has 2 clearly better programs around the corner, and another couple D1 schools to compete with for talent that wants to stay home. And within a 1 hour flight - B1G and Big XII royalty. Michigan. Mich St. IU. Illinois. Wisconsin. Iowa. Iowa State. Etc, etc.

Granted, they were probably added to keep Dayton/St Louis happy with travel so they become less of a flight risk. Short-sighted and stupid as it's going to be another NET-drag on the programs with a chance.

I'd have rather Bernedette changed the NCAA sharing agreement so that teams that make the dance get more revenue share. In the last 6 seasons, only 7 programs have contributed to the revenue sharing pot. Yet they're splitting 50% of their winnings with the rest of the dregs. VCU, Davidson, Richmond, Bonnies, St Louis, URI, Dayton.

You have to go back to 2014 to add 3 more programs to that list - GW, Joes, UMass.

It's the same teams carrying the weight of the conference to get NCAA money. The conference needs to get way more creative in rewarding extra share percentages to the teams that go to the dance.

Why do you think Gonzaga stays in the WCC? They get an outsized share of their winnings.

If you put more of an incentive in front of winning, maybe the schools that drag us down - Fordham, La Salle, George Mason, Duquesne, etc - decide to either invest or bail out and go to a conference where they make more money. The NCAA "recommends" an even split, and most conferences do. But the A10 is different. Not a P5. Not a mid-major. SO START ACTING DIFFERENT.

The sooner Bernadette moves on, the better.

Bernadette move on? Really?
And when she added Loyola 2 years ago she announced she was looking to add another team to go to 16 schools. That's her plan.

[Blue Man]

No, I meant to call Loyola Fordham Chicago. It was a terrible pickup for the conference, they suck, and I will be treating and calling them accordingly

I do not disagree with the above. I believe you and I were in a very small minority of people who knew Loyola would suck, that Moser wasn't walking through that door, and that beating up on MVC teams and then catching fire with the right matchups in the tournament one time didn't make them a program. Valentine sucks. They suck.

That said, they most definitely aren't Fordham. They at least invest in their facilities.

What they are however, is a very strictly academically driven, small college in a city that has 2 clearly better programs around the corner, and another couple D1 schools to compete with for talent that wants to stay home. And within a 1 hour flight - B1G and Big XII royalty. Michigan. Mich St. IU. Illinois. Wisconsin. Iowa. Iowa State. Etc, etc.

Granted, they were probably added to keep Dayton/St Louis happy with travel so they become less of a flight risk. Short-sighted and stupid as it's going to be another NET-drag on the programs with a chance.

I'd have rather Bernedette changed the NCAA sharing agreement so that teams that make the dance get more revenue share. In the last 6 seasons, only 7 programs have contributed to the revenue sharing pot. Yet they're splitting 50% of their winnings with the rest of the dregs. VCU, Davidson, Richmond, Bonnies, St Louis, URI, Dayton.

You have to go back to 2014 to add 3 more programs to that list - GW, Joes, UMass.

It's the same teams carrying the weight of the conference to get NCAA money. The conference needs to get way more creative in rewarding extra share percentages to the teams that go to the dance.

Why do you think Gonzaga stays in the WCC? They get an outsized share of their winnings.

If you put more of an incentive in front of winning, maybe the schools that drag us down - Fordham, La Salle, George Mason, Duquesne, etc - decide to either invest or bail out and go to a conference where they make more money. The NCAA "recommends" an even split, and most conferences do. But the A10 is different. Not a P5. Not a mid-major. SO START ACTING DIFFERENT.

The sooner Bernadette moves on, the better.

Bernadette move on? Really?
And when she added Loyola 2 years ago she announced she was looking to add another team to go to 16 schools. That's her plan.

Yes. And I think her plan sucks. Along with her.

[Jersey77]

I do not disagree with the above. I believe you and I were in a very small minority of people who knew Loyola would suck, that Moser wasn't walking through that door, and that beating up on MVC teams and then catching fire with the right matchups in the tournament one time didn't make them a program. Valentine sucks. They suck.

That said, they most definitely aren't Fordham. They at least invest in their facilities.

What they are however, is a very strictly academically driven, small college in a city that has 2 clearly better programs around the corner, and another couple D1 schools to compete with for talent that wants to stay home. And within a 1 hour flight - B1G and Big XII royalty. Michigan. Mich St. IU. Illinois. Wisconsin. Iowa. Iowa State. Etc, etc.

Granted, they were probably added to keep Dayton/St Louis happy with travel so they become less of a flight risk. Short-sighted and stupid as it's going to be another NET-drag on the programs with a chance.

I'd have rather Bernedette changed the NCAA sharing agreement so that teams that make the dance get more revenue share. In the last 6 seasons, only 7 programs have contributed to the revenue sharing pot. Yet they're splitting 50% of their winnings with the rest of the dregs. VCU, Davidson, Richmond, Bonnies, St Louis, URI, Dayton.

You have to go back to 2014 to add 3 more programs to that list - GW, Joes, UMass.

It's the same teams carrying the weight of the conference to get NCAA money. The conference needs to get way more creative in rewarding extra share percentages to the teams that go to the dance.

Why do you think Gonzaga stays in the WCC? They get an outsized share of their winnings.

If you put more of an incentive in front of winning, maybe the schools that drag us down - Fordham, La Salle, George Mason, Duquesne, etc - decide to either invest or bail out and go to a conference where they make more money. The NCAA "recommends" an even split, and most conferences do. But the A10 is different. Not a P5. Not a mid-major. SO START ACTING DIFFERENT.

The sooner Bernadette moves on, the better.

Bernadette move on? Really?
And when she added Loyola 2 years ago she announced she was looking to add another team to go to 16 schools. That's her plan.

Yes. And I think her plan sucks. Along with her.

The addition of Loyola/Chicago was a slam dunk decision by the member schools of the A10.

The only negative remarks I heard were from a few posters on this board, the rest of the basketball/sports community seem to applaud this move by our conference.

[Blue Man]

Bernadette move on? Really?
And when she added Loyola 2 years ago she announced she was looking to add another team to go to 16 schools. That's her plan.

Yes. And I think her plan sucks. Along with her.

The addition of Loyola/Chicago was a slam dunk decision by the member schools of the A10.

The only negative remarks I heard were from a few posters on this board, the rest of the basketball/sports community seem to applaud this move by our conference.

Then I think it’s short sighted and stupid. The obvious aim is to have another “anchor” in the Midwest to keep 2 prominent programs - Dayton and St Louis - happy with a travel partner to keep expenses down.

However, if that team sucks, it will hurt both of those programs by sinking their net playing them 2x a year and will end up costing them more money in missed NCAA chances than they’d save in travel costs.

Unless you change the payout structure there’s really no incentive for a Dayton or St Louis to stay in the conference if someone else comes calling.

[Jersey77]

Yes. And I think her plan sucks. Along with her.

The addition of Loyola/Chicago was a slam dunk decision by the member schools of the A10.

The only negative remarks I heard were from a few posters on this board, the rest of the basketball/sports community seem to applaud this move by our conference.

Then I think it’s short sighted and stupid. The obvious aim is to have another “anchor” in the Midwest to keep 2 prominent programs - Dayton and St Louis - happy with a travel partner to keep expenses down.

However, if that team sucks, it will hurt both of those programs by sinking their net playing them 2x a year and will end up costing them more money in missed NCAA chances than they’d save in travel costs.

Unless you change the payout structure there’s really no incentive for a Dayton or St Louis to stay in the conference if someone else comes calling.

Blue Man, yes the geography in helping grow the Midwest footprint, proximity to Dayton and St. Louis (helping to keep them happy), and of course adding the Chicago market, in media negotiations, all played a part.
They were the media darlings and major talk of their 2018 Final 4 NCAAT run.
Plus a 2021 Sweet 16 and another 2022 NCAAT bid, were all factors.

They also recently added a $19M state of the art practice facility.

It is still too early to tell how Valentine will work out and how competitive his team will be in the future.

So yeah, taking in all the factors including the pros and cons, the A10 members felt it was a positive move.

Also in this current climate of conference realignment and expansion going on, the A10 wanted to be proactive.

[ramster]

The addition of Loyola/Chicago was a slam dunk decision by the member schools of the A10.

The only negative remarks I heard were from a few posters on this board, the rest of the basketball/sports community seem to applaud this move by our conference.

Then I think it’s short sighted and stupid. The obvious aim is to have another “anchor” in the Midwest to keep 2 prominent programs - Dayton and St Louis - happy with a travel partner to keep expenses down.

However, if that team sucks, it will hurt both of those programs by sinking their net playing them 2x a year and will end up costing them more money in missed NCAA chances than they’d save in travel costs.

Unless you change the payout structure there’s really no incentive for a Dayton or St Louis to stay in the conference if someone else comes calling.

Blue Man, yes the geography in helping grow the Midwest footprint, proximity to Dayton and St. Louis (helping to keep them happy), and of course adding the Chicago market, in media negotiations, all played a part.
They were the media darlings and major talk of their 2018 Final 4 NCAAT run.
Plus a 2021 Sweet 16 and another 2022 NCAAT bid, were all factors.

They also recently added a $19M state of the art practice facility.

It is still too early to tell how Valentine will work out and how competitive his team will be in the future.

So yeah, taking in all the factors including the pros and cons, the A10 members felt it was a positive move.

Also in this current climate of conference realignment and expansion going on, the A10 wanted to be proactive.

If you had it to do all over again 2 years ago, 77, would you support adding Loyola to the A10?

[Jersey77]

Then I think it’s short sighted and stupid. The obvious aim is to have another “anchor” in the Midwest to keep 2 prominent programs - Dayton and St Louis - happy with a travel partner to keep expenses down.

However, if that team sucks, it will hurt both of those programs by sinking their net playing them 2x a year and will end up costing them more money in missed NCAA chances than they’d save in travel costs.

Unless you change the payout structure there’s really no incentive for a Dayton or St Louis to stay in the conference if someone else comes calling.

Blue Man, yes the geography in helping grow the Midwest footprint, proximity to Dayton and St. Louis (helping to keep them happy), and of course adding the Chicago market, in media negotiations, all played a part.
They were the media darlings and major talk of their 2018 Final 4 NCAAT run.
Plus a 2021 Sweet 16 and another 2022 NCAAT bid, were all factors.

They also recently added a $19M state of the art practice facility.

It is still too early to tell how Valentine will work out and how competitive his team will be in the future.

So yeah, taking in all the factors including the pros and cons, the A10 members felt it was a positive move.

Also in this current climate of conference realignment and expansion going on, the A10 wanted to be proactive.

If you had it to do all over again 2 years ago, 77, would you support adding Loyola to the A10?

Definitely

[NYGFan_Section208]

Not sure why most folk's Hindsight Meters wouldn't be flashing "Heck. No." I mean, everyone here had a close up vision of what a real life train wreck looks like...so should be able to retroactively spot an even worse train wreck, with a nohehoh conductor...in the same conference...?

[Jersey77]

Not sure why most folk's Hindsight Meters wouldn't be flashing "Heck. No." I mean, everyone here had a close up vision of what a real life train wreck looks like...so should be able to retroactively spot an even worse train wreck, with a nohehoh conductor...in the same conference...?

Not really fair to call the Loyola situation a train wreck after just one season in the A10.
That is almost like second guessing the hire of Archie after just his first season here and finishing 14th, not fair.

Unlike Cox, Valentine took his team to the NCAAT and winning the MVC Championship.
That was after losing their best player Krutwig from the prior season (15 pts/7 rebs/ 3 assists in 20-21)

Loyola/Chicago has invested in their program unlike some other schools.

Because it was their 1st season in the A10 and had to rebuild much of their roster, I would give Valentine a pass for 22-23, like I did for Archie.

[Blue Man]

The addition of Loyola/Chicago was a slam dunk decision by the member schools of the A10.

The only negative remarks I heard were from a few posters on this board, the rest of the basketball/sports community seem to applaud this move by our conference.

Then I think it’s short sighted and stupid. The obvious aim is to have another “anchor” in the Midwest to keep 2 prominent programs - Dayton and St Louis - happy with a travel partner to keep expenses down.

However, if that team sucks, it will hurt both of those programs by sinking their net playing them 2x a year and will end up costing them more money in missed NCAA chances than they’d save in travel costs.

Unless you change the payout structure there’s really no incentive for a Dayton or St Louis to stay in the conference if someone else comes calling.

Blue Man, yes the geography in helping grow the Midwest footprint, proximity to Dayton and St. Louis (helping to keep them happy), and of course adding the Chicago market, in media negotiations, all played a part.
They were the media darlings and major talk of their 2018 Final 4 NCAAT run.
Plus a 2021 Sweet 16 and another 2022 NCAAT bid, were all factors.

They also recently added a $19M state of the art practice facility.

It is still too early to tell how Valentine will work out and how competitive his team will be in the future.

So yeah, taking in all the factors including the pros and cons, the A10 members felt it was a positive move.

Also in this current climate of conference realignment and expansion going on, the A10 wanted to be proactive.

Proactively doing the wrong thing is just accelerating doom.

The Big East nailed realignment and has one of the best conferences in the country. A smaller conference with better teams is way better for both TV contracts (money) and NCAA births (money).

A larger, watered down conference of mid major teams doesn’t help anyone. In fact, it hurts. The league essentially added 1-2 extra Q4 games for all members, and will cause a ripple affect that drops everyone’s NET 20 spots just by being on everyone’s schedule.

What they should’ve been “proactive” in doing was something different. P5s are expanding with GOOD TEAMS. We have expanded with shitty small time schools and are pretending it’s the same thing. It’s not. This is a dumb plan and it’s going to get worse.

[Jersey77]

Then I think it’s short sighted and stupid. The obvious aim is to have another “anchor” in the Midwest to keep 2 prominent programs - Dayton and St Louis - happy with a travel partner to keep expenses down.

However, if that team sucks, it will hurt both of those programs by sinking their net playing them 2x a year and will end up costing them more money in missed NCAA chances than they’d save in travel costs.

Unless you change the payout structure there’s really no incentive for a Dayton or St Louis to stay in the conference if someone else comes calling.

Blue Man, yes the geography in helping grow the Midwest footprint, proximity to Dayton and St. Louis (helping to keep them happy), and of course adding the Chicago market, in media negotiations, all played a part.
They were the media darlings and major talk of their 2018 Final 4 NCAAT run.
Plus a 2021 Sweet 16 and another 2022 NCAAT bid, were all factors.

They also recently added a $19M state of the art practice facility.

It is still too early to tell how Valentine will work out and how competitive his team will be in the future.

So yeah, taking in all the factors including the pros and cons, the A10 members felt it was a positive move.

Also in this current climate of conference realignment and expansion going on, the A10 wanted to be proactive.

Proactively doing the wrong thing is just accelerating doom.

The Big East nailed realignment and has one of the best conferences in the country. A smaller conference with better teams is way better for both TV contracts (money) and NCAA births (money).

A larger, watered down conference of mid major teams doesn’t help anyone. In fact, it hurts. The league essentially added 1-2 extra Q4 games for all members, and will cause a ripple affect that drops everyone’s NET 20 spots just by being on everyone’s schedule.

What they should’ve been “proactive” in doing was something different. P5s are expanding with GOOD TEAMS. We have expanded with shitty small time schools and are pretending it’s the same thing. It’s not. This is a dumb plan and it’s going to get worse.

I wouldn't even begin to compare the A10 to the BE, totally different dynamics at play.

Also, saying Loyola/Chicago is a shitty small-time program is totally untrue.
They invest in their program and in the last 6 years, went to 3 NCAAT (probably 4 if not for the Covid year) including a Final 4 and Sweet 16.

[RhowdyRam02]

Bernadette move on? Really?
And when she added Loyola 2 years ago she announced she was looking to add another team to go to 16 schools. That's her plan.

Yes. And I think her plan sucks. Along with her.

The addition of Loyola/Chicago was a slam dunk decision by the member schools of the A10.

The only negative remarks I heard were from a few posters on this board, the rest of the basketball/sports community seem to applaud this move by our conference.

They suck and will continue to suck because that's who they've been for most of the last 60 years. People on this message board with negative remarks were right, people liking it and calling it a slam dunk have no real perspective about college basketball

[RhowdyRam02]

Yes. And I think her plan sucks. Along with her.

The addition of Loyola/Chicago was a slam dunk decision by the member schools of the A10.

The only negative remarks I heard were from a few posters on this board, the rest of the basketball/sports community seem to applaud this move by our conference.

Then I think it’s short sighted and stupid. The obvious aim is to have another “anchor” in the Midwest to keep 2 prominent programs - Dayton and St Louis - happy with a travel partner to keep expenses down.

However, if that team sucks, it will hurt both of those programs by sinking their net playing them 2x a year and will end up costing them more money in missed NCAA chances than they’d save in travel costs.

Unless you change the payout structure there’s really no incentive for a Dayton or St Louis to stay in the conference if someone else comes calling.

Further to this point, adding schools to develop a Midwest footprint is foolish. If Dayton and St. Louis get the call from the Big East they're leaving no matter who we add. If they don't get the call from the Big East they'll stay even if we add no one

[RhowdyRam02]

Not sure why most folk's Hindsight Meters wouldn't be flashing "Heck. No." I mean, everyone here had a close up vision of what a real life train wreck looks like...so should be able to retroactively spot an even worse train wreck, with a nohehoh conductor...in the same conference...?

Not really fair to call the Loyola situation a train wreck after just one season in the A10.
That is almost like second guessing the hire of Archie after just his first season here and finishing 14th, not fair.

Unlike Cox, Valentine took his team to the NCAAT and winning the MVC Championship.
That was after losing their best player Krutwig from the prior season (15 pts/7 rebs/ 3 assists in 20-21)

Loyola/Chicago has invested in their program unlike some other schools.

Because it was their 1st season in the A10 and had to rebuild much of their roster, I would give Valentine a pass for 22-23, like I did for Archie.

Valentine took Porter Moser's players to the tournament in a one bid league and sucked with his own players in the Atlantic 10. Which was a definite possibility that people that weren't drunk on some nun saw coming. Fordham Chicago has been terrible at basketball since the 60's outside of Porter Moser

[Jersey77]

Yes. And I think her plan sucks. Along with her.

The addition of Loyola/Chicago was a slam dunk decision by the member schools of the A10.

The only negative remarks I heard were from a few posters on this board, the rest of the basketball/sports community seem to applaud this move by our conference.

They suck and will continue to suck because that's who they've been for most of the last 40 years. People on this message board with negative remarks were right, people liking it and calling it a slam dunk have no real perspective about college basketball

Okay I guess everyone who disagrees with you has no real perspective about college basketball which includes the member A10 schools, AD's, sports insiders and analysts, Sports Illustrated, so on. Plus of course me who you have accused of not being a URI fan.