Two of our top three teams in last week’s rankings were taken down in what was an entertaining week of Atlantic 10 Conference women’s basketball.
Each week, the Good Five Cent Cigar Sports Staff votes on all 14 teams in the A-10.
Here’s how every team fared as of Feb. 23:
14th Place: Virginia Commonwealth University Rams (8-20, 4-12) (-1)
Tying their season-low 39-point performance, the Rams dropped a pair of games this week to put their losing streak at six.
VCU’s lackluster offensive performance came at home against Davidson College, where only three players had more than five points, and Davidson outscored them in all quarters. Will the Rams pull off an upset to snap their losing streak in their final two games this regular season? Only time will tell.
T-11th Place: Saint Louis University Billikens (11-18, 5-11) (+2)
Following four-straight games of scoring 51 points or under, the Billikens scored 63 and 54 points, respectively, in their last two losses.
If the Billikens hadn’t saved their biggest scoring quarter until the final quarter, they could have taken Saint Joseph’s University down to the wire. It also doesn’t help that the Saint Louis defense gives up an average of 67.1 points per game, which will be its dividing factor come postseason.
T-11th Place: Duquesne University Dukes (10-17, 3-13) (-)
Picking the best time to turn things on, the Dukes have now won three of their last four games, with all of the wins being in double digits.
Not to mention the Dukes’ loss to Saint Joseph’s, where the Dukes held the 67.3 point-per-game average team to 61 points. With two vastly different teams for their final two regular-season matchups, Saint Louis and George Mason University, it’ll be an interesting race to the finish line for the Dukes.
T-11th Place: Fordham University Rams (10-17, 2-14) (-)
For the final team in our three-way tie, the visiting Rams were not able to pull off an upset against the University of Rhode Island on Saturday.
It was a defensive game for a Rhode Island team that was out for blood, holding Fordham to a season-low 39 points. With the least amount of conference wins, the Rams are destined for a dance in the first round of the A-10 Tournament.
10th Place: St. Bonaventure University Bonnies (15-13, 6-10) (-1)
In what was a back-and-forth contest with Loyola University Chicago, the Bonnies were unable to prevail. The Bonnies played from behind in the final four minutes of play, as five points from the charity stripe in the game’s last minute sealed Loyola’s victory.
It’s time for the Bonnies to play their best basketball of the season as they’ll look to secure a first-round bye in the A-10 Tournament in their final two games of regular-season play.
9th Place: University of Dayton Flyers (14-13, 7-9) (-3)
After barely scraping by Saint Louis last week, the Flyers followed up with a 79-67 loss against Davidson, their second loss in three games.
This loss brought Dayton back to reality defensively, as the Flyers sit last in the conference, allowing an average of 67.9 points per game. Even with a not-so-hot Loyola Chicago team up next, it’ll take a big effort for a chance at achieving .500 status in conference play to end the regular season.
8th Place: George Washington University Revolutionaries (14-15, 6-10) (+2)
Facing two of the top teams in the conference, the Revolutionaries did not back down, instead coming away with their biggest win of the season over the University of Richmond on Wednesday.
Second-year guard Gabby Reynolds singlehandedly got the Revolutionaries to overtime against the Spiders with five points in the final two minutes of play. Two free throws in the final second of action solidified a 57-54 victory. Despite following this up with a 67-52 loss to George Mason, the Revolutionaries should feel happy about shutting down the top offense in the conference.
7th Place: Loyola University Chicago Ramblers (13-14, 9-7) (-)
If you had told us just two weeks ago that the Ramblers were in danger of finishing .500 in conference play, we’d have called you crazy. Where the .500 mark is an accomplishment for some teams, this team’s six-game win streak in the middle of conference play set expectations high.
Unfortunately for the Ramblers, they haven’t met those expectations. On the bright side, the Ramblers snapped their three-game losing streak against St. Bonaventure. But now, they’ll be put to the test with matchups against Dayton and La Salle University to wrap up the regular season.
6th Place: La Salle University Explorers (15-12, 8-8) (+2)
It can’t be said that a win against the best team in the conference was expected, but it happened nonetheless. The Explorers had their biggest challenges of the season this week against Rhode Island and Richmond, and came out with opposite results, respectively.
Overcoming the best defense in the conference, the Explorers pulled out a 63-59 win against URI on their home court. A 15-0 run in the second quarter gave the Explorers’ offense momentum. It was a different story on Saturday, as the Explorers gave up 92 points against Richmond, snapping their three-game winning streak.
T-4th Place: Davidson College Wildcats (18-11, 10-6) (+1)
The script has been flipped in Davidson, as the Wildcats have now won three of their last four games. While the victory over Dayton is more impressive in terms of standings, the Wildcats’ win over VCU proved why they are the third-best defense in the conference.
With wins showcasing both their offense and defense, the Wildcats have overcome their slump and look to jump over the team they’re tied with in our rankings for the final double-bye spot.
T-4th Place: Saint Joseph’s University Hawks (19-8, 10-6) (-)
It’s been three straight double-digit wins for the Hawks, who have shown no signs of slowing since their loss to Dayton on Feb. 7.
Unfortunately for the Hawks, they’ll go from facing two of the worst teams in the conference to two of the best with matchups against George Mason and Richmond in their final week of regular-season action. This four-game winning streak momentum will be put to the test with the guarantee of seeing the third round of the A-10 Tournament at stake.
3rd Place: University of Richmond Spiders (23-6, 13-3) (-1)
It wasn’t ideal to go on their first losing streak of the season this far into it, but the Spiders are looking to turn the corner after getting back in the win column. It’ll be a challenge to stay victorious, however, as they are set to take on URI on Wednesday.
After taking two road losses, the Spiders returned home on Sunday and laid in on La Salle, shooting 56% from the field and hitting 15 triples. Richmond sealed the nail in the coffin by outsourcing the Explorers 28-6 in the final quarter.
2nd Place: George Mason University Patriots (19-8, 14-2) (+1)
The Patriots have officially passed the Spiders in the A-10 standings, and they have therefore passed the Spiders in our rankings. While the Spiders took a loss against GW on Wednesday, the Patriots prevailed on Saturday, securing their second double-digit win of the week.
There’s no reason why this Patriots team shouldn’t finish off their final two regular-season games with victories, considering the momentum they have that started with a win over Richmond on Feb. 16.
1st Place: University of Rhode Island Rams (24-3, 15-1) (-)
Despite having their historic 17-game win streak snapped uncharacteristically, the Rams responded with a dominant 69-39 victory over Fordham on Saturday. Over 2,500 fans came to celebrate Rhody’s senior day in what was a redeeming win for the Rams.
After being outscored in the second and fourth quarters against La Salle, the Rams brushed off a lackluster first quarter offensively against Fordham with 61 points in the following three quarters. Will Rhody’s first conference loss affect their confidence against the Spiders? Either way, it’ll be a battle of the top two offenses of the A-10 in Richmond on Wednesday.
