With a 16-12 (9-8) record, the St. Bonaventure men’s basketball team will likely have a top-10 seed entering the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament. With only two games separating the top four teams in the conference, the tournament promises to be an exciting five days as one by one, 13 teams are eliminated and a conference champion cuts down the nets at the Barclays Center.
Under the leadership of senior guard Jordan Sibert, Dayton sits atop the A-10. Sibert has averaged 16.6 points per game this year and is a huge reason for Dayton’s 23-6 (13-4) record. During the tournament, look for the Flyers to rely heavily on Sibert. He can stretch the floor and is a nightmare to defend. He passes well, shoots over 35 percent from three-point range and, when fouled, connects on nearly 80 percent of his free throws. His scoring and leadership will be needed in Brooklyn.
Dayton defends well, limiting opponents to just over 60 points a game. However, there is cause for concern in Ohio. The Flyers are a .500 team away from their home court. While the neutral site of the Barclays Center lacks the hostile environment of a road game, without home-court advantage, the Flyers might make an early exit.
Right behind Dayton sits A-10 newcomer Davidson at 21-6 (12-4). Like Dayton, Davidson’s tournament chances revolve around a senior guard. Jack Gibbs has been phenomenal for the Wildcats, having been named conference Player of the Week on three occasions. Gibbs averages more than 16 points per game, shoots better than 50 percent from the field, and makes more than 42 percent of his three-point attempts. But to beat Davidson, teams will have to do more than stop Gibbs from scoring. He averages nearly 5 assists per game and can facilitate when he is heavily guarded. In addition, his backcourt mate, senior Tyler Kalinoski, also averages more than 16 points per game. Davidson is 8-4 on the road, which will serve it well in Brooklyn.
Currently fourth in the conference, Virginia Commonwealth University is one of the most intriguing teams in the tournament. The Rams have been nationally ranked at times this year, but after injuries to several star players including lockdown defender Briante Weber, they have fallen considerably in the standings. The A-10 tournament could be brief for the Rams, and even if they survive through several games, the competition only gets better. VCU’s tournament seed will not reflect their current level of play, and this could help them against weaker teams in the first few rounds, but could spell trouble for the Rams later in the tourney.
While VCU is intriguing, St. Bonaventure is befuddling. The Bonnies lose to teams that they should beat, but they also beat high-quality teams. After losing by 10 to LaSalle, the Bonnies turned around and beat A-10 front-runners Davidson and then-ranked VCU all in less than a week. Losing freshman guard Jaylen Adams is a huge blow to the Bonnies, but Coach Mark Schmidt has a history of taking teams with unimpressive records and making deep runs into the A-10 tournament. (Think the 2011-2012 NCAA tournament qualifying team and last year’s surprise run to the A-10 semifinals). However, without their starting point guard – who some unofficial sources say may return for the tournament – the Bonnies will likely struggle in the Barclays Center. Expect an early exit for St. Bonaventure, but if this season has proven anything, don’t count out a surprisingly deep run.
Ethan Kibbe is the sports assignment editor at The Bona Venture. His email is kibbeei14@bonaventure.edu
