By John Pullano, Managing Editor
As Malik Lacewell dribbled out the clock on Tuesday against St. Joseph, Lacewell was not just dribbling out a fifth consecutive win, but an improbable 16th win in 20 games after a 1-4 start.
The Bonnies took care of what was deemed a trap game by defeating the 4-20 Hawks by 18 points after outscoring St. Joseph’s 43-22 in the second half.
The team’s leading scorers were Kyle Lofton and Justin Winston, who each scored 20 points. That scoring outburst was a career-high for Winston, who connected on four of his seven three-point attempts.
The Bonnies (17-8, 9-3 A10) sit at third place in the Atlantic 10 Conference. The team also cracked the top-100 in the KenPom rankings.
With six games remaining on the Bonnies’ schedule, the team continues to keep its eye on a double-bye, which comes with a finish in the Atlantic 10’s top four.
However, as the Bonnies keep their focus on the final stretch of the regular season, it gives us a chance to look back on how the Bonnies have fared so far considering their early season aspirations.
The team’s success this season has started and ended with its heart and soul, sophomore point guard, Lofton. At media day before the season began, Lofton was animated about the idea of being the guy to come up in the clutch moments and hit big shots.
“I go with the flow of the game,” said Lofton. “and when it gets to the end, I try to hit big shots and make big plays.”
Lofton has made more than his fair share of “big plays.” Whether it has been a key dime in a big moment or connecting on a three with little to no time left on the clock, Lofton has been everywhere. Shooting 50 percent from the field, dishing out 5.5 assists per game and scoring a season 15.8 points per game all in the month of February, Lofton is hitting his stride when it matters most and delivering on his promise to make big plays late in the season.
In a game against La Salle during the 2018-19 season Lofton shot 7-of-8 from beyond the three-point arc and coming into this season vowed to make sure that shooting outburst wasn’t a fluke.
“I am confident in my shot, I worked on it every day so last season was not and won’t be a fluke,” said Lofton.
Lofton has backed his preseason claim, shooting a career-high 34.1% from three. He is on pace to hit 42 threes in the 2019-20 season, four more than last year’s total of 38.
Another sophomore guard that looked to improve upon his 2018-19 season was Dominick Welch. Despite his high-caliber three-point shooting last season, Welch hoped to grow his game to the next level by taking the ball inside.
“I feel like I improved my ball handling a lot,” said Welch. “Everyone knows I can shoot, so I have been working on my ball handling trying to get to the rim a lot and get all that from the free throw line.”
Welch has not only improved his free throw attempts per game, but also upped his three-point percentage. Welch has also grabbed two more rebounds per-game compared to last season.
While the Bonnies have seen growth among their scoring leaders from last season, they have still seen the emergence of freshman guard Alejandro Vasquez.
“I wanna come in and be affecting the scoring,” said Vasquez before the 2019-20 season began. “I wanna do stuff to help the team, and I bring the energy, a lot of energy all the time.”
A spark off the bench, Vasquez has averaged 7.2 points per game on 45% shooting from the field in only 16.4 minutes per game. Vasquez has been the youthful offensive explosion off the bench that is perfect for Schmidt’s offense.
As the push for March has begun for the Bonnies, not everyone has taken a step forward this season.
Senior captain Amadi Ikpeze provided four points and 3.8 rebounds per game off of the bench.
Despite the reduced role, Ikpeze has still found a way to be a captain and elevate the rest of the teams play and push them to their best Atlantic 10 start since 2017.
During the preseason media days when players were asked about personal goals players only responded with what goals they had for the team, winning games and delivering an Atlantic 10 championship back to St. Bonaventure, New York.
“I think we can win now,” said Lofton. “We have a talented group of guys that are still learning but I think we have a lot of talent and with coach doing a good job we can win now”
“I am doing whatever it takes to get wins,” said Welch. “And bring home an A10 championship.”
With only six games remaining, the chase for Bonnies second NCAA tournament appearance in three years is on.
pullanjj18@bonaventure.edu
