Atlantic 10 Power Rankings: Neck-and-neck in top 5

admin November 24, 2012 0

By CHRIS GOFF
ISL Correspondent

The Atlantic 10 is popping open eyeballs nationwide after a week of upsetting ranked teams. Butler mostly pummeled North Carolina. VCU toppled Memphis on Thanksgiving. And Saint Joseph’s knocked off Notre Dame.

Late on Black Friday, despite an upper-tier as stuffed as a kitchen fridge with leftovers, it’s time for IndySportsLegends.com’s Atlantic 10 Power Rankings. St. Joe’s did just enough to stay on top. Check back each week during the college basketball season for an updated listing.

1. Saint Joseph’s (3-1)

Big man Ronald Roberts Jr. had 36 points and 27 rebounds in the final two games of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic. The junior is making a leap, and that is a frightening proposition for the conference.

2. Saint Louis (2-2)

Handily beating a decent Texas A&M team before losing to national power Kansas is enough for the Billikens to keep a foothold at No. 2 while they wait on the return of top scorer Kwamain Mitchell.

3. Temple (2-0)

Owls have faced a light load so far, but it’s not too soon to see Khalif Wyatt, Scootie Randall and Anthony Lee forming a formidable trio.

4. Butler (3-2)

Classic Butler against the Tar Heels: a defeat of superior talent with suffocating defense, a slower pace and great rebounding. Brad Stevens put Kellen Dunham in the starting lineup, and the 6-foot-6 freshman showed he belongs there for the remainder of the season.

5. Virginia Commonwealth (3-1)

Classic VCU against Memphis: forcing 22 turnovers and allowing only eight assisted baskets. Next time the Rams are on TV, watch sophomore reserve Briante Weber. He is a real find for Shaka Smart.

6. Massachusetts (2-2)

Tennessee and North Carolina State, though talented BCS-league opponents, absolutely shredded the UMass defense, raising serious doubts about whether coach Derek Kellogg has improved the Minutemen at that end of the floor.

7. Xavier (3-1)

An alarming week, as the Musketeers barely escaped Robert Morris and then fell to Pacific. Whose team is this? Freshman Semaj Christon has come the closest to producing consistently.

8. Dayton (3-1)

Freshman Dyshawn Pierre broke out with 23 points on 8-of-8 shooting, including 5-for-5 from 3, in a win over Boston College. Dayton won fifth place at the Charleston Classic.

9. La Salle (2-1)

Positive news: Jerrell Wright still looks good. Bad news: A home loss to Central Connecticut State does not.

10. Richmond (4-1)

The Spiders had a good showing in a Big Ten arena against Minnesota. Still, it’s a wait-and-see approach on their 4-1 start.

11. Charlotte (4-0)

The 49ers are undefeated despite making only 59 percent of their free throws and 24 percent of their 3-point attempts.

12. St. Bonaventure (2-1)

Senior Chris Johnson, a 6-foot-5 swingman, has stepped in as the Bonnies’ top player in the post-Andrew Nicholson era.

13. George Washington (1-2)

The Colonials better defend, because they sure aren’t going to score.

14. Duquesne (2-3)

First-year coach Jim Ferry has won 256 games in his 15 seasons of NCAA coaching. Building the Dukes will take time.

15. Fordham (1-4)

The Rams beat Pennsylvania without Chris Gaston. Small steps. Branden Frazier is averaging 16.8 points and 5.0 assists in the first five games.

16. Rhode Island (0-4)

The Rams, who couldn’t throw a seashell in the ocean, increasingly look like the conference doormat. They’ve been in the rankings basement since the preseason, and they’re the only A-10 team without a win.

Butler’s Rotnei Clarke is A-10 Player of the Week.