The Atlantic 10 tournament opens up in Pittsburgh on Wednesday with a doubleheader that will feature the bottom four teams.
(12) UMass vs (13) Saint Joseph’s
At UMass – UMass 62 Saint Joseph’s 57
At Saint Joseph’s – UMass 87 Saint Joseph’s 76
The Minutemen will face the Owls for the third time this season. In the game at Amherst, the Minutemen made up a 12-point deficit and stunned the Owls. Zach Lewis came up huge. His 23 points led UMass in an otherwise tough shooting day for both teams.
From an offensive perspective, the game in Philadelphia was much more pleasing to the eye. Donte Clark scored 24 points and Luwine Pipkins chipped in with 19 points and 3 steals. Once again, Lewis played a factor in the victory. With under 5 minutes left in the game, Lewis went on his own 7 point run to push a 5 point lead to 12.
(11) Saint Louis vs (14) Duquesne
At Duquesne: Duquesne 73 Saint Louis 66
At Saint Louis: Saint Louis 87 Duquesne 81
The first game saw the Duquesne freshmen come up big. As we saw for the rest of the season, freshmen Isiaha Ike and Mike Lewis II led the Dukes. Mike registered a double-double and Lewis had 15 points as the Dukes came back from an eight point second half deficit. Duquesne shot 52.3% from the field but was their defense that closed the game out. In the last 4:06, the Billikens shot just 1 for 8.
In the rematch, Saint Louis set two records in an 87-81 victory. The Billikens set Chaifetz Arena records for shooting percentage (61.4%) and 3 point shooting percentage (66.7%). Mike Crawford’s 21 points led the team as four players scored in double digits. Despite all of the offensive fireworks by the Billikens, a Mike Lewis II three pointer tied the game with 2:18 left. But Crawford’s three pointer with 1:59 gave Saint Louis the lead for good.
Final Standings
| TEAM | A-10 | Pct. | Streak | Overall | Pct. | Streak |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dayton | 15 – 3 | .833 | L1 | 24 – 6 | .800 | L1 |
| VCU | 14 – 4 | .778 | W1 | 24 – 7 | .774 | W1 |
| Rhode Island | 13 – 5 | .722 | W5 | 21 – 9 | .700 | W5 |
| Richmond | 13 – 5 | .722 | W4 | 19 – 11 | .633 | W4 |
| St. Bonaventure | 11 – 7 | .611 | W1 | 19 – 11 | .633 | W1 |
| George Washington | 10 – 8 | .556 | W5 | 18 – 13 | .581 | W5 |
| George Mason | 9 – 9 | .500 | L1 | 19 – 12 | .613 | L1 |
| La Salle | 9 – 9 | .500 | W1 | 15 – 14 | .517 | W1 |
| Davidson | 8 – 10 | .444 | L1 | 15 – 14 | .517 | L1 |
| Fordham | 7 – 11 | .389 | L3 | 13 – 18 | .419 | L3 |
| Saint Louis | 6 – 12 | .333 | L1 | 11 – 20 | .355 | L1 |
| Massachusetts | 4 – 14 | .222 | L2 | 14 – 17 | .452 | L2 |
| Saint Joseph’s | 4 – 14 | .222 | W1 | 11 – 19 | .367 | W1 |
| Duquesne | 3 – 15 | .167 | L5 | 10 – 21 | .322 | L1 |
Marcus “Mook” Washington is the host of Making The Cut. Follow Mook on Twitter: @mtcwithmook and IG: MTCWithMook
