Conference tournaments are about basketball but also so much more: the fans, bands, cheerleaders, etc. The A-10 Tournament is taking place in Washington, DC, this weekend and we could not be more excited to be there in person! HoopsHD will be covering all of the angles so you can look forward to a cascade of coverage in the days ahead. Jon Teitel keeps it going with a recap of the semifinal doubleheader on Saturday.
Yet another delicious pregame meal: chicken fajitas/rice/potatoes/salad/brownie!
Let’s tip it off:
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GAME #1: Davidson vs. St. Louis
There was plenty of red in the crowd: was it Davidson fans showing up on time, or Dayton/Richmond fans showing up early, or both?
The Wildcats made 8-13 shots from behind the arc in the 1st half while also outrebounding St. Louis 20-10 en route to building a 44-24 halftime lead. They had a very balanced scoring effort and they had it early, with 5 guys in double-figures with 15 minutes remaining in the game. Billiken big man Francis Okoro had a double-double in each of his 2 prior tourney games but did very little today for St. Louis with 3 PTS/0-5 FG/5 REB. In contrast, conference POY Luka Brajkovic did very little for the Wildcats on Friday afternoon but finished with a double-double on Saturday with 14 PTS/10 REB/5 AST. The X-factor was Grant Huffman, who scored a season-high 12 PTS with 2 STL/0 TO in 22 minutes off the bench (and did not miss a single shot!) as Davidson won 84-69. JR F Hyunjung Lee is from South Korea and some fans in the front row held up his native flag in his honor:
In the postgame press conference I asked Davidson G Foster Loyer about Huffman’s performance off the bench: he said that his teammate did a phenomenal job last month when Loyer was out due to injury and that he gives them energy/defensive intensity.
GAME #2: Dayton vs. Richmond
I do not know if mascots are supposed to frighten you…but when they have 6 arms it is a little creepy!
The Spiders made 11 threes on Friday night to beat VCU but came out as cold as the snowy weather outside today with 0-12 3PM through the 1st 26 minutes, which allowed the Flyers to take a 33-25 halftime lead. SO F Toumani Camara had a double-double in his Dayton debut last November and did it again tonight with 17 PTS/14 REB. His team led 57-53 with 5 minutes left, and entering this game they were 22-1 this season when leading with 5 minutes to go. Somehow, some way, Richmond used their veteran leadership to claw all the way back, take the lead, and pull off the 68-64 upset behind 18 PTS/9 REB from Grant Golden.
In the postgame press conference I asked Richmond coach Chris Mooney if Sunday could end up being the greatest afternoon of his life: his alma mater (Princeton) plays for an Ivy title at 12PM and his current team plays for an A-10 title at 1PM! He directed my attention to his 2 boys standing in the back of the room, who of course were born on 2 of the best days of his life. He confirmed that the Tigers have a great team and he will send them his best wishes from DC.
That is a wrap for Saturday, check back tomorrow for a recap of the Davidson-Richmond title game to see whether or not this is a 1-bid league.