The Hawks are soaring and finally finding some momentum while things have gone icy cold in Olean, N.Y.
Sound the alarms, we had two Atlantic 10 programs receiving votes in this past Monday’s AP Poll!
Our resident A10 reporter, Riley Frain, is bringing you a weekly notebook to recap all the latest news from his coverage around the league
Fordham, La Salle and Saint Louis named in point-shaving indictment
As was the biggest news in the college basketball world this past week, 17 Division I men’s basketball teams were named in a point-shaving scheme by a federal indictment from the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Among those 17 programs were three from the A10 with Fordham, La Salle and Saint Louis each listed for player violations during either the 2023-24 or 2024-25 seasons.
All three have undergone recent coaching changes with Fordham and La Salle respectively hiring Mike Magpayo and Darris Nichols in March 2025 while Josh Schertz moved to Saint Louis in 2024. None of these teams currently have players on roster that were listed in the indictment either so at least there hasn’t been an immediate impact. However, it’s yet to be seen if the NCAA will impose any sanctions on specific programs named in the future.
Is Davidson the A10’s new Wildcard?
Earlier this season, I called George Washington the A10’s biggest wildcard but this week, they were dethroned by Davidson. It’s already been an up-and-down season for the Wildcats with an 8-2 start to the campaign before losing three straight including a double-overtime loss on opening day of conference play.
Head coach Matt McKillip told me this team was desperate to find its “swagger” following that stretch.
“We talked about getting our swagger back,” McKillop said. “I actually checked to see if [the kids] still use that word.”
And seemingly, Davidson had done just that, leading a comeback win over Saint Joseph’s before handedly defeating Loyola Chicago with both on the road. Back-to-back wins gave way to the Wildcats’ worst loss this season though, falling to Rhode Island at home, 70-45, which is their lowest scoring output of 2025-26.
This week, Davidson responded by taking down George Washington, 84-79, once again winning on the road. The Wildcats are 3-2 in conference with all three wins coming in enemy territory.
George Mason and Saint Louis both receiving votes this week
No, that headline is not a mistake. We have two A10 teams battling for position in the AP’s Top 25 Men’s College Basketball Poll with George Mason 17-1 followed only slightly by Saint Louis’ 16-1.
Saint Louis creeped into the receiving votes section back in Week 7 after defeating Central Michigan and San Francisco. Those wins garnered the Billikens a single vote. Schertz and Co. are now peaking at 92 votes and sit just outside the Top 25 as the nation’s second highest ranked mid-major program.
George Mason entered the conversation this past week with an 86-80 win over the A10’s preseason favorite in VCU. The Patriots picked up eight votes. This followed by an 82-74 win on the road over Loyola Chicago who, despite being 1-4, have been something of a landmine in conference play so far.
St. Joe’s on a three-game win streak, St. Bonaventure still winless
Wednesday’s matchup between St. Joe’s and St. Bonaventure was an interesting study on trends. Coming into the game, the Hawks had been on a major upward trend with back-to-back tightly contested wins while St. Bonaventure was trending downward on three straight losses in A10 play.
The game trended in a very similar fashion with St. Joe’s firing early and building out a 35-28 halftime lead before relenting in the second half and allowing St. Bonaventure back in late. Down by seven with eight minutes remaining, the Hawks powered through to another tightly contested win, 68-64, over the Bonnies for a third consecutive victory.
St. Joe’s is really soaring of late and has been in some incredibly close battles which could aid the Hawks in a visit to VCU on Monday. Meanwhile, St. Bonaventure’s struggles continue after a strong showing in the non-conference but the Bonnies have a big bounce back chance at La Salle on Saturday.
Billikens’ historic start keeps on rolling in conference play
Last weekend, Jake Copestick and I spoke to Saint Louis’ Josh Schertz for Mid-Major Madness to ask about his teams historic start. We touched on everything from his rebuilt roster, to the team’s unprecedented depth to its defensive developments and so much more with the Billikens head coach.
“We can play nine deep… and there’s really no drop off,” Schertz said. “It can come from anybody, any night. Having that many guys, it’s very hard to defend because we got a lot of different pieces… I think it’s huge. One of the biggest keys to our success.”
Read more on Saint Louis’ now 16-1 start here as the Billikens host Richmond this weekend:
Category: General Sports
