The Atlantic 10 may not get quite the coverage the other power conferences do, but with six teams in the mix for the NCAA Tournament, we should be in for some excellent games at the Barclays Center from March 12-16.
Atlantic 10 Tournament 2014 schedule and bracket: Billikens look to cut down nets
Saint Louis comes in as the No. 1 seed, but it will receive plenty of competition from VCU, George Washington and the rest of the field.
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Saint Louis comes in as the No. 1 seed thanks to one of the stingiest defenses in the country. Led by seniors Jordair Jett, Dwayne Evans and Rob Loe, SLU will be a mighty tough out this week in Brooklyn. The biggest challenge will likely come from Shaka Smart's VCU Rams, who locked up the No. 2 seed. The Billikens and Rams split their two regular-season meetings and are set up to potentially meet in the championship game.
In addition to Saint Louis and VCU, George Washington enters as the No. 3 seed and is very balanced on both sides of the ball. And with second-leading scorer Kethan Savage expected to return for the tournament, the Colonials will be a very tough out.
The first round will consist of only one game, between No. 12 George Mason and No. 13 Fordham. The two teams combined for only six conference wins during the regular season, with one of Fordham’s two victories coming in its only matchup against the Patriots. George Mason is best remembered for reaching the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament in 2006 as a No. 11 seed, while the Fordham Rams haven’t received a tournament bid since 1992.
Here is the schedule for the week:
March 12:
No. 12 George Mason vs. No. 13 Fordham, 7 p.m. ET, A-10 Network
March 13:
No. 8 La Salle vs. No. 9 St. Bonaventure, 12 p.m., NBC Sports Regional
No. 5 Dayton vs. Game 1 Winner, 2:30 p.m., NBC Sports Network
No. 7 Richmond vs. No. 10 Duquesne, 6:30 p.m., NBCSN
No. 6 Massachusetts vs. No. 11 Rhode Island, 9 p.m., NBC Sports Regional
March 14:
No. 1 Saint Louis vs. TBD, 12 p.m., NBCSN
No. 4 Saint Joseph’s vs. TBD, 2:30 p.m., NBCSN
No. 2 VCU vs. TBD, 6:30 p.m., NBCSN
No. 3 George Washington vs. TBD, 9 p.m., NBCSN
March 15:
Semifinal No. 1, 1:30 p.m., CBS Sports Network
Semifinal No. 2, 4 p.m., CBSSN
March 16:
Championship, 1 p.m., CBS
Here is the full tournament bracket:
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