PITTSBURGH -- Excitement filled the air as it always does before basketball season starts, but it was even more of a special occasion as the Atlantic 10 Conferenced celebrated its 50th anniversary in a big way.
The A-10 held its basketball media days in Pittsburgh’s PPG Paints Arena, site of the men’s basketball championship come March, marking the second consecutive season the men’s and women’s teams jointly conducted the session. Pittsburgh has deep roots in the Atlantic 10, with the first league headquarters established there.
“You have to talk about it being the 50th anniversary of the league,” Fordham coach Bridgette Mitchell remarked. “There’s been so much development and change since the start of this league. That’s what made it appealing to me three years ago, the opportunity to win and compete at highest level. Each team has that focus which makes the league competitive and we’re all striving to go for that championship. So, when you have a lot of people hungry, it leads to competitive non-conference and conference games. It’s exciting to watch. Women’s basketball is on an exceptional platform right now, so we as A-10 Women’s Basketball are looking to continue pushing the needle forward.”
A similar sentiment can be found from Richmond’s seventh-year coach Aaron Roussell who fondly looked at the A-10 and how it managed to stay ahead of the curve.
“You see the landscape of what college sports is right now, to have the stability of 50 years in a conference that is so versatile,” observed Roussell. “We have high academic schools, schools in different geographic areas, different sizes of schools, publics and privates. It is a unique combination across the board and that’s a positive and a strength for the league. Even on top of that, the stability, and I know it goes back 50 years now, but the recent stability with everything else going on in the college sports world, I think that says a lot from the top down. Bernadette [McGlade] has been fantastic with this, the administration for each of the schools and coaches. I know with women’s basketball coaches there has not a been lot of turnover in past few years, and I think that’s a big part of why you see the strength of the women’s basketball side of things.”
This year’s media day also featured a 50th anniversary luncheon which included remarks from commissioner Bernadette V. McGlade, each guest welcomed by mascots from each of the conference’s 14 member institutions and a celebratory toast to commemorate the occasion.
“Media day is always a fun time of the year,” McGlade remarked. “I always say tongue and cheek that the best thing about football season is that basketball season is right around the corner. When we get to basketball media day, it’s about time to start playing games. I think the league is really positioned well right now. The teams at the top are legitimate and strong.”
Richmond was picked atop the preseason poll, earning nine of the 14 possible first-place votes. The Spiders were represented by coach Aaron Roussell and Maggie Doogan.
Roussell acknowledges that his side is a different one with three returning starters and a lot of additional experience. He is eager to see how some of the new pieces between transfers and underclassmen play out.
George Mason won last season’s Atlantic 10 Championship and received four first-place votes, placing second in the preseason poll.
Coach Vanessa Blair-Lewis knows she has a strong core returning and is eager to see just how her team’s season plays out.
“Coming off a lot of momentum from last season though you can never really do everything the same way,” explained Blair-Lewis. “We have an exciting brand of basketball and good group of new players.”
Davidson’s growth earned respect across the conference as it picked up a first-place vote, placing third.
“It is a new year for us,” coach Gayle Fulks offered. “A lot of players got postseason experience, and we got to see them play in the WBIT. That experience was so valuable and all of young players have made such big jumps from postseason to now. We are prepared ad have a much better idea of what this is about and raising standards.”
Rhode Island feels that it has a balanced team and placed fourth, a clear sign of respect from coaches around the conference in coach Tammi Reiss as she built her roster around intentionality.
“I am excited about my team and the core that we were able to retain and the big pieces we’ve added, three in conference transfers and four incoming freshmen,” she said. “We’ve addressed our deficiencies the previous season and the biggest was putting the ball in the hole. As a coach I feel that we did the work to acquire the talent needed to contend for an Atlantic 10 championship.”
Dayton fifth placement shows how its coach Tamika Williams-Jeter has her program moving forward. Last year’s results have been built upon to a squad she feels is her most talented with versatility spread out across the court.
Saint Joseph’s has a different look with a couple of key pieces no longer with the program, but with some different wrinkles and a couple of returners paced by Gabby Casey and Aleah Snead, there is the desire to surprise people.
VCU will also have a different look when it comes to the names on the court. Defense has long been a trademark under Beth O’Boyle, but as she explained the ask was to find more offensive piece and doing that and building upon preseason first teamer Mary-Anna Asare is what has excited her the most.
Duquesne has a team that with Megan McConnell’s departure has become the youngest in the conference, but in its specific style of play, it is also has become the tallest as well.
“We’re really excited about what this year brings,” 13th year coach Dan Burt explained. “We’re the youngest and tallest team in the A-10 this year. Our kids have understood that this is their team, and they have accepted that. I feel like we have 12 or 13 captains on our team right now.”
Saint Louis has a clear mission for the upcoming season, getting back to the championship level it reached in Rebecca Tillett’s first two seasons. While she admitted that her team fell short of that expectation last season, a talented group of freshmen and transfers will look to merge with who returned in an effort to make a clearly stated goal a reality.
George Washington has a new coach this season Ganiyat Adeduntan, though her name is far from new to those in Foggy Bottom as she was on the 2018 Atlantic 10 Championship winning George Washington staff.
“Being the coach is humbling, and I am very grateful,” promised Adeduntan. “The A-10 has been awesome. It’s been about five months since I’ve started, and the days are flying by and I’m having a lot of fun. Finding everyone on and off the court, it’s all starting to come together. It’s going to be a big part of how we get this thing rolling.”
There is genuine excitement at Fordham about where the team is at. Mitchell has been able to build something that she feels will allow for multiple offensive weapons and defensively can prove to be disruptive, allowing for summer practices to intentionally be built upon developing.
La Salle coach Mountain MacGillivray was pleased with where his side was as last year’s campaign reached its conclusion winning two of the final three regular season games with a lot of new pieces. That momentum has carried over with players understanding capabilities and what that looks like.
Loyola Chicago coach Allison Guth could not help but smile talking about her team explaining how joyful the group is to coach and that the buy in is quite present. In short, she believes something really special is brewing.
St. Bonaventure has an eagerness to see how its season goes. Coach Jim Crowley admits his first couple seasons since returning to the program have been a challenge, but he has been able to put together a roster that fits how the team plays, a certain maturity level and has been able to build better relationships.
This year’s media day may have brought more smiles than any of its predecessors and for good reason. The celebration of 50 years allowed coaches, student-athletes and guests alike to all be reflective, all in preparation for basketball season to tip off Nov. 3.