Atlantic 10 Preview: Best Bets 2026-27 Recap
Ryan McIntyre (@Moneyline_Mac) and Troy Chewning (@Troychewning) wrap up all 32 conference previews with the Atlantic 10 basketball preview for 2026-27. Both have VCU and St. Louis on top, and the tournament pick splits with Troy Chewning on the Rams and Ryan McIntyre on Dayton.
Preview 32 Of 32 Ends In The A-10
Thirty-two conference previews, and the guys saved the A-10 for last on purpose. Ryan McIntyre, aka Moneyline Mac, calls it a top-five league on his personal board, a proud conference full of basketball schools. It also sits in the backyard where he and Troy Chewning grew up. Troy checked, and the conference tournament looks like it is back in Pittsburgh again. So the bias is out in the open. Both hosts admit they are Tony Skinn guys at George Mason, and Mac spent three years living in Richmond. But they still handicap the rest of the league straight, and the season tips Sunday morning.
Last season was a two-bid league, and both bids won an NCAA tournament game. St. Louis blew out Georgia, and VCU pulled off what Mac calls the comeback of comebacks. The Rams and the Billikens split the regular season and shared the league title, then VCU won the conference tournament. It nearly became a three-bid league, because Dayton reached the final and only needed to beat VCU. Troy argues that when the top two teams win tournament games as underdogs, the bubble team deserves a look. Behind them, St. Joe’s was the sneaky team, winning 24 games and 13 in league play for Steve Donahue. Meanwhile, George Mason posted another 20-win season, Davidson won 21 and Duquesne went 9-9 in league play. But the Bonnies closed the Schmidt era badly, falling apart in A-10 play after a great non-con.
Mooney, McDonald And The Warm Seats
Chris Mooney is the league’s savvy vet now, in what Mac counts as year 22 at Richmond. He has multiple Sweet 16 trips, even if the portal era doesn’t fit his program. Mike McDonald is the only first-year head coach, taking over the Bonnies after playing there and winning over 500 games. But Mac does not trust Woj having his hands on that program, and he says it more than once. Then come the second-year coaches. Martelli Jr. got VCU to the tournament in year one. Donahue also won coach of the year and shed the interim tag at St. Joe’s. Darius Nichols, who played point guard for Bob Huggins at West Virginia, is in year two at La Salle. So is Magpio at Fordham, and Mac thinks both can take a step.
The warm seats belong to the fifth- and sixth-year coaches. Archie Miller is the first name Mac mentions, at Rhode Island. His second A-10 stop has not matched Dayton, and he needs a top-half finish. Drew Valentine is the other. Loyola won nine games last year, 25 the year before and 10 before that. Because of those swings, Mac calls it a big year for a coach the community loves. Troy also can’t believe Valentine is already in his sixth season. Then there is Anthony Grant, who Mac calls Mr. Consistency and way underappreciated. His Obi Toppin team was headed for a one seed in the COVID year. Mac thinks that group could have reached a Final Four, and Troy says it had a legit title shot.
Buy Richmond And GW, Fade Hawk Hill
Troy goes straight to Mac’s backyard and buys Richmond, and Mac agrees right away. The Spiders won only five conference games last year. But they add the Bucknell kid, Stewart from Penn State and Saran from UC Irvine. Troy expects them back in the six-to-eight range, somewhere around 8-8 in league play. Mac’s own stock up pick is GW, because Caputo’s roster is super old and full of high-major transfers. They add Witherspoon from Pitt, James from Georgia, Shaw from BC and Arceneaux, who was at Houston. Phillips also comes over from Lafayette. GW went 8-10 in the league last year, and Mac sees a good coach ready to climb. Mac also likes La Salle and Fordham to step forward in year two.
The stock down is unanimous, and it’s St. Joe’s. The Hawks went 13-5 in conference, but they lose some of the guards Mac loved last year. First, Mac thinks Donahue caught lightning in a bottle. He has seen this before, where a team rallies around an interim coach and then falls apart the next year. Troy also can’t figure out why the Hawks sit sixth in the new preseason poll. Jaden Glover and Williford are the only guys on the roster he likes. So both hosts fade the Hawks, and Mac is always happy fading Philly. Troy’s verdict is short: Hawk Hill’s dead this year.
Who Wins The League In The Atlantic 10 Basketball Preview
Troy takes St. Louis to win the league, and the reason starts with Robbie Avila coming back. He also likes Kellen Thames, Trey Green and returners who have been around, plus Elijah Strong from South Carolina. Troy flags the temporary restraining orders as an eligibility wild card. But Mac says the Billikens are loaded even if Avila is not back. Mac is not betting against the Siegel Center either. VCU shared the title in Martelli Jr.’s first year and brings back Djokovic, Lewis, Jennings and Bell. They have size and athleticism, and Mac calls VCU a high-major program in the A-10. Together they see a clear top tier that nobody else pushes without injuries. So Mac will be on VCU at Memphis next Saturday.
Both hosts put Dayton third. Troy likes the Flyers adding Hayes from George Mason, but he doesn’t see them pushing the top two. Mac’s case is blunt, because VCU, St. Louis and Dayton have the biggest NIL budgets in the league. Then the order splits. Troy goes George Mason fourth, citing Okogie from Mercer, Eli Jones from UTEP and Emmett Idem from Loyola Maryland. Braden O’Connor also returns and gets asked to do more. Mac takes GW fourth and Mason fifth, betting that Caputo’s transfers finally stay healthy. He sees the two tying at 10-8. Troy admits the Mason pick is a bit of a homer call, and he calls the pair neck and neck.
The Middle Tier And The Basement
Six through eight is a tier. Troy has Fordham sixth, with Rika Schulte, Amir Lindsey from Albany, Lateef Patrick and the Jacobs and Bodia pairing. He thinks St. Joe’s falling is what really lets Fordham climb. Mac goes Richmond sixth, banking on a Mooney bounce-back year. Then Davidson lands seventh for Mac and eighth for Troy. Mac saw last year’s chippy team as a nice step forward for Matt McKillop. He also has Fordham eighth, because Magpio gets more out of less with two or three starters back. Troy slots Richmond seventh. So the same three teams fill the tier, just in a different order.
The back half gets messy. Mac goes La Salle ninth because it is the oldest team in the league. Dockery, Brewer and Johnson return, and Collier comes over from William & Mary. Troy keeps St. Joe’s ninth, since he still thinks Donahue stays out of the basement. Both hosts land on Duquesne tenth, but that pick hinges on Terrence Ginyard playing. Josh Smith from West Georgia and Yoav Berman from Queens also help the Dukes. Then Troy puts La Salle eleventh, while Mac drops St. Joe’s there because he expects regression.
Rhode Island, Loyola and the Bonnies round it out at 12, 13 and 14 on both boards. Both hosts trust Archie Miller more than Drew Valentine, so Rhode Island gets the nod over Loyola. Troy likes getting Hinton and Trip back, plus Dylan Williamson from Towson. Loyola is the wild card, because Malik Diallo, who played at TCU a couple of years ago, missed last season injured. Mac says it would not shock him if Loyola finished fourth. Then come the Bonnies, last for both. Troy says they lost their identity and are leaning on D2 talent against high-major teams. Mac is out, but he will tip his cap if they prove him wrong.
Avila, Martelli Jr. And A Three-Bid Dream
Player of the year is easy. Both hosts take Robbie Avila, who won it last year. Troy notes that picking anyone else basically assumes Avila is ineligible for part of the season. Then coach of the year splits. Troy goes with the St. Louis coach because he has the Billikens winning the league. Mac floats Caputo if GW jumps into the top four, and Troy calls that the only other case. But Mac lands on Martelli Jr. at VCU.
The conference tournament is where they split hardest. Dayton and VCU bring the biggest crowds, and both travel well. Troy still picks VCU in tournament play, because he won’t pick against all those names game after game. Mac goes the other way and takes Dayton. Anthony Grant gets revenge for last year’s title-game loss, beating VCU in the final with Flyer Nation behind him. So Mac’s pick is a three-bid A-10, and he says he’ll pitch it all February and March. Troy also agrees Dayton is the team best built to challenge in a tournament final.
2026-27 College Basketball Conference Previews
Podcast Chapters
00:00 Download the SGPN App Today!
00:59 A-10 Preview 32 of 32
05:08 VCU Rams and Billikens Last Year
08:42 Coaches: Mooney, Valentine and Anthony Grant
15:12 Stock Up and Stock Down: Richmond, GW, St. Joe’s
18:42 Who Wins the League: VCU, St. Louis, Dayton
31:20 Player of the Year, Coach of the Year & Tournament
33:34 Sign-Off & Socials
