Atlantic 10 shows Rhode Island basketball no respect; here's where the Rams were picked
NEW YORK — Which evaluation will prove true over the next six months?
Archie Miller believes his University of Rhode Island men’s basketball team has the needed talent to be competitive in the Atlantic 10. His fellow head coaches and a sampling of league media members think otherwise.
The Rams were selected 14th in the conference’s preseason poll, which was released Tuesday morning at Barclays Center. Only La Salle carries a bleaker outlook into the 2023-24 season, voted last among ballots cast.
“There’s a lot of unknowns about our group,” Miller said. “We’re going to surprise some people. I’ve been at a lot of places and I’ve been doing this long enough to know we have a lot of talent.”
URI was also shut out when it came to individual honors. None of the 18 preseason all-conference slots or five places on the all-defensive teams went to a member of the Rams. They’re coming off a 9-22 campaign in Miller’s debut and suffered a blowout loss to the Explorers in the opening round of last spring’s conference tournament.
“The individual accolades and all the things the guys want don’t come without winning,” Miller said. “There is no individual success or accolades without team success.
“I think that’s the thing we’re trying to really beat down right now with our team — the identity, how you have to work every day. What you want to do as a group has to trump the individual. There has to be sacrifice.”
More: Rhode Island women's basketball team opens its season with a Homecoming Hoopfest
Rory Stewart, Brandon Weston and Josaphat Bilau are the lone returners on a roster that added nine new scholarship players. URI pulled in four transfers — Zek Montgomery (Bradley), Luis Kortright (Quinnipiac), Jaden House (High Point) and David Green (Louisiana Tech) — who could all raise the program's floor. Green is still waiting on an eligibility waiver decision from the NCAA, but Montgomery, Kortright and House should all be candidates to start on opening night against Central Connecticut State.
“We’re all underdogs,” Kortright said. “We all came from lower programs — teams that weren’t as good as Rhode Island. Now that we get to put on a Rhode Island jersey we can take a stand and make a name in the A-10 conference.”
Junior college addition Tyson Brown should be in the frontcourt mix immediately while Always Wright figures to spell Kortright at the point guard spot. David Fuchs could be the most likely to have an early opportunity among three freshmen — Bilau (knee) is out until sometime around the new year and Jeremy Foumena is coming off a redshirt season.
“I’m sure we’re like a lot of teams right now — optimistic, excited and happy,” Miller said. “We put in a lot of hard work this offseason.
“We not only assembled the group and put in the work, but we’re very, very motivated. We’re really, really excited about our team. We have a chance to do some really good things.”
Dayton received 20 first-place votes as the league favorite and had a pair of players recognized. DaRon Holmes II was selected to both the first team and all-defensive team while Malachi Smith was picked to the second team. VCU, St. Bonaventure, Duquesne, Saint Joseph’s and Saint Louis rounded out the top six.
Fordham received a lone first-place vote while being slotted seventh. Loyola Chicago, George Washington, George Mason, Richmond and Davidson filled out the next group of six. Massachusetts, URI and La Salle were stuck in the bottom three.
Dae Dae Grant (Duquesne), James Bishop IV (George Washington), Daryl Banks III (St. Bonaventure), Erik Reynolds II (Saint Joseph’s) and Gibson Jimerson (Saint Louis) joined Holmes on the first team. Jimmy Clark III (Duquesne), Maximus Edwards (George Washington), Khalil Brantley (La Salle), Philip Alston (Loyola Chicago) and Max Shulga (VCU) were named to the second team alongside Smith. Ronald Polite III (George Mason), Matt Cross (Massachusetts), Neal Quinn (Richmond), Chad Venning (St. Bonaventure), Cameron Brown (Saint Joseph’s) and Sean Bairstow (VCU) made up the third team.
Grant Huffman (Davidson), Clarke, Kyle Rose (Fordham) and Abdou Tsimbila (Fordham) joined Holmes on the all-defensive team.
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This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: The Rams were selected 14th in the conference’s preseason poll
