Anthony Grant: Atlantic 10 has a chance to be 'really good'

The Dayton Flyers held a public practice Wednesday for University of Dayton students. Members of the Red Scare fan club crowded around the edge of the court at the Cronin Center and watched the team for the first time.

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Coach Anthony Grant addressed the group. Obi Toppin and Jalen Crutcher, both in their third year on campus, delivered a message via a Twitter video.

“We had a great practice,” Toppin said. “A lot of people showed up. We had food, pictures, and the fans just watched us play.”

“Thank you all for coming out,” Crutcher said.

“Go Flyers,” Toppin added.

The rest of the Flyer Faithful will have to wait until Nov. 2 when the Flyers play Cedarville University in an exhibition game to see the 2019-20 team in action, but the release of the Atlantic 10 Conference preseason poll at media day on Thursday at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn marks another milestone on the march to the college basketball.

The 14 A-10 head coaches and select media members picked Dayton to finish third, which is they finished last season. The Flyers, who were 21-12 overall and 13-5 in the A-10 last season, received one first-place vote. The Flyers return three players who ended the season as starters in March, including the redshirt sophomore forward Toppin, a preseason first-team pick, and Crutcher, a junior guard who made the second team.

“Like I always say, what we do is irrespective of any poll,” Grant said. “Our goals don’t change every year. We try to compete for championships and NCAA tournament berths. All the other stuff is great for fans and the excitement leading up to the year, but for me as a coach, I don’t really put a lot of stock in it.”

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The top three of the poll mirrors the standings last season. Virginia Commonwealth, which returns four starters, is the preseason favorite and received 19 first-place votes after winning the regular-season title with a 16-2 mark. VCU senior guard Marcus Evans made the first team, while senior guard De’Riante Jenkins and junior forward Marcus Santos-Silva made the third team.

Davidson, which finished second at 14-4 last season, was picked to finish second again and received eight first-place votes. The Wildcats return senior guard Jon Axel Gudmundsson, the reining A-10 Player of the Year, and junior guard Kellan Grady, both of whom made the first team.

Rhode Island was picked fourth and was followed by St. Bonaventure, Richmond, Saint Louis, Duquesne, George Mason, La Salle, Massachusetts, George Washington, Saint Joseph’s and Fordham.

A-10 teams failed to win a game in the NCAA tournament or the NIT in March for the first time, but the conference is expected to be much stronger — at least at the top. VCU will begin the season as the 25th-ranked team in the Associated Press poll. Davidson and Dayton also received votes.

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“I think the league has a chance to be really good this year,” Grant said. “Teams bring back a lot and add some pieces that will make conference play really exciting, but my focus right now is just on trying to get us better as a team as we prepare for the start of the season.”

Dayton started practice Oct. 1 and will see outside competition for the first time Saturday when it plays Cincinnati in a closed-door scrimmage at Fifth Third Arena. The season opener, Nov. 9 against Indiana State, follows two weeks later. Getting everybody healthy by then will be important. Grant was asked Thursday if there were any serious health concerns with his team.

“I don’t think so,” he said. “To be honest with you, we haven’t had our whole team at all the whole year. There have been a variety of guys out for a variety of reasons, but the guys that are available, they’re working hard and trying to get themselves ready for the season.”

PRESEASON POLL (First-place votes in parenthesis)

1. VCU (19). 381

2. Davidson (8), 359

3. Dayton (1), 341

4. Rhode Island, 283

5. St. Bonaventure, 280

6. Richmond, 248

7. Saint Louis, 225

8. Duquesne, 196

9. George Mason, 185

10. La Salle, 133

11. Massachusetts, 103