In just over a week, before the Atlantic 10 hands out its big trophy to the tournament winner in Washington, D.C., it will hand out smaller ones. Here’s a look at some likely winners of the conference’s postseason awards.
Player of the year — This almost certainly comes down to three players.
St. Bonaventure’s Jaylen Adams was the preseason favorite for the award and has played well enough to earn it with 20.2 points and 5.5 assists per game.
Davidson’s Peyton Aldridge has had a great year on a good team. Statistically, he’s probably had the best season and if the Wildcats were a likely or even bubble NCAA Tournament team, he’d have a better chance. In addition to averaging 20.5 points, he’s got 7.5 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game.
Rhode Island’s Jared Terrell is the best player on the best team and for a lot of voting coaches, that’s how they make their determination.
Coach of the year — This should be a coronation for Rhode Island’s Danny Hurley, who has a ranked team that’s a lock for the NCAA Tournament and clinched the league’s regular season title with a week remaining.
Duquesne’s Keith Dambrot might have had a shot early as he helped lift the moribund Dukes to a respectable start, but they’ve faded down the stretch.
Rookie of the year — Eric Williams of Duquesne averaged 14.6 points, and his 8.8 rebounds are second in the conference. But Davidson’s Kellan Grady is averaging 17.1 points per game, which is ninth in the conference, an average that jumps to 18.6 points per game in league play.
Most Improved — This should be Luwane Pipkins. UMass’ sophomore guard was good last year, but he’s gone from streaky scorer to almost unguardable and leads the conference with 21.5 ppg (24.4 ppg in league play).
He likely won’t be on the all-conference first team. He’s easily one of the top five players in the league this year. But it’s only the coaches voting. Coaches reward older players on teams with better records.
Defensive player of the year — Fordham’s Joseph Chartouny leads the league in steals 3.4 per game and averages 4.8 defensive rebounds. He should be the favorite although the Rams’ struggles could cost him.
MY TOP 10 — 1. Virginia, 2. Michigan State, 3. Villanova, 4. Xavier, 5. Duke, 6. Kansas, 7. Purdue, 8. Cincinnati, 9. Gonzaga, 10. North Carolina.
GAMES OF THE WEEK: Big Ten Tournament — Big boy conference tournament play begins Wednesday in Madison Square Garden, starting a 12-day stretch were the Big 10, the Big East and the ACC all have conference tournaments in New York City. Illinois and Iowa kick things off at 5:30 p.m.
No. 9 North Carolina at No. 5 Duke, Saturday 8 p.m. ESPN — A classic in any season.
ATLANTIC 10 GAME OF THE WEEK: Davidson at St. Bonaventure, Tuesday, 9 p.m. CBSSN — The Wildcats are good enough to pull the upset here and the Bonnies can’t afford a loss as they try to stay on the right side of the NCAA bubble.
BUZZER-BEATER — The Minutemen will begin postseason play March 7 at Capitol One Arena, but several recent former Minutemen around the country will try to extend their seasons starting this week.
Former forward Zach Coleman, who plays for former coach Derek Kellogg, and LIU-Brooklyn are the No. 4 seed in the Northeast Conference Tournament, which is on campus sites beginning Wednesday. Coleman, who battled injuries at UMass, stayed healthy this season. He played 28 of 31 games and averaged 6.7 points and 6.6 rebounds.
Former guard Zach Lewis, former assistant coach Adam Ginsburg and Iona are the No. 4 seed in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament, which begins Thursday at Siena in Albany, New York. Lewis averaged 8.1 points per game.
Demertrius Dyson and Samford are the No. 7 seed in the Southern Conference Tournament, which begins Thursday in Asheville, North Carolina. Dyson, a senior guard, averaged a team-high 15.1 points and 5.0 rebounds in his final season for the Bulldogs.
Former guard Donte Clark, former assistant coach Shyrone Chatman and Texas Southern are in next week’s SWAC Tournament, which begins March 6 on campus sites before heading to Houston. Seeds haven’t been determined yet. Clark averaged 18.1 points and 5.4 rebounds in his final college season.
Seth Berger and Oregon State play in the Pac 12 Tournament in Las Vegas beginning March 7. Berger had a season-high 12 points in an upset win over Oregon and averaged 3.2 points off the bench.
Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com. Get UMass coverage delivered in your Facebook news feed at www.facebook.com/GazetteUMassCoverage