Atlantic 10 Basketball Tournament: Schedule, Odds, Predictions

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Dayton's Nate Santos, left, drives to the basket against Virginia Commonwealth's Michael Belle, right, during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Friday, March 8, 2024, in Dayton, Ohio.
(AP Photo/Jay LaPrete)
Chase Kiddy @chaseakiddy Mar 12, 2024, 5:52 PM
  • The Atlantic 10 basketball tournament will run March 12-17 in Brooklyn.
  • No. 3 seed Dayton (+140) is favored to win.
  • No. 5 seed VCU has made 10 of the last 12 NCAA Tournaments.

The Atlantic 10 has been aggressive in the expansion market over the last 15 years, adding hot commodities like VCU, George Mason, and Loyola Chicago. The result is a conference that’s as competitive as any mid-major at the top of the table.

This year’s tournament has unique selection drama because of one team in particular, making it one of the most fascinating NCAA conference basketball tournaments to tune in for. 

Naturally, BetMGM has NCAA basketball odds for both the single games and the championship market. 

Atlantic 10 Tournament Schedule

The Atlantic 10 men’s basketball tournament runs March 12-17 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

  • Game 1: No. 12 Fordham vs. No. 13 Davidson (March 12)
  • Game 2: No. 10 La Salle vs. No. 15 George Washington (March 12)
  • Game 3: No. 11 Rhode Island vs. No. 14 Saint Louis (March 12)
  • Game 4: No. 8 George Mason vs. No. 9 Saint Joseph’s (March 13)
  • Game 5: No. 5 VCU vs. Game 1 Winner (March 13)
  • Game 6: No. 7 St. Bonaventure’s vs. Game 2 Winner (March 13)
  • Game 7: No. 6 Duquesne vs. Game 3 Winner (March 13)
  • Game 8: No. 1 Richmond vs. Game 4 Winner (March 14)
  • Game 9: No. 4 UMass vs. Game 5 Winner (March 14)
  • Game 10: No. 2 Loyola Chicago vs. Game 6 Winner (March 14)
  • Game 11: No. 3 Dayton vs. Game 7 Winner (March 14)
  • Game 12: Game 8 Winner vs. Game 9 Winner (March 15)
  • Game 13: Game 10 Winner vs. Game 11 Winner (March 15)
  • Game 14: Game 12 Winner vs. Game 13 Winner (March 16)

Atlantic 10 Tournament Odds

TeamOdds
Dayton+150
Richmond+450
UMass+600
Loyola Chicago+650
VCU+1000
Duquesne+1200
St. Bonaventure+1200
George Mason+1600
Saint Joseph's +2000
Davidson+5000
La Salle+10000
Fordham+15000
George Washington+20000
Saint Louis+20000
Rhode Island+20000

Atlantic 10 Tournament Prediction

Loyola Chicago (+650) will win the Atlantic 10 Tournament and earn the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

While Dayton is the team that gets all the hype, the Flyers have played poorly outside of Ohio over the last two months. These odds just shouldn’t be this lopsided.

I’ll take a shot with an experienced Loyola program that’s 10-1 since Jan. 30 and priced at a rich number.

Here are a couple of other notes to consider:

Dayton’s Unique Position

It’s unusual to have the third-place team of a mid-major conference in clear position to earn an at-large NCAA Tournament berth, but that’s exactly what’s happened with the 2024 Dayton Flyers. DaRon Holmes is a likely NBA draft pick, and the Flyers scored nonconference wins against LSU, St. John’s, SMU, Troy, and Cincinnati. 

Thus, Dayton’s presence flips the usual mid-major tournament calculation completely on its head. Typically, a win from a lower-seeded team often creates bid-steal situations in strong mid-majors like the A10. Instead, Dayton could actually save a bid by winning this tournament.

Take this year’s Missouri Valley Conference Tournament as an example. Indiana State was the No. 1 seed and best team, but the Sycamores lost in the championship round to Drake. Drake secured the automatic bid, and now Indiana State is projected to receive an at-large bid that Drake would have missed. The MVC went from a likely 1-bid league to a likely 2-bid league because of a conference tournament upset.

If chalk holds in the Atlantic 10, No. 1 seed Richmond will receive the automatic bid, and Dayton will receive an at-large bid. But because none of the remaining A10 teams have a strong enough team resume to merit at-large consideration, a Dayton tournament championship would actually reduce the conference’s representation in the NCAA Tournament.

This leaves the Atlantic 10 in the uncomfortable but logically inevitable position of rooting against the Flyers in their own conference tournament. There’s something you don’t see every day. 

Can VCU Figure It Out Yet Again?

Since the Rams won that fateful NCAA Tournament bid with Shaka Smart in 2011, VCU has been on something of a qualifying tear. 

The team has rarely been the clear top team in its conference – it was the No. 4 seed in the 2011 CAA Tournament – but often finds a way into a conference autobid or a worthy at-large profile. (Speaking of which: here’s the VCU tournament resume for this season.)

VCU is the No. 5 seed in this year’s tournament and ended the regular season with consecutive losses to Richmond, Duquesne, and Dayton. But the Rams have still made the Big Dance in 10 of the last 12 years the tournament has been held. Can they do it again this year?

  • 2023-24 Atlantic 10 Standings
    Team Conf. Wins Conf. Losses Win Pct.
    Loyola Chi. 15 3 .833
    Richmond 15 3 .833
    Dayton 14 4 .778
    UMass 11 7 .611
    VCU 11 7 .611
    Duquesne 10 8 .556
    George Mason 9 9 .500
    Saint Joseph’s 9 9 .500
    St. Bona. 9 9 .500
    La Salle 6 12 .333
    Fordham 6 12 .333
    Rhode Island 6 12 .333
    Davidson 5 13 .278
    Saint Louis 5 13 .278
    George Wash. 4 14 .222
  • Atlantic 10 Tournament Champions
    Year Winner Runner-Up
    1977 Duquesne Villanova
    1978 Villanova West Virginia
    1979 Rutgers Pittsburgh
    1980 Villanova West Virginia
    1981 Pittsburgh Duquesne
    1982 Pittsburgh West Virginia
    1983 West Virginia Temple
    1984 West Virginia St. Bonaventure
    1985 Temple Rutgers
    1986 Saint Joseph’s West Virginia
    1987 Temple George Washington
    1988 Temple Rhode Island
    1989 Rutgers Penn State
    1990 Temple Massachusetts
    1991 Penn State George Washington
    1992 Massachusetts West Virginia
    1993 Massachusetts Temple
    1994 Massachusetts Temple
    1995 Massachusetts Temple
    1996 Massachusetts Temple
    1997 Saint Joseph’s Rhode Island
    1998 Xavier George Washington
    1999 Rhode Island Temple
    2000 Temple St. Bonaventure
    2001 Temple Massachusetts
    2002 Xavier Richmond
    2003 Dayton Temple
    2004 Xavier Dayton
    2005 George Washington Saint Joseph’s
    2006 Xavier Saint Joseph’s
    2007 George Washington Rhode Island
    2008 Temple Saint Joseph’s
    2009 Temple Duquesne
    2010 Temple Richmond
    2011 Richmond Dayton
    2012 St. Bonaventure Xavier
    2013 Saint Louis VCU
    2014 Saint Joseph’s VCU
    2015 VCU Dayton
    2016 Saint Joseph’s VCU
    2017 Rhode Island VCU
    2018 Davidson Rhode Island
    2019 Saint Louis St. Bonaventure
    2021 St. Bonaventure VCU
    2022 Richmond Davidson
    2023 VCU Dayton
  • Most Atlantic 10 Tournament Championships
    Team Championships
    Temple 9
    Massachusetts 5
    Xavier 4
    Saint Joseph’s 4
    George Washington 2
    Pittsburgh 2
    Richmond 2
    Rhode Island 2
    Rutgers 2
    Saint Louis 2
    St. Bonaventure 2
    VCU 2
    Villanova 2
    West Virginia 2
    Davidson 1
    Dayton 1
    Duquesne 1
    Penn State 1

Conference Tournament Previews & Predictions

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About the Author

Chase Kiddy

Read More @chaseakiddy

Chase Kiddy is a writer for BetMGM and co-host of The Lion's Edge, an NFL and college football podcast available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and everywhere else. He has also written for a number of print and online outlets, including the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Washington Post, Daily News-Record, and HERO Sports. His first novel, Cave Paintings, is in development.

Chase Kiddy is a writer for BetMGM and co-host of The Lion's Edge, an NFL and college football podcast available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and everywhere else. He has also written for a number of print and online outlets, including the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Washington Post, Daily News-Record, and HERO Sports. His first novel, Cave Paintings, is in development.