City of Basketball Love

Stephen Pianovich (@SPianovich)
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Phil Martelli spent the end of his weekend watching the last four St. Bonaventure games. The conclusion of the film session resulted in one main point he wanted to convey to his team.

“They have real firepower,” the 21st-year St. Joseph’s coach said. “Right now, the first sentence for my team is that I think this is the best offensive team we’ve played since Villanova.”

St. Joe’s faces the Bonnies on Wednesday (7 p.m. at Hagan Arena), and the team’s seven-game winning streak will be tested by an offense that boasts three scorers averaging at least 16 points per game. St. Bonaventure entered the week fourth in the Atlantic 10 in scoring at 77.8 points per game, and the team’s 82.2 PPG mark in conference play ranks second in the league.

The Bonnies’ three-headed scoring monster is led by Marcus Posley, whose 19.5 PPG average is the fifth-best mark in the A-10. Sharp shooter Jaylen Adams (17.8 PPG and a 44 3-point percentage) and big man Dion Wright (16.1 PPG, 9.2 rebounds per game) round out the trio that makes St. Bonaventure tough to prepare for.

“These three guys, Posley, Adams and Wright, are scoring the ball – 61 points per game with three guys,” Martelli said. “It’s extraordinary the number of plays they run and the number of opportunities they present to their players.”

In addition to the high-scoring offense, the Bonnies also have recent success against the Hawks on their side. St. Bonaventure beat St. Joe’s three times last season, including a win in the conference tournament which ended the Hawks’ season. The Bonnies have also won their last two trips in Hagan Arena – a 10-point overtime win last season and another road victory in 2013.

But anyone who has followed St. Joe’s this season knows that it’s a different team. And that includes St. Bonaventure coach Mark Schmidt.

“Well coached, a very good offensive team,” Schmidt said of St. Joe’s. “They go small and their forwards can shoot the ball. I think (Isaiah) Miles is one of the leading candidates for (A-10) Player of the Year.

“He’s just a really good player. He’s shooting the ball, his body has changed, he creates when he sets that ball screen – that’s really hard to guard when they have (DeAndre’) Bembry coming off with him screening and popping. (Shavar) Newkirk is much improved. Their players have taken that next step in skill development.”

Schmidt also went on to credit the Hawks’ defense, which was the driving factor in their latest win, a 64-55 road win at Rhode Island on Saturday.

In that game, the Hawks went 1-for-15 on 3-pointers, and had 13 turnovers to just four assists. But they beat the Rams on the glass (42-38) and held them to 19 first-half points and a 31.7 shooting percentage for the game.

“We had about 15 or 17 down and dirty plays that we made,” Martelli said. “We have to maintain balance, and every night is not going to be beautiful at the offensive end. As long as the results stay that way, we’ll improve from there.”

The Hawks have allowed only 65.8 PPG in conference play, a mark that has them as the third-best defense in the A-10. They’ll need it to show up again Wednesday if they want their 15th win in 16 games.