Billy Lange is in his sixth season as Saint Joseph's coach. (Photo: Saint Joseph's Athletics/Atlantic 10 Conference)
By AARON BRACY
December 28, 2024
PHILADELPHIA – Saint Joseph’s coach Billy Lange has a message to anyone and everyone about the Atlantic 10 Conference: Don’t call it a mid-major league.
Lange’s Hawks wrapped up nonconference play with a solid 76-58 victory over Delaware State on Saturday at Hagan Arena, winning for the third straight contest without point guard Xzayvier Brown (strained hamstring). St. Joe’s finished 9-4 prior to Atlantic 10 competition, which begins at 2 o’clock on Tuesday against UMass at Hagan.
After the win over the Hornets, Jake Copestick of the Big 5 podcast asked the first question to Lange at the postgame press conference:
Q: “There are only two mid-major conferences that have six teams in the top 100 of the (NCAA) Net (Rankings), Atlantic 10 being one of them. How good is this league? How big of a challenge is this going to be for you guys?”
It was a chance for Lange to say how good the A-10 has been. And he did, kind of. But he also laid a gauntlet down for anyone who calls the A-10 a “mid-major.”
“It’s a high-major league,” Lange said. “It’s only a mid-major league because (the media) categorize it like that. The world is whatever the media says. There’s no creative thought. There’s no actionable reality. How can we be a mid-major league when you look at the wins the conference has had? It’s an unfair moniker that is leading to a really stressful March. It’s putting coaches’ jobs in jeopardy. It’s hurting our guys, to keep our guys. Guys didn’t used to leave this league. They want to be in this league.”
It’s not the first time Lange has shared his thoughts on “high-major” vs. “mid-major.”
Call it what you want. The fact is that Lange is correct that the A-10 has had a very successful nonconference run, one that would’ve looked even better if Loyola Chicago didn’t trip up during a Christmas trip to Hawaii.
Still, the Hawks (No. 87) entered Saturday as one of six teams in the league ranked in the top 100 in KenPom, joining Dayton (32), VCU (47), St. Bonaventure (80), George Mason (83), and Rhode Island (89). Dayton has wins over UConn and Marquette, St. Bonaventure and Rhode Island both beat Providence, and the Hawks beat Texas Tech and Virginia Tech.
“I’m telling you, (the media) is wrong,” Lange said. “It’s not a mid-major league. It’s just not true.”
Lange knows the competition won’t be easy when the Hawks, who were picked to finish third in the A-10 in the preseason, host the Minutemen on Tuesday.
“We’re prepared for the league,” he said. “I don’t need anybody to tell us how good the league is. It’s been good every year since we’ve been here.”
“I’m telling you, (the media) is wrong,” Lange said. “It’s not a mid-major league. It’s just not true.”
The Hawks will roll into Tuesday’s game having won three in a row by a combined 65 points, including last Saturday’s 82-62 win over Virginia Tech at the Palestra. Against Delaware State, St. Joe’s got yet another strong performance from Rasheer Fleming, who had 13 points, 14 rebounds, five assists, three steals, and two blocks in 24 minutes, 22 seconds due to foul trouble.
Derek Simpson elevated his role without Brown for the third consecutive outing, finishing with 12 points and nine assists in this one. And Erik Reynolds II continued to look more like himself, scoring 20 points while pulling within one three-pointer of Pat Carroll for second in school history. Reynolds has made 293 in his career after draining four against the Hornets, pushing aside early-season struggles with the help of his teammates and his faith.
“I feel good,” he said. “Always give credit to my teammates to tell me to keep going. I had to get out of my head a little bit and turned it over to the Lord. I relied on my faith a lot with that and put a lot in His hands. I feel like doing that has lifted a boulder off me. I’m starting to play a lot more free.”
St. Joe’s certainly could use a free and confident Reynolds in the A-10 after an up-and-down nonconference schedule. The Hawks have looked good of late, especially against Virginia Tech, and have really good wins over Texas Tech and Villanova. But those home losses to Princeton, Charleston, and Central Connecticut, particularly the latter, have negatively affected their NCAA at-large positioning.
“There were a couple of games we won that could’ve gone the other way and a couple of games we lost that could’ve gone the other way,” Lange said. “I feel like we are where we are.”
Where they are is in a good spot entering league play. Playing well, St. Joe’s should be a factor in the league. It will be a challenge, though, because the A-10 — and especially the top-half — is really good.
That’s something that Lange already knows and made a major point on Saturday to share with others.
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Aaron Bracy has been covering Philadelphia sports since 1996. Follow Bracy on X: @Aaron_Bracy and like his Facebook and Instagram pages. His book on the 2003-04 Saint Joseph’s men’s basketball team is expected to be published on March 1, 2025. Read a summary and preorder it by clicking HERE. Contact him at aaron@big5hoops.com.