St. Bonaventure Bonnies: 25-7, 14-4 in the Atlantic 10 Conference
Head coach: Mark Schmidt (11th season)
Players to watch: Jaylen Adams (19.8 PPG, 5.4 APG, 45.7 3FG%); Matt Mobley (18.5 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 38.3 3FG%); Courtney Stockard (12.9 PPG, 6.4 APG, 49.1 FG%)
Season recap: St. Bonaventure’s Cinderella hopes start and end with its dynamic backcourt featuring first-team Atlantic 10 honorees Jaylen Adams and Matt Mobley. Adams has been sensational this season since returning from an injury that sidelined him for most of nonconference play, dropping 40-plus point outings in back-to-back games earlier this season.
Especially when Adams is off, Mobley has picked his game up this season, dropping 29 in the Bonnies’ 83-77 victory against Richmond in the conference quarterfinals, a game in which Adams scored just five while battling foul trouble.
Outside of its dynamic senior backcourt, though, St. Bonaventure has little depth and height, with only one player—backup center Amadi Ikpeze—standing taller than 6-foot-10. The Bonnies choose to play small, a strategy that has worked wonders for them in wins at Syracuse and against Rhode Island this season.
How they make a run: Adams takes his game to another level as he cements his status as one of the most dangerous guards in the nation, and Mobley plays a perfect second fiddle as St. Bonaventure makes the Sweet 16.
How they falter: The Bonnies get overwhelmed with a size mismatch, and Adams and Mobley cannot convert enough 3-pointers to get out of its play-in game.
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