Despite two straight losses, St. Joseph’s has ‘good mojo’ heading into the A-10 tournament. Here’s why.
The Hawks head into the women's tournament determined to "play for each other" as they open play in Friday's quarterfinals against Rhode Island or George Washington.
After bowing out in its first game of the Atlantic 10 women’s basketball tournament last season, St. Joseph’s is prepared “to go the distance,” head coach Cindy Griffin said.
A significant focus, she said, is on playing “with and for each other.”
“You want to play for the person next to you,” she said. “You know you want to play for yourself first and foremost, right? But you always want to play for the person to your right and to your left and in front and back. That’s what this team has built its success on.”
St. Joe’s (21-8, 12-6 A-10) secured the fourth seed, marking the second year in a row it entered the conference tournament with a double bye. Griffin believes it will give her team “the best opportunity” to win the tournament.
“We definitely caught a break, and I see that as good mojo going into the tournament,” Griffin said. “Being able to get the double bye, it’s not the end-all, but it’s certainly something that will help us.”
Last season, St. Joe’s lost to Rhode Island in the quarterfinals. This season, the Hawks could face the Rams again, or they might see George Washington, depending on the result of the teams’ second-round showdown. No matter their opponent, Griffin said that getting through that first game is crucial to St. Joe’s finding its footing in the rest of the tournament.
“I always think the first game is always the hardest because you’re maybe overthinking things a little bit, maybe some jitters here and there,” Griffin said. “But, once you get past the first one, obviously it gets a little harder, but I also think you get your feet wet a little bit more in the tournament setting.”
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St. Joe’s enters the tournament after dropping the last two games of the regular season, first to Dayton and then to top-seeded Richmond. But Griffin and the Hawks drew some positives from those losses, including the belief that if it came down to it, they could take down the Spiders (26-5, 17-1).
“I feel good about where we are. We’ve been so close in these last couple games,” Griffin said. “I do feel with the positivity of this team and the relentlessness that there’s more that this team needs to prove, and I think they’re ready to do that with the situation that we’re in right now.”
Before the tournament’s start, three Hawks, Laura Ziegler, Mackenzie Smith, and Talya Brugler, earned all-conference honors, while sophomore Aleah Snead was named the conference’s Sixth Woman of the Year. Ziegler also was named one of five finalists for the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year award.
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Griffin knows the Hawks’ game “isn’t perfect,” but she does believe her veteran team is firing on all cylinders at the right time. But for now, they’ll be taking it five minutes at a time and not getting too far ahead of themselves.
“We’ll be really prepared, and we’ll be ready to compete,” Griffin said. “Just appreciate the time that we have together, and it’s time to compete. This is something that this team has set as our goal, to win an A-10 championship. But, you know, you’ve got to win three, so we’ve got to beat the first opponent.”
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