These boys from Richmond have been ranked in the AP Top 25 for the first time in years (and years and years), and are looking forward to the Big Dance with as much anticipation as they did in 1991, when, as a 15-seed, they upset 2-seed Syracuse in the first round.They are led by junior guard Kevin Anderson, who barely checks in at 6-feet, but plays big – averaging 17.5 points per game. He is accompanied in the starting five by juniors Dan Geriot and Justin Harper and seniors David Gonzalvez and Ryan Butler. Gonzalvez is the enthusiastic senior leader of the team, and how he goes, so goes the Spiders.
The Richmond Spiders have a smart (Princeton – class of ’94), young coach in Chris Mooney. He has developed a disciplined team that runs the Princeton-style, slow-down offense. Because this is not the type of offense you see every day, teams are ill-prepared to play them. This could serve them well as they make a run deep into the tournament. My prediction: Elite Eight.
Reasons that Richmond will make the Elite Eight:
1. They are not scared. The coaching staff put together a great schedule for this team in preparation for the tournament. They have good-looking wins over Mississippi State, Florida (ranked #13 at the time), and #17 Temple. If there is such a thing as good losses, they have those two – at South Carolina and at Wake Forest (a loss in OT). Because they have already played some big boys, they are not afraid of the next ones.
2. They play tenacious defense. The methodical Princeton-style offense promotes a slow tempo for the entire game. That offense, combined with their disciplined defense only allows other teams to score 60 points a game. Their record shows that it is not that difficult to score more than that.
Reasons that Richmond will not make the Elite Eight:
1. Live by the sword, die by the sword. Although the Princeton-style offense is usually an asset, it does mean a somewhat low-scoring game. The Spiders are scoring 68 points per game. If they run into a high-flying, full-court-running bunch, they are in trouble.
2. They don’t rebound. The Spiders are outrebounded by 4.6 rebounds per game. If it comes down to whether the Spiders can hit the boards, it will be an early out for Richmond.
