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URI Tournament Outlook

Rhode Island was recently listed as one of the next four out (Joe Lunardi Bracketology) for the upcoming March Madness tournament. The Rams started the season with victories in the first four games but started to slide out of the rankings after losses at the hands of Duke, Valparaiso, Providence, and Houston. However, they have won their last three and opened conference play with a 90-56 win over St. Louis. With A-10 play underway, can Rhode Island sustain the level of success needed to make it to the tournament?

A major question facing the Rams is their play on the road. The win over St. Louis was their first victory of the season away from the Ryan Center. Of the eight upcoming January games, five are at home which bodes well for Rhode Island and their 7-0 home record. January will see the Rams travel to Dayton, Duquesne, and Richmond for a series of away games which should prove as a strong test. Dayton boasts a 7-1 home record while Duquesne and Richmond have enjoyed winning records on their home courts as well.Should the Rams continue their success at the Ryan Center and overcome their road struggles through their eight January games then they it is feasible that they improve their tournament stock.

The Rams will need to have several of their surging players continue to perform at a high level with E.C. Matthews sitting atop of that list. Matthews has been the Ram's leading scorer and has provided double-digit points over four of the past five games. Consistency is a concern with Matthews as he scored 31 against Houston and then disappeared against Holy Cross (zero points). Kuran Iverson has been a strong contributor as of late and was the leading scorer in the A-10 opener against St. Louis with 19 points. Outside of offense, the Rams have received an admirable effort from freshmen Cyril Langevine over the past two games. The freshmen has pulled down 30 rebounds over the past two games. Langevine's playing time has increased substantially over the past five games and appears to indicate an uptick in his value to head coach Dan Hurley.

The season is young and we have much to learn about this Ram's squad but they have shown great potential over the past several games. Rhode Island has the opportunity to take advantage of a home friendly schedule in January to help improve their March Madness stock. However, Dan Hurley and his Rams will have to navigate through four away games in February and a trip to Pittsburgh for the A-10 tournament in order to punch their ticket to the dance.

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