Saint Joe’s vs St. Bonaventure Odds, Pick for Friday

You won't find a more balanced Atlantic 10 matchup than the No. 87 team in KenPom — St. Bonaventure — against the No. 88 team — Saint Joseph's.

The teams enter the contest trending in different directions — the Hawks have won three straight and the Bonnies have lost two straight.

Saint Joe's is a few bounces away from sitting at 6-0 instead of 3-3 in A-10 play. The Hawks' losses came by 10 total points, so some luck is bound to fall in their direction.

Billy Lange relies on a trio of guards to maximize scoring. The Hawks' star — Erik Reynolds II (18.2 points, 41% from 3) — gets help from skilled point guard Lynn Greer III (11.6 points, 5.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists) and freshman sniper Xzayvier Brown (11.6 points, 45.8% from 3).

We saw how dangerous Saint Joe's is when those three score consistently; it beat Villanova and handed Princeton its only loss so far.

Reynolds scored 31 points in the Hawks' win over UMass last week. I'd argue he's the best guard in the Atlantic 10 because of his scoring and defensive prowess. He's a high-major player sitting at Saint Joe's.

The scoring for the Hawks typically comes from deep, as they attempt 3s on 48% of their field goals. It's a pretty good shooting squad too, as the Hawks are connecting on 37% of shots from 3.

Saint Joe's is no slouch from inside the arc, though, hitting on 52% of 2-point field goals. That's not as elite as its dynamite 3-point percentage, but it's good enough to keep defenses honest.

Speaking of defenses, the Bonnies boast one of the A-10's best defenses. It's no surprise, as Mark Schmidt is one of the more methodical and well-schooled coaches in the Atlantic 10. His best teams in Olean were strong on the defensive end.

This year's team ranks 70th in Defensive Efficiency, according to KenPom.

St. Bonaventure is outstanding at defending the perimeter, allowing only 30% shooting on 3s. The volume is high, as opponents shoot from deep 36% of the time against the Bonnies. But they just don't make them efficiently, and that's a great formula against Saint Joe's.

Meanwhile, on offense, things could look different based on Mika Adams-Woods' questionable status. The super senior is the team's second-leading scorer with 13.2 points per game.

Charles Pride and Moses Flowers must step up the scoring if Adams-Woods remains out. Pride is more than capable, as he's someone who previously averaged over 20 points per game at Bryant. Flowers averages nine points per game and shoots 40%  from 3.

The biggest factor is dominant forward Chad Venning. He's arguably the best A-10 big outside of Dayton's DaRon Holmes II, who's an All-American candidate. Venning is extremely physical and uses his massive 6-foot-11, 275-pound frame to his advantage.

Saint Joe's defense slowed down two of the best forwards in the league, limiting Loyola's Philip Alston to 6-of-16 shooting and UMass forward Josh Cohen to 2-of-7 shooting. The combo of 7-footer Christ Essandoko and Rasheer Fleming excels at defending the post.

I can't back the Bonnies without knowing Adams-Woods' status. He's that important to St. Bonaventure's offensive attack, and it's facing a team with some serious potential in Saint Joe's.

Saint Joe's offense caters to out-scoring teams, and St. Bonaventure wants a slow, defensive game. That rules in the Hawks' favor.

Reynolds is the best player on the floor too, so that won't hurt.

Pick: Saint Joe's +3 (Play to +2.5)